Hiring Unqualified P & Z Director-Who Should Be Fired ?

January 18, 2019

Commissioners,

Please accept this correspondence as a public document for the next available Board of Commissioners meeting. 

Wednesday night's 1/16/2019 Planning Meeting and Public Hearing was another Michael Turisk FIASCO. It began when Mr Turisk published notice on 12/26/2018 of the Public Hearing and excluded the additional amendment, Section 21.2-Administrative Search Warrant from the notice. I knew it was tagged onto the end of the Solar Ordinance amendment despite the fact it is an enforcement tool that would apply to the entire Ordinance #200. 

Mr Turisk failed to communicate any of this to the public continuing his ongoing habitual failure to post hearing information or packets until only a few days before a hearing. He did convey a Memo to the Planning Commission dated 1/15/2019 advising them the Administrative Search Warrant was removed from the agenda. That was hidden in page 38 of the packet. Had Turisk amended the posted agenda, or made any attempt to advise the public of that, dozens of people could have enjoyed an evening at home and attended some future hearing for the proposed Section 21.2. 

Please reflect on how many times have I emailed the Commissioners as an elected body advising you that Mr Michael Turisk is wholly unqualified to serve as a Director of Planning and Zoning in Cheboygan County.

My messages to the County Board started in April 2018 when I noticed and advised the prior B of C at the annual meeting at Audies that Mr Turisk had submitted two job applications. The first was on 7/14/ 2017 for Scott McNeil's Planner I position. That was about the time Mr Turisk left his former employer. For some still unknown reason, Mr Steve Schnell or Administrator Lawson hired no one from that pool of applicants. 

The second application for P & Z Director, essentially Steve Schnell's old job, included Turisk's same resume and job history, except one prior employment period had an annual salary increased by about $5,000 to reach the $62,300 range. 

Ignoring the fact that Mr Turisk met none of the preferred or desired qualifications, he was hired with the prior Board of Commissioners fully aware and willing to ignore the proof of a fraudulent job application that also included a personal reference, Cynthia Homant that shared a home address with Mr Turisk. 

The prior Board of Commissioners were told by Administrator Lawson at the April 10,2018 B of C meeting that, “The position of Director of Planning and Zoning was advertised by the County on web based job platforms, Michigan Association of Counties, County web site and local paper. County received approximately 17 applications for the position.”

Administrator Lawson’s Recommendation: “Motion to approve employment agreement with and appoint Michael C. Turisk as Director of Planning and Zoning. Motion to appoint Michael C. Turisk as Zoning Administrator upon beginning employment.”

Administrator Jeff Lawson presented the Director of Planning and Zoning Employment Agreement. He stated the position of Director of Planning and Zoning was advertised by the County on the web based job platforms, Michigan Association of Counties, County web site and in the local paper. The County received 17 applications for the position. Motion by Commissioner Gouine, seconded by Commissioner Bolinger, to approve an employment agreement with and to appoint Michael C. Turisk as Director of Planning and Zoning and also appoint him as the Zoning Administrator upon beginning employment. A roll call vote was held. Motion carried with 7 yes, 0 no and 0 absent.

Administrator Lawson’s  report to the Board that there were approximately 17 applications received for the position omitted important facts. These facts were discovered by a recent FOIA request for written communications related to the interview/hiring process that culminated in the recommendation and hiring of Michael Turisk for the position of Director of Planning & Zoning.

Out of the “approximately 17 applications for the position”, Administrator Lawson failed to disclose there was one submission that was not a result of the extensive advertising and posting for the position. That person was solicited by email on February 18, 2018 by Mr Lawson to submit an application. Another personal email on February 23, 2018 reminded that person there was a job posting for the Director of Planning & Zoning and that Mr Lawson looked forward to talking with him.

County Administrator Lawson invites Michael Turisk to Apply for Director of P & Z
The only invitee, the only interview, the only candidate recommended 

About two weeks later, there is an email from Michael Turisk to Administrator Lawson expressing his thanks to Mr Lawson for the lengthy interview by telephone and a desire to work for Cheboygan County. The next emails exchanged are a record of travel arrangements and scheduling for an in-person interview with Michael Turisk and an ad hoc committee that still has no written record of attendees or meeting minutes from behind the closed doors.  

