Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Board Appointments topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Board trims Board of Public Works from 11 to 9 members; commission approves revised resolution
Summary
After legal review and debate over bylaws and representation, the Grand Traverse County Board of Commissioners voted to set Board of Public Works membership at nine and to remove two general‑public seats; the resolution was amended and approved on roll call.
The Grand Traverse County Board of Commissioners voted to set the Board of Public Works’ membership at nine members by eliminating two general‑public representative seats, resolving an inconsistency between BPW bylaws and state guidance.
Noah Carver, the county’s director of public works, told commissioners the Board of Public Works had voted on June 12 to recommend reducing membership from 11 to 9. Carver said the packet included a draft resolution to effect that change and to address certain reappointment questions.
Commissioners debated the resolution’s language and placement of township and city representation. Commissioner Andrews noted the BPW bylaws prefer supervisors for certain township seats and asked that the third whereas clause be removed and a final phrase of a therefore clause be deleted for clarity. Commissioners also raised that state law limits the typical board size and that the county’s previous allowance for more members no longer applied.
After amendments were clarified and staff confirmed an updated text, the board took a roll‑call vote. The result was: Henschel — No; Morris — Yes; Spence — Yes; Walter — Yes; Andrews — Yes; Seaford — Yes. The motion carried and the resolution was adopted.
The resolution tasks the board chair or county administrator with implementing the membership change and directs the Board of Public Works to amend its bylaws to conform to the county’s resolution. Several commissioners also requested the administration provide the final, updated resolution text to the public and to the board in writing to avoid confusion caused by packet changes made shortly before the meeting.
Commissioners scheduled follow‑up work to fill the two vacancies created by the membership reduction using an ad‑hoc process to identify qualified appointees.
Next procedural steps include amending BPW bylaws to align with the county resolution and posting the updated resolution text for public review.
