Z EELAND R ECORD THE
Vol. 129-No.45
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Zeeland, Michigan
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Serving Western Michigan for more than 128 Years
• August 31, 2023
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Cost$1.00/copy $30/year
County Commission and Health Department Battle Over Budget Cuts A proposal to slash the Ottawa County Health Department (OCHD) budget to prepandemic figures by the Ottawa County Board of Commissioners, Chaired by Joe Moss, and County Administrator John Gibbs has created an uproar in the county during the past week. “In line with fiscal responsibility and making the most of taxpayer dollars, the County is requiring that the general fund contribution to OCHD’s budget return to average pre-COVID levels. This is a process all American families and businesses are going through, and it will not result in the discontinuation of any mandated services, and especially not the closure of the Public Health Department,” stated County Administrator John Gibbs. According to Gibbs the general fund contribution for OCHD in the years preceding COVOD was $3.8 million per year. “The FY24 OCHD budget will include a $2.5 million general fund contribution, plus a contribution from OCHD’s fund balance, to come as close to the historic $3.8 million general fund contribution figure as possible,” said Gibbs. Health Department officials contend that they are required to pay for Ottawa County administrative expenses, often referred to as indirect costs. Those costs are based on actual costs for Administration, Corporation Council, Human Resources, IT, Fiscal services, Facilities Maintenance, and other support departments. “The fiscal year 2024 budget for administrative expenses shows a nearly 40% increase in cost over the 2019 budget, after adjusting the 2019 for population and inflation, and over a 76% increase when compared to the actual unadjusted 2019 budget,” Administrative Health Officer Adeline Hambley. “A budget cut of this magnitude would hinder the county’s ability to provide essential services that taxpayers expect and may violate state mandates. This could potentially lead to more lawsuits and intervention by a state entity like Michigan Department of Health and Human Service. Moss’s request is unprecedented. We need to keep Whitmer’s handpicked bureaucrats out of Ottawa County,” said County Commissioner Jacob Bonnema of Zeeland. In the upcoming budget the OCHD has requested funding of $6.7 million, “This is a stunning 72% increase from the last pre-COVID year, which was $3.9 million. This large increase far outstrips the County’s population growth and inflation over that period. The County is simply asking for this number to return to normal levels,” said Gibbs. “The general fund operational contribution for the fiscal year 2024 proposed budget is $4,763,074. When the fiscal year 2019 actual budget is adjusted for inflation and population, the 2019 adjusted budget amount is $4,315,142. This means the proposed budget for fiscal year 2024 general fund operational contribution is $447,932 higher than adjusted 2019 levels, just over a 10% increase,” said Hambley. Gibbs and the commissioners also contend that the OCHD’s total personnel is more than one third larger than the last pre-COVID year, jumping from around 90, to more than 120 currently, only a few short years later. “This 33% increase in personnel is far higher than the rate of inflation or population
growth of Ottawa County,” said Gibbs. “With a 50% or more reduction in HD staff and services, we would face multimonth waiting lists, negatively impacting construction starts, workforce services, restaurant sanitation, substance abuse programs, healthcare services, real estate transactions, environmental protection, and tourism,” said Bonnema. “Even though Ottawa County’s property tax revenue has been increasing since 2015 – in fact nearly doubling since 2015, the Public Health general fund operational contribution for the Public Health Department is only now reaching the 2008 level of funding. It should be noted that these are actual funding levels that do not account for the increases in cost of living, recent inflationary pressures, nor the addition of nearly 50,000 more constituents to the county since 2008,” said Hambley. The Commissioners and Gibbs also want to see the Health Department do away with COVID-related grants. “The COVID pandemic is over. It is incumbent upon leaders to ensure that funding, staffing, and programs which were designated for that purpose, are wound down,” said Gibbs. “The specific federal grants related to public health services included in the fiscal year 2024 budget, which support maintenance of required services, are taxpayer dollars that are coming back to the community for services provided in Ottawa County. If denied, these taxpayer dollars are reallocated to other communities in the state, meaning Ottawa County residents will have to ‘pay’ a