Legal counsel Bryan Graham’s June 6, 2018 memo responding to an inquiry of the legality of Administrator Lawson’s hiring process, quoting the conclusion, was made without these facts.“In conclusion, based on the above it is my opinion that the procedures you followed to

interview candidates for the Director of Planning & Zoning, including the formation of

the committee to assist you, did not violate the Open Meetings Act. As a result, these

procedures can be continued. If you have any questions, please let me know. “

The actual hiring process used by Administrator Lawson was a procedure that ignored all of the other applicants, proven by his inability under FOIA law to provide any record of a written response to any other applicants. Legal counsel’s “opinion that the procedures you followed to interview candidates for the Director of Planning & Zoning” was given ignorant of the fact that Administrator Lawson has no record of any other applicant’s communications or preliminary candidate interviews.   

Some of the current Cheboygan County Commissioners were party, I suspect unknowingly, to the now documented and what might be judged unethical actions employed by Administrator Lawson to hire an unqualified and incompetent individual that was personally invited to apply. To reiterate, Administrator Lawson personally invited Michael Turisk to apply, then interviewed Turisk by telephone, and later arranged for an undocumented, un-recorded, and closed-door interview meeting with an ad hoc committee consisting of several still unidentified County Commissioners and Michael Turisk.     

Of the “approximately 17 applications for the position”, Administrator Lawson only interviewed the candidate he personally invited to apply for the job. That action, the fraudulent prior salary on the resumes, plus the well-documented inability of Michael Turisk to function at a professional level despite the hundreds of often-inane questions to legal counsel since July of 2018 should be more than adequate reason to terminate his employment.

I cannot see any remedial action that could correct Mr Turisk’s shortcomings. After more than a decade of employment in planning, he still has no degree in land use or planning. He stated in his July 2017 application for Planner I that he was approved to sit for his AICP exam in November 2017. There was no mention of any certification in his February application for the position of Director of Planning & Zoning. His direct manager in Colorado Springs, obviously restricted by HR policy, stated diplomatically, “I will say that Mike’s laid back demeanor may not have been a great fit for our fast-paced environment.”

I thank each of you for your time and remain confident that you will act in the best interest of the residents and taxpayers of Cheboygan County. Please terminate this employee before there are more serious failures or possible legal recourse resulting from his failures and/or your failure to act.

Carl Muscott    

Indian River

Unable to attend the Wednesday night Public Hearing?

The Cheboygan County Planning Commission plans to enact an Administrative Search Warrant in violation of your Fourth Amendment rights protecting your home and property from unreasonable searches. The Planning Commission has tacked onto the proposed Solar Energy amendment this unrelated search warrant (inspect) your home or property without probable cause or any proof that a crime is being committed.

Section 8. Amendment of Article 21

Article 21 of the Cheboygan County Zoning Ordinance No. 200 is hereby amended to add a new Section 21.12. which shall read in its entirety as follows: 21.12.

Duty to Inspect; Administrative Search Warrant

It shall be the duty of the Zoning Administrator, or other official designated by the County Board of Commissioners, to inspect land, buildings and/or structures to determine violations of or compliance with this Ordinance. The Zoning Administrator, or other official designated by the County Board of Commissioners, shall exercise this right of inspection by consent of the person having the right to possession of the land, building and/or structure or any part thereof, or by administrative search warrant issued by a court of competent jurisdiction.

If you are unable to attend Wednesday night’s Public Hearing to protest this attempt by the Planning Commission to violate our Fourth Amendment rights, please take a few moments to address your comments to the Planning Commission.

Debbie Tomlinson <  debbiet@cheboygancounty.net  >

Ask Debbie to print your comments for or against the “Administrative Search Warrant” for the Planning Commission Board and request that the Planning and Zoning Director Michael Turisk read your comments during the Public Comment period.  

January 16, 2019 Planning Hearing-Secreted Agenda

The current Cheboygan County Planning and Zoning Director Michael Turisk has a proclivity to simple-minded errors. As staff support for Planning Commission meetings, he has forgotten to record meetings and hearings on more than one occasion. He has scheduled and noticed numerous hearings and meetings without a basic understanding of Michigan's Planning and Enabling Act, our local government units, or who has jurisdiction over our state or county roads.  

This is the Notice of a Public Hearing published by Michael Turisk on December 26, 2018 for a January 16th hearing. Somewhere in the middle of the second paragraph is mention of an amendment to Ordinance #200 to permit Solar Energy systems. This amendment will allow a proposed $60 million dollar Solar Farm to proceed to in Grant Township.

