Belleville puts city manager in charge of emergency decisions

The City of Belleville took all non-essential items off its agenda for Monday’s city council meeting and concentrated on an “Emergency Plan.”
During an hour-long discussion, the council named interim City Manager Tracey Schultz Kobylarz as the point person for outside agencies to call during an emergency and that she is the lead in the development and implementation of Emergency Operations and can declare an emergency in the city.
They also voted to request the Downtown Development Authority to abandon its present policy on use of the LED information sign on Main Street to allow for emergency notices and support for businesses trying to survive during shutdowns.
They also voted to have Kobylarz acquire the email domain name of bellevilleonthelake.com for the city at a cost of $3.33 per person for about 20 names.
Also, authorized Police Chief David Robinson to sign the city up for a Nixel account at a cost not to exceed $5,000, so information can be disseminated.
Kobylarz said she and Chief Robinson have been working on plans to make sure the residents of the city of Belleville are safe.
She said city staff cleaned city hall with disinfectants and the council will be pleasantly surprised if they go around and see the work done.
She said the situation with COVID-19 is changing rapidly. Last Friday, people were not to gather in groups of 250 and the St. Patrick’s Day party had to be canceled. Then it was 100, then 50, and now its 10 people.
She said it is a recommendation and not a mandate. Kobylarz had spaced the five city council seats about six feet apart, with a few seats in the audience set apart, with printed explanations on top of each seat. She tried to allow just 10 people in the room, but it turned out to be 12. A fire fighter and a police officer waited in the hallway outside the meeting room.
Kobylarz said the city had calls from Beaumont Hospital, the Michigan Municipal League, and Wayne County and the same information was in all three calls. She said there was some confusion about who was the point person to contact in the city for emergencies and to make the decisions.
She said she consulted the city charter and this was not stated.
Councilman Ken Voigt said it was wise to make the city manager the point person, but he would like her to have input from police and fire.
“If a person in our city is determined to have COVID-19, they have to have someone to alert,” Kobylarz said. She said in Grosse Pointe, the mayor learned of a case in the city from a member of council.
Although she is the supervisor of Redford Township, Kobylarz said she doesn’t run the township.
“We want to make sure people know … who that is,” she said. “So, we’re singing from the same hymn book.”
“We are in the process of determining whether people can work from home, but that is very limited,” she said. “They have to take money from the lockbox and enter it into the computer.”
Councilman Tom Fielder said Belleville has a city manager form of government with a weak mayor. The city manager should do whatever she has to do if she can’t contact the mayor first.
“I appreciate the vote of confidence,” Kobylarz said. “If there was no one around, I would make a decision, at least with the police chief, so “it’s not made under a bushel.”
Councilman Fielder pointed out that the city manager and the police chief are not residents of the city. What if something happens in the middle of the night?
Chief Robinson said he is often called at night and when there is any incident of a critical nature or of interest he will let the city manager know.
He said this corona virus situation could last until August, no one knows.
“The more we can do to flatten the curve, the better,” he said. “Basically, we are working on a plan especially for this virus. This is unique … and there are orders form the county, state, and federal governments… The country is in a state of emergency…”
There was more discussion on resources and Fire Chief Brian Loranger said he gave the police department ten masks from the fire department.
Mayor Kerreen Conley said communication is going to be critical. If a course of action is determined, it needs to be shared with the city council.
“We don’t want to be out in the public and not know what is going on,” Mayor Conley said.
Fire Chief Loranger, who is also a chiropractor, advised everyone to take Vitamin D and Vitamin C, and take food with Vitamin D because it binds to fat. He said the vitamins will keep the immune system up.
“Those with compromised immune systems are the ones who are dying,” he said.
Mayor Conley said she would like to minimize the number of meetings that bring people together in rooms. She said the city spent a lot of money on the web site and she would like to see notices put on the web site. She said the website was stagnant previously and she doesn’t want it to be that way now.
Mayor Conley said water bills that are sent out could have notices included.
Councilman Fielder said the council didn’t anticipate the new police chief and the new city manager having this trial to be a part of “the tribe,” but that’s the way it turned out.
After it was insinuated the Strawberry Fest wouldn’t be held this year, Councilman Voigt said Music Lakeside probably wouldn’t be held, either.
“This is the darndest thing I’ve ever seen,” Voigt said. “This will really test our mettle as a nation. God help us.”
In other business at the one-hour-and-eight-minute meeting, the council:
• Opted out of the Wayne County PAYS Program which is based on foreclosure rates since Belleville has zero property in foreclosure; and
• Approved $415,515.06 in accounts payable and the following purchases in excess of $500: to Blue Ribbon Contracting, $6,972.25 for a water main break at Wabash and South streets, and $2,915 for repair of broken city water service at 41 Potter Dr.; to Morton Salt, $4,641.88 for road salt; and to RJ Perry Construction, $2,232 for ceiling repair in office at city hall.