Lenawee County Commission lifts hiring freeze on three new positions

ADRIAN — The Lenawee County Commission has lifted its hiring freeze on three new positions that will be paid for through the county’s general fund.

Just one commissioner still opposes the lifting of the freeze — Kevon Martis, R-Riga Twp. The vote at the commission’s Wednesday meeting was 7-1. Commissioner Dustin Krasny, R-Cambridge Twp., was absent.

The positions had been approved as part of the county’s 2023 budget last year.

The hiring freeze was placed on the positions at the commission’s January meeting with a 5-4 vote. Terry Collins, R-Adrian, Nancy Jenkins-Arno, R-Clayton, Krasny, Martis, and commission Chair Jim Van Doren, R-Tipton, voted in favor of the freeze. Commissioners Dawn Bales, R-Adrian, K.Z. Bolton, D-Adrian, David Stimpson, R-Tecumseh, and Ralph Tillotson, R-Adrian, voted against it.

Also at that meeting, Van Doren appointed a subcommittee to work with county administrator Kim Murphy to research the positions, which are a communications and marketing role, a grants administrator and community development coordinator.

The communications and marketing person's starting annual pay would be $54,578.16 and will seek to understand how to better communicate with the public to meet residents’ needs.

The grants administrator will be the main point of contact to the county administrator for the departments that handle Lenawee County’s more than 135 state and federal grants. The grants administrator’s job will be to assure that these departments are staying on track with deadlines, getting information that they need for their reporting, and assist in accessing the various types of grant portals that are becoming increasingly difficult to maneuver as well as assist in the county’s annual audit process. The starting annual pay also would be $54,578.16.

The community development coordinator's starting annual pay would be $76,951.68. They will assist in creating a more robust and diverse Land Bank Authority. This person also will coordinate and collaborate with the various housing agencies in the county, seeking new housing opportunities that do not currently exist. They will work closely with the Lenawee Community Mental Health Authority and related agencies on mental health needs and concerns in the county and how they can be improved using the opioid funds that the county is receiving from the national lawsuit settlement.

“As my team evaluated the needs of our office, the needs of the county departments, and the needs we were hearing from the public, we determined that the positions being considered were critical to the functioning of county government. Each position under consideration will be of benefit in their own specific way,” Murphy said in an email.

The lifting of the hiring freeze was initially adopted by the commissioners at their personnel/ways and means committee meeting Tuesday. Bolton has always supported hiring for the new roles.

“I think people didn’t understand completely what the positions were, what they would entail, and I think with the clarification we received during our committee meetings people became a lot more comfortable with it,” Bolton said. “I truly feel that the positions are needed … I think they’re so very important for us to be progressive, innovative and initiate things coming down the road.

Martis supports the communications and marketing position and the grants administrator’s position. He does not support hiring a community development coordinator. Because all three positions were lumped together in one vote, Martis voted “no.”

“I supported the freeze because I felt the process was rushed and there was not enough clarity about the scale and scope of the proposed positions. Over time, it became clear to me that there will apparently be some cost savings by bringing public relations and marketing in house. Presuming those savings are realized, that is a good thing. I can also make a case for the grants coordinator position but in truth, I do not expect to see costs savings associated with this position. But I remain strongly opposed to the Community Development Coordinator position,” Martis said in an email.

Van Doren initially supported the freeze but has since changed his mind.

“As we have learned in the last election cycle our residents want more transparency and involvement in moving Lenawee to the future. In that effort we are reaching out to the electorate to assure we are collectively moving positively forward and not making arbitrary decisions for them without asking them for their input. The special sub-committee was a good example of bringing people and organizations together and not just listening but actually hearing their ideas and positions,” Van Doren said in an email. “With the detailed investigative work this committee accomplished, there looks to be a need for the positions. Now that being decided, the commission will be looking for milestones for the positions to assure they are adding value and will continually review all budgeted positions to assure we are meeting the needs of our residents.”

This article originally appeared on The Daily Telegram: Lenawee County will fund 3 new positions after hiring freeze