Escanaba – Delta County Board Chairman Dave Moyle was recently interviewed by the Daily News, responding to criticism of the board and its leadership, outlining his goals for the county and highlighting what he believes the county is moving toward field moving in the right direction.
politics and recall
Moyle acknowledged that 2023 has been tough for the commission — especially since the county executive’s controversial firing in early February — but argued that much of the mocking of the commission was part of a larger ” part of the problem of “destructive politics” that has been playing out at the national level. According to him, “some people want to create the appearance that the county is falling apart,” and many have lost the ability to put aside dissenting opinions.
“When I started running on Jan. 3, I asked to be there. So I knew it wasn’t going to be a garden party, but I didn’t think it was going to get in the way, either, but that’s American politics right now,” he said .
While the paperwork has yet to be filed, there are known organized efforts to recall Moyle, along with Commissioners Bob Barron and Bob Peterson.
“I believe in recall, they will be judged, if the public wants me to stay, I will stay, if they want me to leave, I will leave. But if I leave, I will know that I have done for the people I can do I’m not perfect, but I’ve done the best I can, and I’m honest, and it’s something I take very seriously,” he said.
Moyle vehemently denied that Peterson or Barron were influenced by him.
“The biggest thing people say is that Barron and Peterson are like my lackeys and they don’t really know these two because Bob and Bob — Bob — are two of the most stubborn — I say it in a good way. They don’t do what I tell them to do,” he said.
AIRPORT
Moyle sparked a public frenzy following the abrupt resignation of airport manager Andrea Nummilien earlier this month. In an interview with the Daily News and in a public statement read at the June 6 committee meeting, Nummilien cited Moyle as a major contributing factor in her decision to resign.
See MOYLE page 3A
One of Nummilien’s complaints is that Moir and Barron go to the airport while she’s on vacation, which she describes as a “stain-finding mission.” Moyle said he went to the airport to see what changes Delta would need to make to bring in the larger jets, which he thinks would be good for the county given the potential for contractors to come to the county to work on the planned work. Expansion of the Billerud paper mill.
“I didn’t know she was on vacation and I’m very saddened by that, but I’m doing my part to protect the community. It’s not because she wasn’t doing her job, I just wanted to reach out to Delta,” he said.
According to Moyle, there are currently no certain security protocols that are required for jumbo jets to enter the airport, and he has never spoken to Nummilien about not liking her job performance.
housing
If Billerud’s expansion goes ahead, the Escanaba plant will switch to making cardboard, a packaging material used for items such as cereal boxes. An announcement is expected soon whether the expansion will be to the Escanaba plant or to Quinnesec or the Billerud plant in Wisconsin Rapids. 2023.
Moyle said he has no doubts that Escanaba’s expansion will come. If it does, the city could see 2,000 to 2,500 contractors come to the county to install new board machines.
Given the potential influx of factory workers, the county has placed greater emphasis on increasing available housing. It has been working with the cities of Escanaba and Gladstone and the Hannaville Indian community to connect water and sewer to the Bayview area for development in areas suffering from groundwater contamination.
Moyle also suggested establishing a point of contact for the mill to assist Billerud with the transition to paperboard.
“They’re going to have the largest paper machine in the world right here in Delta County, and I think someone, one of the commissioners or the county needs to be a available liaison for them so they… don’t run into any obstacles or confusion,” he said.
to annex
One issue that Moyle expects to disagree with Barron’s is the proposed merger of the more than 19,000-acre town of Escanaba into the neighboring town of Cornell. Barron was one of 26 homeowners whose contracts with solar developers were terminated after Escanaba Township switched from pro-solar development to adopting solar regulations, so stringent developers canceled the project entirely – played a major role in the proposal and Said he intends to participate when the board receives the merger application.
“The board has voted 4-1 that he should recuse. That should be a clear indication of where we’re going,” Moyle said.
The merger was initially slated to be on the board’s May 16 agenda, but no application was received at that time. It’s scheduled to be on Tuesday’s agenda.