Michael Turisk published this notice advertising that the related documents were 

available for viewing. A full 16 days later, on Friday afternoon, January 11, 2019, the full document packets were finally made available to the public. 

     

That second paragraph republished from the Legal Notice now includes the secret agenda. "In addition, the proposed ordinance would amend Article 21 (Administration and Enforcement) regarding duty to inspect and administrative search warrants."  

This amendment empowers MIchael Turisk and his staff to "inspect", AKA search, your property and home at any time with your consent and with a search warrant if you do not consent.   

Section 8. Amendment of Article 21 Article 21 of the Cheboygan County Zoning Ordinance No. 200 is hereby amended to add a new Section 21.12. which shall read in its entirety as follows:

21.12. Duty to Inspect; Administrative Search Warrant

It shall be the duty of the Zoning Administrator, or other official designated by the County Board of Commissioners, to inspect land, buildings and/or structures to determine violations of or compliance with this Ordinance. The Zoning Administrator, or other official designated by the County Board of Commissioners, shall exercise this right of inspection by consent of the person having the right to possession of the land, building and/or structure or any part thereof, or by administrative search warrant issued by a court of competent jurisdiction.

Cheboygan County Planning and Zoning, the people who tried to ban campers, trailers, short-term rentals, and political signs on your own property wants to violate your Fourth Amendment Rights  

4th Amendment to U.S. Constitution • The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

This law will give Cheboygan County enforcers the right to “inspect” your property and buildings with your consent, or if you refuse, by search warrant.  No evidence of a crime needed, they just want “to determine violations of or compliance” with the zoning law.

This new zoning law will be subject to a Public Hearing on January 16, 2019 at 7 PM, Room 135 at the Cheboygan County Building. 

There was no 15 day legal notice as required by law. Section 21.2 is not specific to the Solar System amendment and should be removed from the agenda and hearing. 

If you cannot attend, please protect your Fourth Amendment Rights to secure your property and home by protesting to one or all of your Cheboygan County Commissioners.

800 MHZ Millage Language vs Capital Improvement Plan

The 800 MHZ ballot language as approved by the Emmet County Board of Commissioners is as follows:

“Shall the total taxable property rate limitation in Emmet County be increased by .31 of a mill (31 cents for each $1,000 in valuation) and levied for five (5) years, beginning in the year 2019 and continuing through the year 2023, inclusive, for the purpose of financing facility, equipment, maintenance and operating costs of the Charlevoix, Cheboygan, and Emmet County 911 (CCE) public safety call answering and dispatch services? If approved and levied in its entirety, this millage raises an estimated $896,565 in the first calendar year after its approval “

Emmet County already has millions of dollars of debt. Please note the use of the word "financing ..." in the above proposal. 

The 800 MHZ ballot language as approved by the Charlevoix County Board of Commissioners is as follows:

"Shall the tax limitation imposed under Article IX, Section 6 of the Michigan Constitution on the amount of ad valorem taxes which may be levied by the County of Charlevoix, State of Michigan, against taxable property in the County be increased by up to .5 mills ($.50 per $1,000 of taxable value) for a period of three (3) years, 2018 through 2020, inclusive, for the purpose of providing Charlevoix County's share of the funds needed by the CCE 911 Central Dispatch Authority(CCE) to purchase, install, maintain, and replace upgraded radio equipment for use by CCE and emergency service providers within Charlevoix County, and shall the Charlevoix County Board of Commissioners be authorized to levy such millage for these purposes?  If approved and levied in its entirety, this millage would raise an estimated $1,074,742 for Charlevoix County in 2018."

Charlevoix County stated they have funds sufficient to pay for needed 911 infrastructure and the millage spread over 3 years will pay for upgraded radio equipment.  

The 800 MHZ ballot language as approved by the Cheboygan County Board of Commissioners is as follows:

"Shall the tax limitation imposed under Article IX, Section 6 of the Michigan Constitution on the amount of ad valorem taxes which may be levied by the County of Cheboygan, State of Michigan, against taxable property in the County be increased by up to .5 mills ($.50 per $1 ,000 of taxable value} for a period of four {4} years, 2018 through 2021 , inclusive, for the purpose of providing Cheboygan County's share of the funds needed by the CCE 911 Central Dispatch Authority {CCE} to purchase, install, maintain, and replace upgraded radio equipment for use by the CCE and emergency service providers within Cheboygan County and to upgrade radio system infrastructure, including tower and tower equipment, required by the upgraded radio equipment, and shall the Cheboygan County Board of Commissioners be authorized to levy such millage for these purposes? If approved and levied in its entirety, this millage would raise an estimated $717,761 for Cheboygan County in 2018."

