Washtenaw commissioners weigh housing senior millage within OCED vs. stand‑alone aging office

Washtenaw County commissioners, staff and nonprofit providers debated how to administer a newly approved older‑adult millage, with OCED officials proposing a senior services division inside their existing department and several commissioners and community members pressing for clarity on staffing, sustainability and how much money should be passed directly to community providers.

The county—s Office of Community and Economic Development (OCED) presented a plan to create an aging services division within OCED, arguing it would reduce overhead and move funds into the community faster than building a new department from the ground up. OCED said it already operates related programs including senior nutrition, housing rehabilitation and weatherization and could add a division administrator and targeted staff to run senior millage programs.

Why it matters: Commissioners and nonprofit leaders said seniors face urgent needs for nutrition, minor home repairs, and recovery supports; they want funding to reach community providers quickly while also ensuring long‑term program stability and public accountability.

OCED—s case OCED staff described operational and contracting experience they said would help distribute millage funds quickly. Ellis Johnson of OCED said OCED already runs the county—s senior nutrition and home improvement programs and that existing contractor relationships, grant processes and a call center could be leveraged for the millage. Aaron Craft and Heidi Johnson, who oversee housing rehabilitation and weatherization programs, said roughly half of their clients are seniors and that OCED has the contractor base and systems to launch a senior minor home repair program immediately.

Nonprofit providers and public comment Several nonprofit leaders urged the board to use millage funds both to expand services and to stabilize existing providers facing funding losses. Heather Williams identified herself as CEO of a local treatment provider and spoke with Wendy Kalinski (Home of New Vision), Anna Byberg (president, Dawn Farm) and Ray Ryan (executive director, Packard Health) on a joint public comment asking the county to include sustainability for substance use disorder providers in opioid settlement planning; they later explicitly urged that senior nutrition and other aging services be administered efficiently.

Marty Popic, OCED senior nutrition program specialist, described existing capacity: "We have 100% coverage of Washtenaw County for home delivered meals with no wait list. We have never had a wait list," he said, and said local millage dollars could expand meal variety, medically tailored meals and social programs to address isolation.

Commissioner concerns and options Commissioners generally supported housing the millage within OCED but raised recurring concerns: whether the county should hire new staff or route most funds to community partners; how to avoid making positions dependent on a single dedicated revenue source; and how to preserve the public accountability that voters expect.

- Several commissioners supported creating an aging services division inside OCED with a division administrator and some dedicated program staff, while also directing more funds outward to nonprofit providers. - Commissioners warned against using millage funds to simply replace federal grant funding that could later be cut. OCED staff said about 36 of 45 OCED positions are federally funded, and that the department would need to plan for staffing and budget risks if federal funding declined. - Commissioners requested a staffing gap analysis. OCED said it expects to need at least a division administrator and additional supervisors for direct delivery programs such as home rehabilitation (roughly 3 line staff and 1–2 supervisors were cited as an initial estimate for direct home rehab work).

Next steps and timeline The county administrator and OCED staff said they will return with more detailed staffing, budget and program options. Commissioners also discussed using some millage funds for early pass‑through payments to address immediate needs while designing a longer‑term structure.

The board did not take a final vote on structure at this session; commissioners directed staff to provide more detailed staffing and budget estimates and to continue community engagement with nonprofit partners and the Commission on Aging.

Ending Commissioners praised the participation of local providers and asked staff to bring a more detailed plan, including a staffing gap analysis and funding breakdowns, to a future meeting so the board can decide whether to house the millage in OCED or in a newly created office of aging.