A staffing partnership under consideration by Mackinac County commissioners would aid in the care of animals at the county shelter, as fewer pets are being adopted and more animals are being abandoned. A growing number of residents no longer can afford to care for pets, officials say.

Commissioners will review the contracts of Animal Control Officer Wendy Frosland and Animal Shelter Manager Ginger Valentine before deciding whether to ask Mrs. Frosland to assist at the shelter. Such a move would cost more money.

"Our shelter's full. It's been full. It's been a really long summer," said Mrs. Frosland, who presented the idea of her assisting at the shelter to commissioners. "We have had a lot of abandonments, a lot of strays, a lot of dump-offs, a lot of animal surrenders. We've had to do more euthanasia than we ever had. We don't have too much of a choice right now."

At the end of September, 10 dogs and 18 cats were housed at the St. Ignace facility, said Mrs. Valentine.

Mrs. Frosland and Mrs. Valentine attended a Monday, September 29, committee of the whole meeting called to discuss the 2009 budgets for the shelter and animal control.

Mrs. Frosland asked commissioners to consider increasing her wages to allow her to also work at the shelter 20 to 30 hours a week to assist Mrs. Valentine with the increasing animal care requirements. She did not request a specific wage increase.

"We've never had such a busy year," said Mrs. Frosland, "and I'm guessing next year is going to be worse. In my opinion, it's the economy."

Under Mrs. Frosland's contract with the county, she is paid $18,540 annually and required to be on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week as the animal control officer.

Sharing the workload, said Mrs. Frosland, would reduce the need for extra hired workers, except on the two days taken off each week by Mrs. Valentine, when they still would be needed.

Mrs. Valentine is in favor of Mrs. Frosland helping at the shelter.

A contract employee with the county, Mrs. Valentine is paid $18,812 a year and has a budget of $3,000 to hire additional help to cover her time off. During the meeting, commissioners noted Mrs. Valentine had gone over her extra hire budget by $121.75, and more payment requests are pending.

"You should have come before the board," said Commissioner Carl Frazier, rather than go over her budget limit.

Commissioner Larry Leveille agreed, saying managers must be responsible to stay within their budget, as unapproved modifications impact county finances.

Mrs. Valentine said she had been busy and did not realize she had overspent the budget. She also asked commissioners to put any raise that would be considered for her in 2009 into the extra-hire budget.

In reviewing the animal budgets, commissioners discussed the unexpected cost of approximately $9,000 that stemmed from more than 50 animals being seized in January from the farm of Larry Roney. The Rexton man pleaded no contest to animal cruelty in March. The county received approximately $3,600 in donations to help pay for care costs that topped $12,000.

No money had been budgeted for such a situation. On Monday, commissioners added $2,000 to the budget for 2009, for an emergency situation.

Mackinac County Airport Manager Paul Fullerton estimates revenue will be down between $500 and $1,000 for the year at the airport. The cause, he said, is the loss of three airport hangar tenants, although he now has gained one new rental. A hangar rents for $150 a month.

"Planes aren't flying," he said, and fuel sales also are down. "Everybody is cutting back. Everybody is hurting."

He also told commissioners he is talking with Sheriff Scott Strait about his office renting a hangar to store all-terrain vehicles.

The airport still is awaiting a report from a study done last year on birds that are flocking to the water just off the end of the airport runway. The birds could create a potential hazard for some flights, said Mr. Fullerton. The study was conducted by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

A pipe that drains effluent from the city's wastewater treatment lagoons is located at the shoreline, and the warmer water attracts the birds.

Initially, the pipe was supposed to end in the water at a depth of 26 feet, although as a cost cutting measure, the Department of Environmental Quality allowed the discharge to occur at the shoreline.

New fuel storage, which was scheduled to be erected for this year, now be installed in May 2009 after a funding snag delayed the project, said Mr. Fullerton. The project involves replacing the 20- year-old underground fuel tank with a double walled tank and monitoring system.

Parking lot work and the addition of a jet fuel tank also are part of the project. The jet fuel mostly will be used by the Traverse Citybased U.S. Coast Guard helicopter, said Mr. Fullerton. The helicopter is often at the airport working with the St. Ignace station in aids to navigation, rescue missions, and training. When working in the area, the helicopter now has to fly to the Pellston Airport to refuel.

The project will cost approximately $300,000, and about 95% of that will come from the Federal Aviation Administration. The remaining 5% will be shared by the Michigan Bureau of Aeronautics and the county over two years. Bidding is planned for February.

Mr. Fullerton also asked commissioners to consider a cost of living increase in his wages for the coming year. He is now paid $22,822.21.

Also attending the Monday evening meeting was Dirk Heckman, who became the county's new road commission engineer/ manager at the beginning of September. He already has attended three township meetings.

"I think the key to any road commission success is having a good relationship with the people and also with the townships," said Mr. Heckman. "A personal goal of mine is to get that relationship back on track."

Over the last five years, the county has contributed $650,000 through the road match program, said Chair Dawn Nelson. The program calls for both the county commission and road commission to match township payments up to $10,000 for road repairs.

Commissioners also reviewed their budget and agreed to increase funds for outside legal counsel services to $20,000. They budgeted $10,000 for this year and have spent $11,513.06.

The next regular County Commission meeting is Thursday, October 9, at 6 p.m. in the Mackinac County Courthouse annex building.