Cheboygan County has millions of dollars in reserve funds, exceeding both the recommendations of the State of Michigan and the County's own fiscal policy. Only Cheboygan County has the excess cash reserves to pay now and not delay the radio upgrades. If the upgrades are needed, they should be prioritized and funded now, from the millions of dollars the County has in unassigned reserve funds. There are no good reasons  to spread the cost of the improvements over 4 years. Will Administrator Jeff Lawson and the County Commissioners be held accountable if a First Responder or Law Enforcement Officer is endangered or killed 2, 3, or 4 years from now because the millage is still trickling in? Vote no now and prioritize this needed upgrade.   

From Cheboygan County's current Master Plan:

Emergency 911 telephone service is provided to Cheboygan County through a multi-county 911 system for Cheboygan, Emmet and Charlevoix Counties. It is a state-of-the art enhanced 911 system, which provides emergency dispatch for all calls to the police, fire departments and ambulance service for the entire three county area. Police cruisers are equipped with laptop 107 “mobile data terminals” for direct communications between the 911 dispatch and the officers in the field. The mapping system used by the 911 system was developed through the use of satellite technology through a GPS (global positioning system) unit.  

Introduction: 

The Michigan Planning Enabling Act (Act 33, 2008) requires local municipalities that have adopted a master plan to annually prepare a Capital Improvement Program, a planning tool that can coordinate community planning, financial capacity and physical development. A Capital Improvement Program may be considered a blueprint for planning capital improvement expenditures, and seek, in part, to improve quality of life and achieve a community’s long-term goals. The Act provides that the Capital Improvements Program show those public structures and improvements in general order of their priority that in the judgment of the Planning Commission will be needed or desirable and can be undertaken within the ensuing 6-year period. 

The inclusion of a project in a Capital Improvement Program will not require any public entity or County department to fund or complete the project. This report has been prepared and projected on a one-time cash basis that lists the potential project and its estimated cost as provided by various agencies and departments. This cash method of reporting may suggest a substantial one-time cost for many improvements. Not considered are such factors as debt amortization or shared expenses such as grants or other sources of financial aid. 

The projects listed in this report should be identified or prioritized as needed or desirable by the Planning Commission and determine that they do not conflict with the adopted Master Plan. 

Definition: Capital Improvements for the purposes of this Capital Improvement Program shall be defined as additions to County assets which are the result of construction or purchase of land, buildings or facilities or renovations of the same, with an estimated useful life of five (5) years or more and exceed an estimated cost of $15,000.00.

Project Prioritizing Projects are presented in a general order of priority in consideration of factors listed in the following categories: 

 2 a) Needed (essential; should do): 

 Addresses an objective of the Master Plan. 

 Satisfies a legal obligation. 

 Corrects a condition dangerous to public health and safety. 

 Reduces future operating and maintenance costs. 

 Leverages local, state or federal funds. 

 Prevents irreparable damage to a valuable public facility. 

 Stimulates economic growth and private investment. 

b) Desirable (important; could do): 

 Provides a new or expanded level of service. 

 Provides a facility improvement that would enhance efficiency or use with minimal or no increase in operating costs. 

 Enhances cultural or natural resources.

Public Safety Emergency 911 services are part of the Cheboygan County Master Plan. The County Administrator, Planning Commission, and Board of Commissioners annually prepare a Capital Improvement Program to plan and prioritize capital improvement expenditures over $15,000.  All of these proposed "projects" are on the 2019 Capital Improvement Program. The 800 MHZ radio upgrade is not one of County Administrator Jeff Lawson's "pet" projects. Administrator Jeff Lawson and the County Commissioners know the public would vote no to additional taxes for most of these projects. The 800 MHZ radio upgrade is a hot button issue. It should prioritized and funded now, from the millions of dollars the County has in unassigned reserve funds, and the need to spread the improvements over 4 years will be avoided. 