“If the application comes in, I don’t know if we’re going to vote on it. If we do vote on it, I think it’s going to go down the drain. I don’t think it’s going to pass,” Moyle said.
Moyle said that while he cannot speak for the rest of the committee, he does not plan to support the annexation proposal because he cannot support a vote to remove duly elected township officials from their seats. If the annexation goes through, three members of the township council will be removed because they will no longer live in the town of Escanaba.
garden
According to Moyle, the county is currently hiring a new park manager to take over when the Delta Reserve park management contract ends Dec. 31.
“We are taking immediate steps to ensure the park is self-sustaining and we are not going backwards because the reserve will be there for a limited time,” he said.
Employee Salary and Benefits
One thing the county has been working on, according to Moyle, is increasing wages for county workers. Before Nummilien’s resignation, the board had proposed a $5,000 salary increase for the airport manager position.
In addition to making wages more competitive, Moir wants to create a tuition payment plan for county employees. Under the plan, which has not yet been presented to the board, Moir envisions county employees being reimbursed half of their tuition for C grades, 75 percent for B grades and 100 percent for A grades in approved education plans.
“A well-educated workforce is a happy workforce and a secure workforce, and I’d like to see that be one of the benefits we offer our employees that we don’t currently have. We’re going to raise wages as much as possible, but I’m not looking There are so many people going to college that we can’t afford it,” Moyle said.
Veteran
The county is continuing its efforts to increase funding for veterans services, either by using a nearly 125-year-old law that charges emergency services up to 1/10th (10 cents per $1,000 of taxable value) for needy veterans Or the 1953 law that created the County Department of Veterans Affairs and related funds, which must contain at least $50,000.
It’s unclear whether the county will use Public Act 214 of 1899 or Public Act 192 of 1953 to fund veterans services, but Moyle would like to see changes that support veterans and the county Office of Veterans Services.
“There may be differences of opinion on the board in terms of how we do things, but we all want some help from the veterinarians, especially (Delta County Veterans Services Officer Dave Xavier), because he’s burned out,” he said.
military park
Another thing Moyle wants to do is create a Veterans Park. His dream is to have 12 to 15 stops on concrete pads along a non-motorized walking and skiing trail, including retired military vehicles such as tanks.
“I think it’s going to be a lot of school field trips, and it’s going to be a way of honoring veterans; something really unique that brings people to the area,” he said.
Moyle said the park has been his dream for 13 years.
second amendment
The county board reaffirmed its Second Amendment sanctuary county status, adding “tooth” to the 2020 resolution, Moir said. He added that the original resolution was more of a compromise because former Delta County Commissioner Patrick Johnson was more of a political moderate than he was. Moyle.
“The difference between that and this is that we’re not going to fund provisions of the unconstitutional red flag law,” Moyle said, noting that court and sheriff’s office funding goes through the county.
prayer
Prayer at county council meetings has been a contentious issue, but Moyle said prayer is a “fundamental American value” and reiterated his previous statement that no one is forced into the prayer of supplication offered at the beginning of the session. pray.
Mental Health
Moir also responded to Barron’s controversial comments on mental health at a recent county board meeting, saying he believes mental health services in Michigan are underfunded.
“80% of the people in our prisons have some kind of spiritual need, we spend $50,000 a year on feeding, clothing and medical treatment for inmates, yet we are cutting public school social workers, which is not the case. Doesn’t make sense,” He said.
Boys & Girls Club
One issue Moyle sees that could help Delta County youth is the movement to create Boys and Girls Clubs across the county. It’s still early days for the club, though the county has received several introductions from program leader Ricky Graham, and a meeting between the county and the organization’s regional coordinator is scheduled for July 23.
“We’ve had nearly $75,000 in pledges,” Moyle said.
court security
Courthouse security has been a topic of discussion at several county meetings. According to Moyle, security upgrades are currently underway, adding bulletproof glass and electronically locked doors in some areas.
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