GREENWOOD TWP - A proposal by Supervisor John Milbridge to cut supervisor salaries by approximately two-thirds effective Nov. 1 passed on a 4-1 vote, with Chairman Kirsten Reichel voting against.

At Tuesday’s meeting, Milbridge said that this reduction would save the township $34,000 over the next 29 months, and he suggested the reduction stay in place until the 2018 annual meeting.

Currently supervisors are paid $3,866 per year and the chairman $4,255 per year. This was scheduled to increase to $4,125 and $4,500, respectively, in 2016. Milbridge’s proposal set supervisor pay at $1,200 a year, and the chairman’s pay at $1,500 per year.

Milbridge noted that he hadn’t discussed his idea with anyone else prior to the meeting. He said this wouldn’t change township policy for paying additionally for attending special meetings.

“I came up with a list of priorities for the township,” he said, “and the supervisor pay is way down on the list. This would provide some cost savings for the township.”

Milbridge said he felt the money could be spent better.

“There are a lot of needs,” he said. “We have a lower levy. We have EMS people. We can get better value.”

Audience member Mary Richards asked if he had researched other ways to reduce township spending. Milbridge said he had and would be bringing more suggestions in future months.

“I prayed about it and came up with what I thought was fair,” he said.

Reichel said she was not in favor of this reduction. She noted that she has a roundtrip drive of 60 miles to get from her home to the town hall, and she is not reimbursed for the mileage costs (town board members are only reimbursed for mileage expenses outside of the township, per state rules).

“This is the first I have heard of this pay issue,” she said.

Supervisor Rick Worringer said he thought this might “turn away some people” interested in serving on the board.

Gene Baland asked if the issue could be brought back up again next month, to give supervisors time to think. Baland has made a point of asking the board to be more reflective of their decision-making in the past.

Several people in the audience spoke up.

Audience member Jeff Maus wondered why the board was taking public comment on this salary issue, but had denied the right of audience members to speak when the issue of the pay increase for the clerk was brought up, and wasn’t even placed on the agenda, at the July meeting. The board voted to give the clerk a $12,000 a year raise in July, increasing that salary to $26,190 for the year 2015.

Reichel asked for a motion granting that her mileage be paid, but after questions from the audience withdrew her motion. Reichel’s term on the board expires in March, and she has stated she will not be running for reelection.

No decision made

on old ambulance

The board delayed any action on the request from Fire Chief Dave Fazio to purchase the old ambulance from the Tower Area Ambulance Service for approximately $18,000. Fazio would like to use the unit as a first responder vehicle and to provide aid on fire scenes, not as a vehicle to transport patients.

Questions were raised about the reliability of the rig, which had its engine replaced about a year ago. The ambulance service has been trying to sell the vehicle for quite a while, without any takers.

Fire Department member Jeff Maus told the board while is he “100 percent in favor of the department having the right equipment,” he had serious questions about the purchase. He noted the rig is very expensive to maintain.

Retired fire department member and former supervisor Carmen DeLuca said he would rather see the department do more research, and “not buy something that someone else is having trouble getting rid of…I’d rather we do it right.”

Fazio said the purchase was approved by the majority of members. He said most of the equipment needed to rig the vehicle would be transferred from the rescue five truck.

Worringer, who is also on the fire department, noted they would not be putting on anywhere near the miles the ambulance department did, and if it did “fail,” it wouldn’t have a patient inside. He noted the department would not find a similar vehicle at that price.

In other fire department news, the board voted 4-1, with John Bassing voting against, to purchase an Airway Management Trainer for the First Responders, at a cost of approximately $1,500. Questions were raised on whether it would make more sense to have the members trained on using the device before making a decision to purchase one. The device allows the First Responders to practice keeping an open airway when giving respiration with a bag. First Responders are not trained to insert a breathing tube.

Fazio also reported that fire department members were not interested in taking over the responsibility for 911-addressing, and wish to continue have Ellen Trancheff as 911-coordinator.

The issue of whether or not department members should be required to have annual physicals and drug tests was also brought up by an audience member. Fazio noted they had done physicals in the past, but not regularly.

“It is just hard to fulfill,” he said.

Other business

In other business the board:

‰ Failed to unanimously approve a resolution to allow Supervisor Worringer to act as the paid maintenance department assistant. Prior to being elected to the board, Worringer had been trained to be a backup for Pat Trancheff, in case Trancheff would unable to work. He also occasionally assists Trancheff when two people are needed for a job. Since he is a supervisor, the board needs to pass a resolution to allow him to be hired by the township. Some in the audience asked if this position had been advertised, and if anyone else was interested in the job.

The vote on the motion to allow Worringer to be hired failed on a 3-1 vote, with Bassing voting against. Worringer said he would be willing to continue in the position on a volunteer basis.

‰Noted the township First Responders had received two letters of thanks for their service and care, from the families of Rod Lundstrom and Mary Strong.

‰ Said the job description for the clerk was available to anyone interested. Reichel said if a new clerk were elected, pay would not be equivalent to that paid to the current clerk, who has 30-plus years of experience. Reichel noted that entry-level clerks in the area were being paid around $17 per hour. The Greenwood clerk is paid a salary, not hourly. Reichel said the 911-coordinator position is not elected, so does not automatically go to the clerk.

‰ Passed a resolution to name the new bocce ball courts in honor of Dean Panian, who spearheaded the effort to get the courts built, and donated many hours of his time to overseeing the project.

‰ Heard that work on the tennis courts had not begun, and Baland was not certain if the contractor, Mesabi Bituminous, would be able to complete the project this fall. Baland said residents would just need to be patient, and noted it would be worth waiting to make sure the project is done correctly.