Project Description

Project Title: Fuel Tank and Fuel Dock Replacement and Upgrade    $800,000

Agency: Cheboygan County Marina 

Project Title: County Building Security Windows and Doors                $100,000

Agency: County Building Maintenance Department

Project Title: County Building Trim Panel/Window Replacement         $550,000

Agency: Cheboygan County 

Project Title: County Building Elevator Replacement                           $250,000

Agency: County Building Maintenance Department

Project Title: County Building Court Room,                                          $100,000

Treasurer’s Office Remodel and Indigent Defense Meeting Rooms 

Agency: Cheboygan County 

Project Title: County Building Parking Lot Seal Coating                        $50,000

Agency: Cheboygan County 

Project Title: County Building Drive                                                     $200,000

Agency: Cheboygan County 

Project Title: Sand Road Senior Center                                                $35,000

Central Air Conditioning Upgrade 

Agency: Cheboygan County Council on Aging

Project Title: Sand Road Senior Center Parking lot                              $50,000

seal coating and paving 

Agency: Cheboygan County Council on Aging

Project Title: Wolverine Senior Center Parking lot resurfacing             $50,000

Agency: Cheboygan County Council on Aging

                                                                                                         _________

                                                                  Sub-Total                        $2,185,000

Project Title: Terminal Ramp Rehabilitation (2022)                             $635,000

Agency: Cheboygan Airport Authority

                                                                                                         _________       

                                                                    Total                             $2,820,000

Cheboygan's Countywide Emergency Service Radio Proposal-Is It Truth or Fiction?

I know many of us have already cast absentee ballots for the November 6th election. Others will remain undecided in the booth until they check the box beside their chosen candidates. There are many factors in our personal and private decisions to cast that secret ballot choosing our best candidates to both represent and serve us. I do know old dogs never change. Give them a treat and they will still piddle on the floor. I will clean up after an old dog, but old politicians should just be retired. The incumbents in almost every case will deliver the same old stuff. You reward them with your vote, and they piddle on your foot. Do you want more of the same names, same old ideas, and more wrong decisions? Cheboygan County has a history of making the wrong decisions, time after time. It is time to break that mold and cast our new future.

Remember, the ballot is not a test. You do not have to select a candidate for every available seat. When the section for State Board of Education, Regents, Trustees, of Governors for a University says select not more than two, do not go eeny, meeny, miny, moe. Educate yourself on the candidates and make a wise decision or just skip that section.

The ballots for the November election have a backside with ballot proposals and solicitations for more taxes. Three statewide ballot proposals appear because concerned citizens circulated petitions gaining hundreds of thousands of signatures of support. These grass-roots initiatives placed the decision on the ballot of legalizing and regulation of recreational marijuana, a more apolitical re-districting of congressional, state, and house districts, and a proposed State Constitution reform promoting simpler voting registration and straight party voting. Those are proposals 1, 2, and 3 and the people will decide.

There is a very important countywide ballot proposal seeking .5 mills, 50 cents per $1,000 taxable value for four years to pay for a needed 800MHZ radio upgrade for our first responders. If the need is real, the raise in your property taxes is not.  I sat through county meetings at Mackinaw City, two CCE-911 meetings, and additional meetings back in Cheboygan County. County Administrator Lawson and County Commission Chair John Wallace stated repeatedly that we needed to fund an 800 MHZ radio upgrade for the CCE-911 dispatch service. There was much discussion of telephone surcharges or an extra millage. Employing fuzzy math, the Cheboygan County Board of Commissioners, with Commissioner Cal Gouine the only no vote, proposed .5 mills additional taxes on every taxable parcel in Cheboygan County to raise an estimated $717,761 in the first of four years. Commissioner Gouine stated added millages never seem to go away.

You should know that Cheboygan County has a surplus of unassigned funds totaling $8.035 million dollars. On page five of the 2017 annual audit: “At the close of the current fiscal year, the County’s governmental funds reported combined fund balances of $10,163,232, an increase of $487,404 in comparison with the prior year. Approximately 79%, or $8,035,234, of this amount is available for spending at the government’s discretion (unassigned fund balance).”

