Bridgeport Township Board Meeting June 4th, 2019

Thought For The Day

 

On the agenda:

Special Orders -
1. RZ19-01 Rezone 6600 Junction 2nd Reading Parcel #90-11-5-24-4004-02 begins at 2:00
Public Comment begins at 3:42
New Business -
1. 2018 Audit Presentation - Quast, Janke & Company CPA's begins at 8:46
2. R19-03 Consumers Energy Standard Street Light Contract begins at 16:30
3. R19-04 Consumers Energy Change in Standard Street Light Contract begins at 18:19
4. RZ19-01 Rezone 6600 Junction Parcel #09-11-5-26-4004-002 begins at 19:42
5. PA116 Application for Spero 5800 Sheridan Parcel #09-11-5-19-3010-001 begins at 20:39
6. 2019 Property Tax Foreclosures begins at 22:28
7. Introduction of Police Officer Garrett Breternitz begins at 22:35
8. Zoning Board of Appeals Appointments begins at 25:31
9. Fire Arm Disposal begins at 26:39
10. Fire Department Uniforms begins at 28:03
11. Anderson Complex Door begins at 29:08
12. Tree Removal begins at 31:02
Account Payable Checks begins at 32:59
Board Member Comments begin at 33:48
© 2019 Carla Citizen All Rights Reserved

The meeting was a normal meeting with the normal business at hand.  There was one item which caught my attention.  That was the Zoning Board of Appeals Appointments.  They voted to remove Lee Carpenter from the zoning board and replace him with another man. I thought WTH?  When did the formerly recalled Lee Carpenter get on the zoning board of appeals?  So I did some digging through the past meeting minutes and found that he was appointed to that board during the December 18th, 2018 township trustee board meeting.  They appointed these people: William Cannon, Robert Licht Jr., Craig Beins, and Lee Carpenter as an alternate with terms to expire on 12/31/21.

Every member of the trustee board voted to approve these appointments except Darlene Miller who was absent from this meeting. 

In the minutes for the January 8th, 2019 Zoning Board of Appeals Special Meeting I found these notes:

"Prior to the meeting, Clerk Miller administered the Oath of Office to Bill Cannon and Deputy Clerk Shaw administered the Oath of Office to Craig Beins.
Present: Bill Cannon, Craig Beins, Mike Tate.
Absent: Jim Secord, Lee Carpenter."
Robert Licht Jr. is not even mentioned in these minutes so I am wondering if Lee Carpenter would have been sworn in as a regular member if he had been in attendance?

I am also wondering what all these people were thinking about when they voted to appoint Lee Carpenter to that board?  Obviously they weren't thinking that they would honor the wishes of the voters who voted to recall him in 2011 and voted NO on him when he ran again for office in 2012.  Were they thinking the same thing when they voted to make him the township clerk during the April 2nd, 2019 trustee board meeting?  Were they thinking "screw the voters, we will do what we want"?  Were they thinking "no one is watching so we can just sneak him in"?  Were they thinking "the voters are too stupid to know what is going on or too apathetic to care what we do"?  I honestly can't fathom what they could have been thinking either time they voted to bring him back into the township government even after the voters voted to recall him.  Maybe it is just my "personal feelings" that make me upset that they said screw the voters in my opinion, but so far it seems to also be the feelings of others in this township that I have talked to about him being back.

This is a excellent example of why voting is important.  The Bridgeport residents didn't vote to bring Lee Carpenter back, but they did vote for the people who brought him back despite the will of the people.  In my opinion these elected officials have no respect for the residents and voters of our township, and that is something that the voters can remedy through the ballot box.

Once you show me that you can be sneaky and deceitful there's no point in trying to show me you can be anything else.