The Ypsilanti Courier
A Heritage Newspaper
Weekly Publication
Board trades barbs over sewer
Township faces million dollar deficit
By Dave Wak, Special Writer
PUBLISHED: January 17, 2008
The Augusta Twp. Board of Trustees are divided over a $1,000,000 plus deficit in the Utility Department's budget.
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The two sides are represented by the supervisor and the treasurer's office versus the clerk's office, and both sides are partially blaming the other for the deficit.
Clerk Kathy Giszczak said Supervisor Kathy Jackson allowed the deficit to occur by not monitoring Utility Department expenses properly, which is the supervisor's duty under Michigan township guidelines.
Giszczak said the Utility Department was using their engineers to do work for developers without having a proper system for collecting fees back from them. She added that in the past the township had made several "handshake deals" with developers where they were allowed to use township engineers for preparation on their projects without signing contracts to insure prompt payment.
Giszczak said the township has lost $2.9 million from all water/sewer customers since 2001 because of bad expense tracking. Giszczak said now the 30-year-old sewer system needs to be replaced and the board has no idea how to pay for it.
"Where is the money going to come from?" Giszcak said.
Jackson countered that Giszczak was using the figures to try and deflect her own part in the deficit.
"Giszczak is covering up," Jackson said.
Jackson said that in a December audit, the auditors didn't receive good numbers from Giszczak - a charge the clerk denies.
Jackson also said her and Treasurer Lynda Dew had problems accessing the clerk's books and had no idea what expenses she was incurring out of her office. She said Giszczak made tracking the budget "impossible."
Township Treasurer Lynda Dew also said Gisczcak was trying to cover her mistakes.
Dew said the clerk is supposed to send developers invoices for which one received engineering services. She said that while the invoices were sent, there have been few fees collected. She said the subject had occasionally been mentioned at past meetings but then dropped.
Dew also said she has repeatedly requested records on developer accounts from Giszczak but hasn't received any.
Giszczak countered that Dew believed she was keeping secret books, but in fact the treasurer had the same access to these records as Giszczak. Dew still maintains that Giszcak is trying to shift the blame.
"I am appalled that she (Giszczak) points blame to anyone but herself," Dew said.
However, Trustee Bill Tobler said the both Jackson and Dew are wrong on this issue.
Tobler said he knew the Utility Department was in deficit since he was elected in 2004 but there was little discussion about it from the supervisor, who was supposed to be overseeing it.
Tobler said it was obvious that some developers were not paying their share for sewer capacity reserve, but the clerk had given monthly reports to the board on the subject, as was her duty.
"The Clerk reported it. The treasurer knows nothing. The supervisor does nothing," Tobler said.
Tobler said he wanted to start a tracking system for Utility Department expenses in 2005 but said the board gave up on the idea by 2006 after some half-hearted attempts to implement it.
Tobler added that the deficit only heightens the township's problems over how to replace its aging sewer system. Tobler said he favored both aggressive collection of money owed by developers and raising water and sewer rates to offset the deficit.
Tobler said Township Engineer Bill Craigemile favored offsetting the costs by increasing development and thereby collecting more money through volume.
Tobler disagreed with that idea because it conflicts with the township's master plan and it unsustainable in the long run.
Jackson said the township would have to wait on results of a sewer rate study before they could discuss raising sewer and water rates to cover the expense of replacing their old sewer lines.
Dave Wak is an Ypsilanti resident and freelance writer for The Courier. He can be reached at dwak4@hotmail.com.
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