Someone in the audience at the Dorr Township Board meeting Monday night made the comment “(Dorr Township Board Trustee) “John Tuinstra is on a roll tonight.”
The observation was sarcastic, as Tuinstra spent the evening shepherding the session into a three-hour marathon with a variety of tedious amendments to motions and refusal to vote “yes” on all but one motion, not counting procedural votes.
Tuinstra usually had the support of fellow Trustee Patty Senneker to force roll call votes on issues that consistently lost by a 5-2 count.
Perhaps the most controversial was after a discussion about former deputy Clerk and former Parks Commission Chairwoman Christine Schwartz’s letter to the editor this week in the Penasee Globe. Schwartz penned a letter that accused the Township Board of approving pay raises and not properly funding dust control or maintenance of roads, yet backing a three-mill request for paving and maintenance of roads in the May 5 special election.
Supervisor Jeff Miling objected, saying the Township Board has approved very minor pay raises for employees and has delayed a decision about dust control until after the May 5 election.
Trustee Josh Otto did more than object. He contended Schwartz’s letter bordered on slander and accused Tuinstra being in league with her. Tuinstra countered that he also wrote a letter to the Globe, support the local millage request.
There were other incidences. In one, Tuinstra introduced not one, but two amendments to a proposed motion.
Maintenance employee Jared Simon submitted a request to spend $676 for new four wheel rims for a maintenance truck. Tuinstra held that the township should advertise its intentions to buy them on its web site and get them for as low as $200, and then reconsider the issue in November.
He opined, “We’re more likely to be good stewards of the money the people have given to us.”
He and and Senneker voted in the affirmative, but the five other members, as they have so often in the past couple of years, voted the other way and supported purchasing the new rims as requested by Simon.
Tuinstra submitted another amendment to a motion to approve purchase of a self-recovery electric winch by seeking bids on the township web site. He insisted the township save money by buying used and cheaper equipment.
His amendment was shot down 5-2, with Senneker again his partner, and the rest of the board voted 5-2 to concur with Simon’s request for a new winch for $1,749.99.
Miling explained, “You get what you pay for. I’ve dealt before with this kind of stuff.”
This type of activity prompted Senneker on more than one occasion to remark that the Township Board was spending money recklessly.
There also was a 5-2 vote on buying a security system for the Dorr Township Library.
Tuinstra and Senneker insisted the system isn’t needed, but Miling said a man who was a suspect in the temporary shutdown of Dorr Elementary last year wound up at the library, and it’s not a good idea to put library employees and patrons at risk.
Library Director Natalie Bazan explained that the security system immediately would notify her and public safety personnel if there was any issue.
Another 5-2 vote applied to a new employee handbook with changes suggested by the township’s attorney. Provisions now will be in place for employees to deal with a Performance Review Committee made up of the clerk, treasurer and supervisor. Tuinstra indicated he wants a revolving committee membership to handle employee performance matters.
However, Miling explained that the clerk, supervisor and treasurer are best able to handle the issues because they are in the township offices for at least 20 hours per week, unlike trustees.
On this issue, Tuinstra had a change of heart and joined all six other board members in the vote.
PHOTO: John Tuinstra