County Continues Deliberations on Road Commission Expansion
Board Calls for Second Public Hearing
By Karen Gould

Mackinac County commissioners will not decide anytime soon to increase the size of the road commission from three to five members, but listened to the opinions of 19 county residents, including two road commissioners, at a public hearing on the matter Thursday, April 19. County commissioners say they likely will hold a second hearing before making a decision.

Expanding the road board received mixed testimony, and some suggestions included hiring more road workers, rather than beefing up the commission, and cutting commissioner retirement benefits.

Counties now have the option to increase the road commission from three to five members and to decide whether they should be elected or appointed.

"I've been on the commission going on eight years, and at most of our hearings we have two or three people," said County Commissioner Carl Frazier, to the more than 40 people in attendance. "It shows there are some issues here because you folks are here."

Commissioners need time to weigh the pros and cons of increasing the road board, he said. During the hearing, nine residents said they wanted a five-member road board, while four indicated they were satisfied with its current size. Four speakers said the board should be elected, and three preferred appointed members. Six speakers addressed either the election process or other road matters.

"My personal opinion [is] it's not going to be quick," said Mr. Frazier of the ultimate decision. "It's going to take some time and it's going to be well thought out."

The Mackinac County Road Commission operates on a $10.2 million budget, about $2.1 million of it coming from state gas taxes and the rest from contracts for work in the townships. The Road Commission does not levy a millage, although some townships levy their own millages to pay for road work.

"The legislature saw the need" for increased representation, said Ollie Boynton of St. Ignace, referring to Public Act 598, which was signed into law by Governor Jennifer Granholm in December allowing for the increase of members on county road boards. Mr. Boynton, a former county commissioner and 25-year veteran on the St. Ignace City Council, said he "fully supported" moving to a five-member road board.

"In a democracy," he asked, "what's better than more representation?"

Responsible for maintaining 650 miles of county roads and 78 miles of state roads, the Mackinac County Road Commission serves one of the longest counties in Michigan. From east to west, the county spans approximately 110 miles. Based in St. Ignace, the commission has garages in Engadine and Cedarville.

Two islands, Mackinac and Bois Blanc, also make up the county. There are no county roads on Mackinac Island, but the commission does funnel state money to the Mackinac Island State Park.

Bois Blanc Supervisor Loren Gibbons, who attended the hearing, said he does not feel his island is represented and would like to see the road board increased to five members.

Retired Newton Township Supervisor Don McArthur said he was on the Michigan Townships Association board and instrumental in getting the new legislation. He also helped change the county process from appointed road seats to elected years ago. His concern was not with the number of road commissioners, rather with the election process, which he said was not balanced. He asked commissioners to consider returning the road board to appointed positions, as it was approximately 15 years ago.

The problem with the election process, he said, is that people in the two cities, St. Ignace and Mackinac Island, don't even have county roads but can elect commissioners and even run for office.

Hendricks Township resident Don Goudreau, who is in favor of keeping the three-member board, said he worked with Mr. McArthur to get the road board changed to elected positions, and he still believes it was the right decision.

"I think it was a good move," he said. "It got the good old boy system out of the way and we moved forward."

The Road Commission operates with a manager, Craig Kelso, three board members, and approximately 35 permanent and seasonal employees. County commissioners set the road board's salary, but otherwise have no oversight responsibilities for road commission operations.

Road commissioners are Frank Luepnitz and Paul Amacher, both from Moran, and Lester Livermore of Engadine. The men were elected to six-year terms, with Mr. Amacher's term expiring in 2008, Mr. Livermore's term ending in 2010, and Mr. Luepnitz's term ending in 2012.

Residents expressed concern for balanced representation, lacking in the current board composition.

Portage Township Supervisor Don Ferris suggested that until the law allows district elections, commissioners should be appointed from districts.

"My suggestion is that the County Board of Commissioners make it a policy to appoint a road commissioner, one from each district," he said. "And then have a five member board, one from each district, until we can get the law changed so we elect one from each district the [same] way we do with the board of commissioners."

Road Commissioner Livermore, who is in favor of expanding the road board, said that the expense and time to run for a county-wide seat is a challenge, intimidating, and the current process discourages many people from running.

He said he ran because, for almost 10 years, the western end of the county did not have representation on the board. He challenged county commissioners to envision their board with two less members and two from the same district.

"How well do you think this c o m m i s s i o n would be able to operate?" he asked. "It changes the complexion of your board dramatically."

On any one issue, he argued, with a three-member board, each commissioner can have the deciding vote.

"A five-person commission would put us all in less of a position of power," said Mr. Livermore.

He also pointed out that when the road board was appointed, members were appointed geographically, east, west, and central.

Moran Township Trustee Mark Spencer said the board should be expanded to five members, appointed by district until they can be elected by district. Districts should be based on road miles, allowing each of five districts to be equal in responsibility, he said.

"I've been to just about every road commission meeting in the last two-and-a-half years, and I've seen what Lester [Mr. Livermore] was talking about," said Mr. Spencer. "If one guy is sick or out, you have two people on the board and they make all the decisions."

Road commissioners receive the same benefits as the county commissioners, including a salary of $4,222.80 a year, while the chairman receives an annual salary of $5,049. They are also paid $60 a day for meetings they attend, receive a retirement benefit, and can receive health insurance.

Total cost per commissioner can reach approximately $20,000 annually, including benefits.

Hudson Township Supervisor Al Garavaglia said he attends most road commission meetings and is always seeking more road work, while being told there is no money in the Road Commission budget.

"Let's not put more money into two more people sitting there," he said. "I would like to hire one more full-time man in the Engadine garage because he's going to do something that's going to help us."

"Appointments scare me," said Joan Theut of St. Ignace Township. She also preferred part-time employees be hired, rather than increasing the size of the board.

"We don't need fighting between townships," she said. "We need to get our roads done and we need to work together."

St. Ignace resident Dick Oliver, a former road commission candidate, said he would run again and suggested the county could afford to increase the size of the board if retirement benefits were eliminated and the board members paid for half of their health insurance.

He said by representing all districts, elected board members could be held accountable for their areas.

"In 2007, we have people living on roads in Mackinac County right now that cannot get mail delivered to their house, cannot get an ambulance to come to their house, could not get a fire truck to come to their house, and a school bus will not pick up their kids because the roads are not travelable," he said.

"We have a west end and east end that often have different challenges," said Clark Township Supervisor Linda Hudson. She said the Clark Township board already has submitted a letter to county commissioners in support of increasing the size of the board.

County resident Darlene Brown of Moran Township said the road board should be five members who represent districts. She asked county commissioners to consider a second public hearing, as she believed some interested people were unable to attend the April 19 meeting.

Commission Chair Dawn Nelson said in the Upper Peninsula, both Marquette and Iron counties already have made the move to five-member road boards. No residents attended the Marquette public hearing, she reported. Based on the interest in Mackinac County, it was her preference to hold a second public hearing to allow those who could not attend a second opportunity.

Commissioners Larry Leveille and Mike Patrick said they, too, would like a second hearing.

Commissioners are expected to set the hearing at their next County Commission meeting Thursday, April 26.

The county is required by the open meetings act to give residents 28 days notice of the hearing and also provide a written notice to the Road Commission.