Wexford County board approves camera purchase, roofing contract and multiple contracts; appointment passes 7-1

Wexford County commissioners approved a slate of procurement and personnel items at their regular meeting, including a $236,587.68 purchase of in-car and body cameras for the sheriff's office and a $123,500 contract to replace the Civic auditorium roof.

The approvals were part of routine business that also included an appointment to the Networks Northwest board, a temporary summer intern hire for the prosecutor’s office, an independent services contract and several materials-management actions.

The board voted 7-1 to appoint Ben Townsend as the county’s required economic/community development representative to the Networks Northwest board after a recommendation from the Human Resources/Public Safety Committee. The appointment carried with the following roll-call votes recorded in the meeting: Patrick — Yes; Sagi — Yes; Nelson — No; Nyman — Yes; Benjie — Yes; Bush — Yes; Bond — Yes; Taylor — Yes. The chair announced the motion passed 7-1.

The board approved a quote from Procom totaling $236,587.68 for in-car and body cameras for the sheriff’s office. The motion referenced following the county’s procurement rules ("section J of policy D-1") and passed unanimously on roll call 8-0.

Commissioners voted to waive the competitive bidding process under county policy to approve Jay Greenwood Roofing Systems Inc. for the Civic auditorium roof replacement, authorizing a contract of $123,500 that includes a 15-year warranty. Commissioners asked about the completion date; staff reported a target of "before the end of the month," but said a final schedule had not been set.

Other approved items included: - A motion to hire a temporary full-time summer intern in the prosecutor’s office at $25 per hour (motion passed; roll-call recorded as Yes votes from the board). - A $90,000-per-year independent contractor agreement for building/professional soil roading services with McKenzie Harrison; the board authorized the chairman to sign on behalf of the county. - A 2025 bulk paper purchase of $12,291.70 from Central Michigan Paper. - Approval of a multi-county materials-management plan and associated bylaws/work orders and related motions presented during the meeting. - Approval of an MGT agreement with the prosecutor’s office and authorization for the chairman to sign on behalf of the county.

Roll-call tallies for unanimous votes were announced at multiple points in the meeting. Where a roll call or recorded tally was given in the transcript, that tally is reflected above.

Votes at a glance (selected items) - Networks Northwest appointment — Ben Townsend: Passed 7-1 (Nelson opposed). (See meeting record for roll-call names.) - Sheriff’s office cameras — Procom quote, $236,587.68: Passed 8-0. - Civic auditorium roof — Jay Greenwood Roofing Systems Inc., $123,500 (15-year warranty): Passed (motion to waive bidding and approve contract). - Prosecutor’s office summer intern — $25/hour: Passed (vote recorded as unanimous in roll call segments). - Independent contractor — McKenzie Harrison for soil/roading services, $90,000/year: Passed (authorized chairman signature). - Bulk paper purchase — Central Michigan Paper, $12,291.70: Passed. - Multi-county materials-management plan and related bylaws/work order motions: Passed. - MGT agreement with prosecutor: Passed.

The meeting record shows routine roll-call procedures used for each motion. Where the transcript listed specific yes/no votes, those names are summarized above. Several motions were approved with unanimous roll-call tallies of 8-0; the one contested appointment was recorded 7-1.

Public comment during the meeting included a speaker who raised concerns about aerial spraying and other conspiratorial claims; commissioners did not take formal action on the public comment.

The board directed staff to complete contracting steps and to return as needed with final contracts, schedules and implementation details.