When Trustee Neil Wallace noticed $900 to DeRosiers Architects in the July 21 check run, he thought it was odd.
When he found out it was for preliminary blueprints for a new sheriff substation, he was angry.
‘In this letter (from Supervisor Dave Wagner), it says that this came out of the supervisor’s budget as though that made it OK, as though the money in the supervisor’s budget, he can spend it at his discretion and that’s just simply not true,? Wallace said. ‘This is another indication of monies being spent that should have been brought to the township board.?
Two more checks to DeRosiers, for $2,900 and $2,400, awaited approval in the Aug. 4 meeting.
Trustee David Lohmeier questioned Finance Director Susan Hendricks about the payments before the meeting and she confirmed it was for the new substation.
‘Also I asked what account it came out of and she didn’t say the supervisor’s, she said it came out of the board’s budget,? Lohmeier said. ‘I asked why and she said ‘that’s what I was directed to do.??
Wagner said there was a ‘miscommunication.?
‘We’ve been going over these bills for the last week, so if it is in the board’s account it will be out of there,? Wagner said.
Hendricks later confirmed that the money was originally taken out of the board’s account, but upon request of the supervisor the money has been taken out of the supervisor’s budget. She said invoices are written up at the department level and sent to ‘accounts payable.?
‘When it was written up at the department level, it was written to come out of the board’s account,? Hendricks said. ‘Whether it was miscommunication or a typing error or whatever it was, the supervisor has informed me there was an error on that payment and it is being corrected.?
The board voted 5-1 to approve the check run but to hold the two DeRosier bills until they get clarification. Wallace voted against the check run. Trustee Larry Rosso was absent.
In a later interview, Wagner said bills submitted by DeRosiers in January were mixed up between the new township hall and the proposed substation.
‘As a matter of fact, that was supposed to be pulled out of the check run because the bill was still not correct and the sheriff’s department was going to contribute 50 percent of that bill,? he said. ‘I also have some businesses out there that have said they’re willing to contribute to that facility, a substantial amount of money, because they think it’s the right thing to do. On top of that, they like the location because it’s real close to I-75, it’s in the center of the township and they believe it would make police work even more efficient than what it already is.?
The reason for having blue prints drawn up, said Wagner, was so they could see what it would look like and what size is needed, so when the board approves putting the project out for bid, they would have a ‘floor plan to work off of and get some ideas of cost.?
This is within his authority, he said.
‘Within my budget, I have a line item that’s called contractual services, which allows the supervisor to do certain things if he needs to, to have something looked at, no matter what it is, up to a certain dollar amount that has been approved, and that’s what I did,? he said. ‘Once again, you’ve got individuals who don’t have an interest in the betterment of the township, but want to criticize what has gone on, just to criticize and create dissention in the ranks.?
However, Lohmeier said it is less of a question of ‘can you? and more of ‘should you,? when spending $5,000-$6,000 on blue prints for a building that hasn’t been approved by the board yet.
‘If it turns out that he can spend out of the supervisor’s budget, fine, but that doesn’t mean it’s still the smart thing to do, when we can’t afford to do other things,? he said. ‘We haven’t prioritized any new construction yet, so he is spending money prepping for work that’s not approved. That just doesn’t make any sense to me.?