Desentz-itized Shelby Village Losing Officials

[XLFD]

What's Going On?!

 

Shelby hired a new Village Administrator (Manager) Aaron Desentz about eight months ago, since then they have lost the village clerk, treasurer, and four DPW workers.  Publicly, this has occurred with little fanfare; nor has any of the departing officers given clear reason as to why they needed to leave.  It's a very disturbing trend that people working in the public sector are prohibited from alerting the public to what could be a problem that could easily be solved if there was transparency and accountability to the public. 

 

But small villages and cities allow this to happen when they hire an out of town administrator or manager to run the government instead of local, elected office holders held somewhat accountable by the voters.  These administrators need only appease the local council, not the people, which leads to an eventual desensitization of accountability by the officials, leading to growing a garden of corruption.  Will Shelby figuratively burn, or is the employee cleansing an actual benefit?  The verdict is currently out.

 

 

Allison Scarborough of the Oceana County Press reports: 

 

SHELBY – Just one week after getting a new village clerk on board, Village Treasurer Roxanne Inglis has resigned.

“With the notification of Roxanne stepping down, how many village employees have moved on since (Village Administrator) Aaron (Desentz) has been here?” Shelby resident Mary Lulich asked during Monday night’s village council meeting. Desentz said two office staff (Inglis and former clerk Peggy Miller) and four Department of Public Works (DPW) employees have left their employment with the village since he began working for the village.

Desentz was hired as village administrator last September, replacing long-time Village Administrator and DPW Supervisor Randy Phillips who resigned in early 2013. Miller resigned as clerk last month after eight years on the job.

“Would you say that’s a high rate of turnover?” Lulich asked Desentz. “It’s high,” he said.

“Is the council looking at this?” Lulich asked. “Change is tough,” said Village President Andrew Morse.

“I would also like to know if the council realizes the importance of keeping employees?” Lulich asked, citing the high cost of training new workers. “It’s like the Wild, Wild West,” she said.

“I’ve had some great concerns with some of them,” Village Councilwoman Sharita Prowant said of the recent employee departures. “I’m worried about it.”

When asked by OCP why she is leaving her post as village treasurer, Inglis declined to elaborate, but added that she is moving on to another job.

Desentz was asked by OCP why so many employees have left the village since he took his position there, and he said, “Every (departure) was for a different reason.”

Now the council will be looking for a replacement for Inglis, whose last day will be May 8.

Council voted unanimously to remove Inglis, Miller and former Deputy Treasurer Sandy Dean from the bank accounts and put Schultz and Morse on the accounts effective, May 8. The motion was made at Inglis’ request. “You need to make a motion tonight about what you want to do with the accounts, because I definitely want to be off them,” she told the council.

Council voted 5-1 during its last session, April 14, to offer Schultz the clerk position, and she has been on the job for a week. “Aaron feels she’s doing a wonderful job,” Morse said.

[Dave]

What a great picture you posted with this thread... must of been a great photographer

[XLFD]

Shelby's local tourism board could learn a lot if they Googled the images for 'downtown Shelby Michigan'.  Three of the top twenty of the images are from that great photographer devoted to the downtown Shelby fire of a couple years back.  The rest are devoted to the Doubletree Hilton in downtown Detroit at Port Shelby.

Shelby is a nice looking village, with a pleasant downtown the last time I looked (which was just a year before the big fire).  This photographer you speak of should take some complimentary pictures of Shelby and post them here and/or elsewhere to do the town some justice. 

[Willy]

I remember when that fire occurred. I couldn't believe how fast that site was cleaned up and the building removed. Didn't you take some photos of the fire X?

[XLFD]

Naw, our favorite, long-standing recruit from the Oceana County Torch known simply as 'Dave' did those pictures-- which were picked up by other news sources.  If you take your camera down that way, Willy, shoot and post some photos of a less 'conflagratory' Shelby. 

Maybe we should make this a contest for May:  best picture representing Shelby will get a complimentary thumbs up and a meal at the Brown Bear in downtown Shelby (due to our limited resources, the last is non-complimentary).

[Dave]

I'll see if I can get a few photo's taken here sometime soon... try and get a few in and around the downtown area.