Administrator's Update

Update from Kelli Scott for Feb. 7, 2019

Last week’s extreme weather resulted in County buildings and Courts being closed for two and a half days. I would like to personally thank county employees who worked on those days to continue our 24/7 operations, including the Road Department, Sheriff's Office and Juvenile Home. Safety of our employees and the public is the most important within the many County services, and it is hard to thank you enough for your work.

The hiring process for the Chief Public Defender to lead the County's new Indigent Defense Office has begun. Initial phone interviews were held in January, and we will interview five candidates on Friday.

Consideration of New Northeast Marshall Neighborhood Improvement Authority

The County will soon consider its participation level with the newly created Northeast Marshall Neighborhood Improvement Authority (NMNIA), created by the City of Marshall to help with residential development projects. The City will issue bonds to pay for the development and capture taxes on the growth of the taxable value of the properties in the authority’s boundaries to repay the bonds. The Development Plan proposes that the NMNIA will capture 65% of the County’s taxes on just the increased taxable value. The estimate of the tax revenues captured ranges from $1,000 to $54,000 annually over the next 20 years and results in a total of $646,000 in captured tax dollars. Without this new residential development, there would be no additional tax revenues to the county and so the proposed capture impact is really just a reduction of new taxes otherwise collected by the County.

On Tuesday, Feb. 19 the NMNIA Board is planning to finalize Development and TIF Plan for presentation to the Mar. 18 City Council for approval. By law May 18 is the official deadline for the County Board to opt out of tax capture plan (not have any taxes captured). County administration is planning to present to the Board of Commissioners on Thursday, Feb. 21 a recommendation regarding the proposed NMNIA Development and TIF plan so that the City has sufficient information to finalize its financial analysis for development plans. The County Board’s policy is to opt out of tax capture arrangements by default, or to require and approve an acceptable tax capture sharing agreement, recognizing the economic benefit this investment would have in the Marshall community and the County as a whole.

In other community involvement,

On Tuesday, Jan. 29, the Summit Pointe Finance and Audit Committee met. I chair the committee as the Board Treasurer, and our County Board Vice Chair Kathy-Sue Vette attends as ex-officio on all committees. We discussed the December financial statements, FY 2018 year-end preliminary results and audit process, and a bank account signature recommendation.

On Monday, Feb. 4, the Calhoun County Planning Commission met. The board reviewed the County’s 5-year Master Plan and the 2019 Planning Commission Meeting Schedule. Addition action included five planning and zoning amendment reviews for Eckford, Emmett, Pennfield and Athens townships.

Tuesday, Feb. 5, the Summit Pointe Board heard educational presentations on Youth Services, Autism Services, and Connections Employment Services. I provided an audit/finance report, and the board reaffirmed three policies and approved an amendment to the Social Security Alternative Plan.

From the Board of Commissioners

On Monday, Feb.4, the County Board convened for its traditional beginning of term orientation session. The County’s administrative executive team gave overviews of the county’s governance and organizational structure, along with key information and statistics about our finances, human resources, purchasing and other central services functions. Corporation Counsel Jim Dyer gave refreshers on key provisions of the Open Meetings Act and Freedom of Information Act. The Board also discussed parks funding and other initiatives with our Community Development staff. Finally, the courts and each county-wide elected official or their designees attended to highlight their key statutory responsibilities, main accomplishments from 2018 and upcoming items of note for 2019. It was a great event to help ensure our Commissioners are equipped for a successful 2019-20 term serving the County’s residents. Click here to view the County Administrative presentation .

At the Thursday, Feb. 7 Board of Commissioners meeting, the Michigan State University Extension staff gave their annual presentation. Consent items included two resolutions, one amending the by-laws of the Calhoun County Parks and Recreation Commission, and another appointing two members to the County’s Community Mental Health Authority, also known as the Summit Pointe Board.

In new business, the Board:

Approved an MDOT contract for a 100% federal funded safety enhancement traffic signal project in Emmett Township
Approved a contract with GEI Consultants of Michigan to remove a failing lunker (fish passage) structure and restabilize the shoreline in Historic Bridge Park.

Road Department Update

Managing Director John Midgley attend ed a meeting convened by county-wide th e Township Supervisors on Thursday, Feb. 7 to discuss township issues and concerns.

Operations crews at the Road Department are doing tree work in Bedford and Pennfield Townships on North Ave. between Halbert and Baseline Roads. Crews are also working on winter maintenance and patching potholes, as the weather allows.

Department Head Update

The County-wide leadership group, which includes judicial administrators, elected officials and department heads, held its monthly meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 29. A representative from MMRMA, the County's property and liability insurance carrier and risk management authority, provided information about grants that are available for risk avoidance projects or opportunities. After this, Communications Manager Lucy Blair gave an update about the County's website redesign, which is expected to take place over the course of the year.

In department updates, we learned that Road Department leadership continues to meet with township officials to discuss 2019 road improvement projects. During the snowy days last week, plow drivers worked 12 hours one day and 14 hours the next.

Corporate Counsel Jim Dyer reported that the County's Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request procedures will become automated with new software. This will allow the public to submit and search FOIA's online, and those will be routed to the appropriate teams efficiently.

Senior Services reported that the Health Fair will take place on Thursday, April 4 at Marshall Middle School. The event will feature 90+ vendors and a huge inflatable brain that visitors can walk through to learn about brain health!

Community Development shared that Parks and Recreation is preparing two grant applications related to reconstructing the entrance to Kimball Pines and developing a trail head for a recent land acquisition in Albion.

MAEDA in 2018

The Marshall Area Economic Development Alliance (MAEDA) recently released its 2018 year-in-review video.

Working with MAEDA, we held a ribbon-cutting event to celebrate the completion of the courtyard behind the County Building, which is featured in the video.

Watch the video to learn more about Marshall's positive economic development in 2018.

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