Tigers’ midseason grades, B1 P O W E R I N G M L I V E .C O M
Sunday, July 21, 2013
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KALAMAZOO COUNTY GOVERNMENTS ON COLLISION COURSE BY JULIE MACK JMACK1@MLIVE.COM
KALAMAZOO — A growing gap between local government revenues and expenditures is putting two big issues on the table in Kalamazoo County: Countywide consolidation of services, particularly in regard to police and fire, and rethinking the funding of local government. That debate got kick-started Thursday morning when
Southwest Michigan First, the area’s economic development organization, presented results of a study analyzing local government finances. Attended by more than 80 business and government leaders, the event featured Adam Rujon, a consultant from the Plante & Moran accounting firm that co-authored the study, and Eric Scorsone, a Michigan State University economist. Their conclusions: Kalamazoo County should
RISING PUBLIC SAFETY COSTS, DECLINING REVENUES AT ODDS WITH EACH OTHER
fundamentally rethink the way it does business — both in how it raises and spends money. The current model of local government “is not sustainable,” Rujon said. Part of what should happen
requires changes in Lansing, such as giving local entities more flexibility in levying a sales or income tax, the experts said. But Rujon and Scorscone also suggested Kalamazoo
County taxpayers could get more bang for the buck by adopting a countywide approach to government services. “There are big economies of scale to be had” in creating central dispatch for emergency services and for consolidating water and sewer services, Rujon said, as well as considerable benefits to be had by regional planning. It was clear Thursday that Rujon and Scorsone largely were preaching to the choir: An
on-the-spot survey of Thursday’s attendees indicated a substantial majority agreed with the experts’ analysis. The challenge now, it appears, is convincing the general public that politically difficult reforms are necessary. “The (fiscal) cliff is approaching for all of us. ... It’s just not sustainable, no matter how good of a government you are,” Portage Mayor Peter Stradzas said. SEE REVENUES, A2
When domestic violence turns deadly Recent Kalamazooarea tragedies shine light on ongoing problem BY AARON MUELLER AMUELLE1@MLIVE.COM
STEPH ANDERSON CHAMBERS | MLIVE.COM
Children play in the Douglass Community Center on Thursday in Kalamazoo. The center lost a major funder and is struggling to stay open.
‘A void that will not be filled’ DOUGLASS COMMUNITY ASSOCIATION COULD CLOSE OVER FUNDING PROBLEMS BY ERIN GOGNAC EGIGNAC@MLIVE.COM
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ALAMAZOO — The Douglass Community Association, a 94-year-old organization on the north side of Kalamazoo, is in danger of closing after battling the effects of financial and organizational mismanagement that has led to funding cuts from a major donor, said James Liggins Jr., Douglass Community Association board chairman. Liggins declined to identify the donor but did say it was a significant source of funding for the operating budget. “If we don’t see some real results within the next two months, I would think we do really have to make some real tough decisions at that point,” Liggins said. The board has cut $300,000 from the budget since last December, he said.
Moses Walker, former executive director of the Douglass Community Association, said the organization serves a vital role in the Northside neighborhood. “There’s no single organization that could replace Douglass going down,” Walker said. “This is a void that will not be filled.” Since December, the organization has eliminated eight positions, including the CFO, some athletic programs and a summer rehabilitation program where youth helped the elderly with home repairs, Liggins said. Sherry ThomasCloud was hired as the executive director in April. The Douglass Community Association is a neighborhood hub, housing its own programs but also offering a place for other organizations to operate. The building is home to the Boys & Girls Club, Kalamazoo
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DIVERSIONS
KALAMAZOO — Six people killed in a matter of weeks, the incidents all tragically similar. Three people were found dead in a Milwood neighborhood home on July 15. Police say Patrick Michael Gleason killed his wife, Lisa Herrera-Gleason, and their 17-month-old son before killing himself.
Public Library’s Alma Powell Branch Library, the NAACP and Mothers of Hope. Many children and families spend their entire day there, Liggins said. He estimates that at least 100 people a day come through for breakfast, lunch and dinner. The board still is working on what would happen to the other programs if the Douglass building closed. Most likely, the programs would have to
move, he said. The Douglass Community Association was founded in 1919 and started as a recreational hall for African-American soldiers and veterans during World War I and II. It was named after Frederick Douglass, the American abolitionist. In 1964, the organization evolved into a social services organization and continues to SEE DOUGLASS, A7
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OPINION
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BUSINESS
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SEE VIOLENCE, A6
Weight of Detroit’s bankruptcy filing felt across the state BY KHALIL ALHAJAL KALHAJAL@MLIVE.COM
The Douglass Community Center offers its own programs as well as a place for other organizations to operate.
On Thursday, Nancy Kovach was shot to death by her husband, John Kovach, after an argument over boiled hotdogs in their Comstock Township home, according to investigators. John Kovach is awaiting trial. Hours later, in the early morning hours of June 19, police found Robert Pratt and his girlfriend, Cassaundra Pell, dead in the home they shared in Plainwell. Investigators say Pratt shot Pell before turning the gun on himself. Neighbors said they heard yelling that night. Misty Moon-Larthridge, program director of the domestic and sexual assault programs at the YWCA of Kalamazoo, said killings that rise out of domestic violence seldom are the
DETROIT — Gov. Rick Snyder widened his eyes and raised his voice Friday when asked what his worst fears are as he takes Detroit into bankruptcy. With a 58-minute police response time, he said, things can’t get much worse in Detroit, and the city and state deserve better. “Now is our opportunity to stop 60 years of decline,” Gov. Rick Snyder said, his voice rising in pitch. “How long has this gone on and people have not stopped to say ‘Stop kicking the can down the road and do
something?’ We are doing something.”
Statewide impact
Officials in Detroit and in Lansing have said for months MORE that they were § How trying to avoid b a n k r u p t c y bankruptcy could unfold, C3 because of the damage it could do to the borrowing ability of surrounding communities and the state. But after the mayor spent years implementing drastic cuts, after the state spent months forcing reforms and after the emergency manager spent weeks trying to negotiate SEE DETROIT, A7
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JEFFREY P. BUSINESS
THERE’S STILL TIME TO REGISTER! www.kvcc.edu/register 4649372-01