The public comment time at the beginning and end of each Barry County Commission meeting is to give citizens a place to make their views known. Almost every week for some time, the subject of TOST is brought up and it came up again Wednesday.
Bob Price, from Delton, said it is his opinion that the primary benefactors of the Barry Eaton District Health Department time of sale or transfer (TOST) regulation are the health department employees, and private contractors in the well and septic business. “The citizens see it as a detriment,” he said, pointing to a recent TOST listening session held by commissioners where 23 of the 25 speakers spoke against the rule.
Price said commissioners develop policy and they should develop a policy that reflects the will of the people and rescind TOST. He added if that means the Barry County will have to withdraw from the joint health department agreement with Eaton County, ”So be it.”
TOST mandates inspection of on-site wells and septic systems and repair or replacement if deemed failing before the sale or transfer of property in Barry and Eaton counties.
Sharon Zebrowski, Charlton Park board president, chastised commissioners for saying park Director Dan Patton presented “an educated guess” on roof repairs for several park buildings during a budget appeal last week. Patton got estimates from local contractors and they went through the board, she said. To the suggestion that the park and Parks & Recreation boards merge to become one, she said they would still have to maintain separate records because the park operates on voter approved millage that, by law, can only be used for the park.
She said she learned that after operating as one board for 30 or 40 years, then-commissioners dissolved the board and created two because citizens were very unhappy with what was going on at the park, and they asked for two boards. “We came this close to losing the park; they pulled it out of the muck and we’re still fighting to keep it going,” she said.
Also in public comment, Drain Commissioner Jim Dull gave an update on the replacement of the Gun Lake Dam, reporting they have the DEQ permit, the engineers have provided the scope and plans. They expect to put out bids in about two weeks and get them back within another two weeks.
After a required public hearing, Dull estimated they could start work in December or January and hopefully complete the project by March of next year, in time for the summer boating season.
In other business, the commission approved:
* awarding mini-grants from the Parks & Recreation Board totaling $5,000 to: the City of Hastings, $1,000; Orangeville Township, $1,000; Village of Middleville, $1,000; Yankee Springs Township, $1,000 and Prairieville township and Thornapple Kellogg School district $500 each.
* the appointment of former County Planning and Zoning board member Anthony Crosariol to the Zoning Board of Appeals for the remainder of a term that ends March 31, 2019.
* the appointment of Kristen Cove to a partial term as a citizen at large on the Barry Central Dispatch Administration Board until Dec. 31, 2018.
* the Southcentral Michigan Planning Council as the District Organization for the U.S. Department of Commerce, Economic Development Administration Economic Development District for Michigan State Planning and Development Region 3.
* budget amendment B17, as prepared by Deputy County Administrator Luella Dennison.
