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Canton commission appoints ISG as city engineer after public objections; vote 3-2
Summary
After public comments criticizing transparency and past handling of flood issues, the Canton City Commission voted 3–2 to appoint ISG as the city engineer, replacing long-time on‑call services.
The Canton City Commission voted 3–2 on a motion to appoint ISG as the city engineer, ending debate after multiple public comments questioning the selection process and transparency.
The vote follows a months‑long process in which the city solicited proposals for engineering services and interviewed several firms. A motion earlier in the meeting to retain JSA as city engineer was made and seconded, and later the commission moved to select ISG; the motion to appoint ISG passed 3–2.
Why it matters: residents told the commission they feared a loss of institutional knowledge and raised ethics concerns. Chad Skouser King, a Canton resident, told commissioners he was “asking the same questions about why so much secrecy, lack of transparency, things being done in executive session,” and urged commissioners to disclose any outside dealings with firms before votes.
Several other residents addressed flooding near Cedar Street and questioned whether changing engineers during a multi‑year flood resiliency effort would slow action. Vicky Hookstrom said she agreed with Skouser King and described repeated flooding on her property, saying the issue “has been a long time coming” and that residents had expected the engineering work to already be underway.
Commission discussion focused on the procurement process and hourly rates. During the meeting an hourly‑rate summary was read into the record listing DGR at $2.16 per hour, JSA at $1.50–$1.58 per hour, ISG at $1.95 per hour (with a discounted $85 rate for certain services), and Banner at $1.62 per hour.
Formal outcome: the commission’s action appoints ISG to provide city engineering services going forward. The motion passed on a 3–2 vote; the transcript records those votes as “Aye” and “No” across the five commissioners present.
Public comments and next steps: multiple speakers urged clearer disclosure of communications between commissioners and firms and asked for detail on costs; commissioners did not adopt any additional disclosure language during the meeting. The appointment decision is now part of the public record and the city staff will proceed with onboarding the selected firm for the tasks specified in the city’s request for proposals.