The Cheboygan County Policy of 30% unassigned funds exceeds the State of Michigan recommendation of a 15% to 25% “rainy day” fund. The $8.035 million dollars as reported by the auditor is 69% of the annual budget and exceeds the County own fiscal policy by over 100%. Fiscal responsibility should mandate the County Commissioners stop over-taxing us, asking for more millage, and instead spend part of the more than $4 million surplus dollars, our tax dollars they already have stuffed into money-market accounts. Unlike our CCE-911 partners, Emmet and Charlevoix Counties have debt on the books; Cheboygan has been over-taxing us and socking away surpluses, $487,404 in just the last audit year.

When you vote no on the “Countywide Emergency Service Radio Proposal", the Commissioners can go to Plan “B”. Spending part of that $4 million dollars surplus directly funding the CCE-911 800 MHZ Radio improvements will speed the needed upgrades. Taxpayers deserve truth in advertising. The need for the additional millage is instead a bald-faced lie. 

The incumbent County Commissioners, excepting Commissioner Gouine who voted no, are complicit in the deceit. Commissioner Gouine runs unopposed. You can vote the others out on the same ballot that bears their millage proposal. Vote for your new County Commissioners and vote NO to new taxes.   

Same Old, Same Old-A Harbor Master Returns

People still ask, do you think Cheboygan will eventually see the growth and prosperity that our neighboring counties and communities enjoy? It will never occur until Cheboygan recognizes and acknowledges that a community culture based on multi-generational familial relationships bordering on tribalism, and the products of that culture, unreasonable and indefensible biases and prejudices must end.

Cheboygan’s vocabulary does not seem to recognize the words nepotism and cronyism. The same people elect the same people and those people then appoint the same people generation after generation. It becomes an incestuous relationship unmatched since the centuries of Royal inbreeding and political alliances in Europe. The Inverness Township Board’s failures under Clerk Beethem’s leadership to deliver water, the Tuscarora Township Board and Tuscarora DDA’s inability to create a business friendly environment, and the Cheboygan County government’s decades of laisser-faire County Commissioners looking inward and allowing the staff to run the show, all contribute to the ongoing malaise.

What does looking inward mean? County staff reportedly met with the Cheboygan County Waterways Commission, a group of appointees made by the County, in late 2015. They met to discuss the future of the County Marina. They acknowledged that revenues had been dropping for five or six years. Curt Chambers, then serving as Harbor Master, would retire in December 2016 from his $43,542 per year job after 26 years of employment. In a news article on his retirement, Chambers said the perks of the harbormaster position were wonderful. County Administrator Jeff Lawson then proposed to restructure, not to save money, by hiring two or three seasonal Harbor Managers who would report to him. By April of 2017, the Waterways Commission was discussing dropping fuel sales, 18 years of Marina income insufficient to maintain the facility, and the proposed “Harbor Managers” had become a singular Harbor Master.

That Harbor Master, whose 2018 pay was $16.59 an hour, has taken a position with one of the State run harbors at the Straits. County Administrator Jeff Lawson facing recent public complaints on basic maintenance of the County Marina, then looked not inward, but backward and rehired former Cheboygan County Harbor Master Curt Chambers, a County retiree and pensioner. Did Lawson even post the job? Apparently unwilling to work for the existing wage, the County Board of Commissioners unanimously approved a 20% increase in pay to $20 per hour. I hope the recent Harbor Master did not resign a $16.59 an hour job and move for better pay. He or she could have had $20 an hour. I suspect he or she instead left for a better boss or better career opportunities.

Reported on the Tribune’s front page, Lawson said, “Because he’s coming back from retirement, he (Chambers) can’t work over 1,000 hours for the county. There would be a pension issue if he did. It’s just a summer position.” It will be a full time position for this fall and all of next summer paying up to $20,000 if Chambers works those 1,000 hours per year. Lawson reported Chambers would not be receiving any retirement or other fringe benefits from the county as their employee.  That is because he is already enjoying a defined benefit pension and full health care benefits as a Cheboygan County retiree.

That was Lawson talking around the subject of civil servant double dipping, a pensioned off person returning to the same job with the same government unit. Most communities would find fault with that practice. It denies a $20 per hour job to a younger person who actually needs a job. Vice-Chair Commissioner Sangster reportedly wants to make sure the county stays attentive to the improvements needed at the facility. Are those the same deferred maintenance needs identified at more than $4 million dollars over a decade ago? The same improvements overlooked for more than two decades. The same people, doing the same job, will usually produce the same results. Until every person in Cheboygan County stands up and demands better, we will continue to see people serving only their own best interests and our communities will continue to suffer.