Yet another customarily routine item took up a lot of time and discussion at Thursday night’s Dorr Township Board meeting.
This time it was the reappointment of two members of the Zoning Board of Appeals for three-year terms. The ZBA members, both of whom indicated they were willing to continue to serve, were Ethel Visser and Lester Myers.
Trustee John Tuinstra said he was voting no because, “I think we need to do a better job of recruiting people,” and there should be more lead time before a vacancy occurs.
“We have people who have been on for a long time, and I think we could rotate,” he added.
For example, he said, “I have nothing against Larry Dolegowski (of the Planning Commission), it’s just the length of time that he’s served.”
Tuinstra noted that Visser is nearing a state record for longevity on the ZBA and he questioned the continued presence of former Supervisor Don Kaczanowski as the township’s representative on the Ambulance Board.
Rios chimed in, “So we have people who serve on and on.”
Supervisor Jeff Miling said, “There’s nothing wrong with having people continue to serve when they’re doing their jobs well for a long time.”
Miling said the ZBA openings were noted for a month on the electric sign outside of the township hall and information was included in the newsletter.
Visser and Myers were confirmed 6-1, with Tuinstra casting the dissenting vote. Their terms begin June 1 and the seats each pay $35 per meeting, with four scheduled meetings each year.
Former Township Trustee Patty Senneker near the end of the meeting, was critical of the board for dragging out meetings past 10 p.m., more than three hours.
“You guys ought to have a workshop before your meetings… you just babble on,” she said to board members. “It’s very unprofessional.”
She then proceeded to ask for detailed explanations of 11 line items in the payment of the bills approved earlier in the meeting.
Then she asked why the board’s meeting agenda packet wasn’t completed in a timely manner.
She was told, as was stated earlier in the session, that the packet had to be re-done five times.
PHOTO: Patty Senneker Ethel Visser
Ethel Visser and Lester Myers are both outstanding ZBA members who contribute an nonvenomous amount of experience to the board. Both are great Americans who have served the Township and our nation for decades.
We need to celebrate both folks service and not even consider replacing them.