Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners considers dissolving road commission
Current Washtenaw County Road Commissioners. From Washtenaw County Road Commission’s website.
The Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners (BOC) is currently reviewing the governance structure of the Washtenaw County Road Commission.
For the past 100 years, the Washtenaw County Road Commission has been governed by three road commissioners, appointed by the BOC to serve 6-year terms. The road commissioners oversee approximately 130 staff members who are responsible for the maintenance and preservation of more than 1,600 miles of road in Washtenaw County. One of the three current road commissioners and vice-chair is Sharon Township resident, Barb Fuller, who has served on the commission since 2013.
At its working session on September 19 the BOC laid out four options for the Washtenaw County Road Commission going forward. The first option is to just retain the current structure. The second option is to change road commission board members from appointed to elected. The third option is to expand the road commission board from three to five members. The fourth, and most controversial option, is to dissolve the road commission and transfer road commission duties to the BOC.
Although the second and third options will continue to exist under current state law, there is a sunset on the fourth option. The ability of a county board’s to transfer the powers, duties, and functions that are otherwise provided by law from the appointed board of county road commissioners to the county board of commissioners will expire on January 1, 2020.
The Washtenaw County Road Commission stated, “We are very proud of the work that we do and the service that we provide to the people of Washtenaw County, despite years of statewide underinvestment in infrastructure. We are working closely with the BOC to provide them as much information as they need to make an informed decision during their review.”
Manchester Township’s Board weighed in on the question of changing the Washtenaw County Road Commission’s structure with a resolution passed on September 10th stating that “Manchester Township supports the existing structure of a separate Road Commission appointed by the County Board of Commissioners” and that they urge the BOC “to recognize the unique services required by rural townships and preserve the existing knowledge base, high level of professional expertise, and efficient organizational structure of the Washtenaw County Road Commission.”
At the most recent regularly scheduled meeting, the Washtenaw County BOC passed a resolution to hold two public hearings regarding the question of transferring road commission powers to the BOC. The hearings are scheduled for October 23, 2019 at 6:45 pm in the Board Room of the County Administration Building, and Wednesday, November 6, 2019 at 6:45 pm in the Board Room of the County Administration Building located at 220 N. Main Street.
The Washtenaw County Road Commission board meets on the first and third Tuesday of each month, at 1 pm (unless otherwise noted) in the boardroom at the the Road Commission’s main facility, located at 555 North Zeeb Road in Ann Arbor.
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