second time through their property taxes for these mandated services,” said Hambley. According to Hambley the county is required to prevent and control the spread of communicable disease beyond COVID-19. There are nearly 100 communicable diseases other than COVID-10 that are nationally reportable and require public health action. “The largest grant, just over $1.2 million, is designated for infection prevention services which include communicable disease investigation and prevention activities such as the cryptosporidium outbreak response earlier this spring. These grant funds are also utilized to offset over $300,000 of county administrative expenses,” said Hambley. The County Commission is expected to review the budget several times in September before the fiscal year begins on Oct. 1. “After several days of listening and speaking with our community leaders, it is clear to me that our citizens want us to work together. I have spoken with the leadership of the Ottawa County Health Department, and there is mutual agreement that meaningful budget reductions can be made. There is a middle ground here that both sides should explore. The Health Department believes it could, if asked, return to pre-pandemic 2019 budget levels while still providing adequate state-mandated services to our citizens. I support Moss’s request to return the OCHD budget to pre-Covid levels, but not as far back as 2009,” said Bonnema. Hambley and the Board of Commissioners have been having an ongoing dispute after the board tried to remove her from her position at a meeting in January and replace her with their choice to run the department. Hambley sued the county and an appeals court ruled that she could only be fired for cause.
Work on a downtown mural began last week with the power washing and cleaning of the west exterior wall of Main Street Bicycle Company, 201 E. Main Avenue. The project is anticipated to be completed later this fall depending on weather conditions.
City Kicks Off Mural Project Looking to create vibrancy and a splash of color to downtown Zeeland, last week the Zeeland City Council approved a mural project that will be created on the west wall of Main Street Bicycle Company, 201 E. Main, along Church Street. “As onlookers study the mural, they will be delighted to find an abundance of unique imagery that represents Zeeland, for example the clocktower, a cityscape, musicians on the street and market tents representing downtown events, corn representing agriculture, Zeeland’s established date and Z! logo, and of course the historic Zeeland Chick, just to name a few,” stated City Marketing Director Abby deRoo. The process began back in March as the Marketing Department began pursuing a mural project as a means to bring permanent, public art to downtown Zeeland. The process began will a call to an artist with a project prospectus that attracted four professional muralists. Working with the Holland Area Arts Council the applicants were narrowed down to two artists who were then invited into a round of interviews and revisions. “After careful review, the Marketing Department has determined the proposal by local artist, Krista Arendsen to best fit the objectives of this project. This
recommendation was made to SARB (Shopping Area Redevelopment Board) at their August 10 meeting and was unanimously approved by the board,” she said. The 90-feet by 24-feet mural project began last week with the cleaning of the wall surface, that will also be sealed and painted before the actual mural work begins. Arendsen will use a projector during the evenings to project her outlined design onto the wall before the actual painting begins. “With a project this size we must allow room for on-stie revisions – additions or deletions – and not expect an exact replica of a specific proposal. The Marketing Department will work closely with the artist throughout the installation process allowing freedom for artistic changes as well as preserving the intent of the approved concept,” she said. The project was identified as an operational goal in the City Council’s 2022 Strategic Action Plan and funding was set aside in the 2023 budget. Project expenses are estimated at $5,000 for Eckhoff and DeVries to prepare the wall, $17,000 for Krista Arendsen to install the mural and $3,000 in miscellaneous expenses such as renting lift, equipment, etc.
Commissioners Recall Petition Appeal Denied An appeal by Ottawa County Commissioner Lucy Ebels to invalidate a recall petition effort against her was denied by a Kent County judge on Friday, Aug. 25. The appeal was heard by Kent County Circuit Judge Mark Trusock after Ottawa County judges recused themselves from hearing the case.
Ebels filed an appeal regarding recall petition language that was approved by the Ottawa County Election Commission on July 17. The Election Commission is comprised of County Clerk Justin Roebuck, County Treasurer Amanda Price, and Probate Judge Mark Feyen approved the recall (Continued on page 9)