WASHTENAW COUNTY, MI – Scio Township’s administrator pointed to fundamental disagreements with elected leaders when he resigned in April, less than five months into his tenure.
He had no incentive to remain in the township when they couldn’t see eye to eye on core functions like financial management and oversight, David Rowley said in a sharply-worded resignation statement to the township board.
Read more: ‘No incentive to remain here’: Scio Township administrator resigns
Now, those same elected officials have an 11-page roadmap detailing his perspective on how they could choose to move forward in his absence.
The set of recommendations dated May 15 — Rowley’s last day — range from technical to big picture. In the document, he urges elected leaders to better set goals around township spending.
“As the current Scio Township budget process now stands, the (board of trustees) does not have any goals or objectives but instead relies on its various specific issue committees to provide guidance as to policy direction,” Rowley wrote. “The Scio model is clearly one of the tail wagging the dog.”
Elected leaders should adopt a budget timeline for the next cycle beginning this month, spreading out the process of refining its allocation of some $18 million in yearly taxes and other revenue over the better part of the coming year, Rowley said.
It begins with setting goals to guide that process, he said.
Township Supervisor Will Hathaway, who publicly clashed with Rowley over his recommendations for filling financial staffing holes this year, acknowledges that goal-setting is a priority.
“There’s no arguing really that it’s something that the township ought to do and needs to do,” he said in an interview.
An atmosphere of conflict that has marked the current board’s tenure has stood in the way of those kind of conservations, Hathaway said.
Township Clerk Jessica Flintoft, who has frequently been at odds with the supervisor and this week filed a new set of legal claims against the rest of township board over what she says are infringements on her authority, backed Rowley’s parting words.
“David’s final report is well-informed, highlighting priorities this board must address to govern responsibly,” she said in a brief statement. “I am sorry that Scio has lost his expertise.”
Beef up staffing, consider new government model, former administrator says
Rowley’s resignation came in the weeks after a majority of the township board’s rejection of proposals he advanced to provide financial staffing through outside contractors.
In his final report, the administrator continued to urge officials to hire in that arena.
Among the highest priority positions is the currently-vacant finance director job, now being recruited for by a search firm, Rowley said.
Within the next three months, the township should hire a part-time human resources staffer and also a full-time township manager, the report recommends.
Rowley urges officials to reevaluate their use of an “administrator model” adopted last year, instead hiring a manager with the authority to act as the chief administrative officer in budgeting, as well as wield full hiring and firing authority for employees.
Township leaders voted on May 10 to bring on a part-time replacement for Rowley. The board hired Jim Merte, a well-regarded retired township official, amid outcry from one trustee the decision had been rushed.
Read more: ‘Seasoned’ interim administrator hired in Scio Township amid criticism over rushed decision
“A part-time Interim administrator model will not resolve township issues in the long term,” cautions Rowley in his final report.
He also recommends further administrative hires in accounting, as well as the utilities and assessing departments, saying current levels are inadequate to meet state requirements. Two firefighters should also be brought on board within the next three to six months, he says.
Hathaway said he believes the township has taken steps to reach consensus around how to spread responsibilities among finance staff. Disagreements in that area have played a key role in Flintoft’s lawsuit against her fellow board members, which so far hasn’t succeeded in prompting judicial intervention, but is still pending.
“I think we’re making significant progress on that, and I think that will help us because it’s been such a point of contention for such a long time,” Hathaway said.
Hathaway said he hoped to study Rowley’s recommendations more closely, adding he hadn’t had the chance to meet with the departing administrator to talk through them before his last day.
Checklist of ongoing tasks includes computer issues, fire department funding questions
Rowley’s final report also details a laundry list of ongoing concerns at the township that were in-process as he departed.
They include the recommendation that officials consider switching employee health care and retirement providers, amid rising costs, as well as switch to a bi-weekly pay schedule for township staff.
One urgent item is the resolution of a funding issue in the township fire department, where Rowley says there appears to have been an incorrect application of state accounting standards, without going into specifics.
The issue stems from the incorrect placement of a $1.5 million loan in a construction account for recent renovations to the township fire hall, resulting in the appearance of a deficit in the department’s budget this year, Hathaway said, adding that officials are nearing a solution.
Computer server issues have also resulted in delays and outages recently, Rowley said, recommending improvements to consolidate servers and address the problems.
Many of the issues raised in the administrator’s report are “confusing and complex,” even for those most intimately involved, Hathaway acknowledged.
With township affairs as polarized as they are, it’s difficult to talk through the nuances of the issues, he said.
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