More changes are underway at Grand Traverse County’s Commission on Aging, the county has rehired an animal control officer following the contentious elimination of the department in January, and the bell ringing hours at the historic courthouse are once again up for debate in an update on county-related news.

Commission on Aging
Changes to staffing, operations and board oversight are all in play for Grand Traverse County’s Commission on Aging (COA) as county administrators continue to audit the department, which provides healthcare, housecleaning and other services to county residents age 60 and older.

A quality assessment panel comprised of several county department heads and COA board and staff representatives has been reviewing the department since August. Administrators introduced some changes to COA almost immediately, including contracting with an outside staffing company to provide oversight of CNA and LPN services, hiring two RN supervisor positions, and rewriting the job description for COA director.

Since then, COA Deputy Director Laura Green has been reassigned as an operations analyst, according to County Deputy Administrator Jennifer DeHaan. “Her efforts will be focused full-time on developing…policies and assessments and looking at other policies that need to be revised,” says DeHaan. The county has posted the open position of COA director and hopes to begin interviewing candidates for the job in the near future, says DeHaan.

After spending several days on-site at COA this month, DeHaan made several recommendations to County Administrator Tom Menzel this week for improving the department. They ranged from equipping staff with smart phones to accepting credit/debit card payments from clients to upgrading COA technology to standardizing protocols for voucher programs, emergency funds and COA grants.

“There are a lot of opportunities for enhancement (to COA),” says DeHaan. She notes one priority out of the audit is to empower staff to make decisions and recommendations about the department’s day-to-day operations – a shift that may require a “redesign” of COA’s board governance, though not the dissolution of that body, says DeHaan. COA Board Chair Rodetta Harrand agreed to cancel November’s board meeting to provide time for the quality assessment panel to review the board’s structure and bylaws, the modification of which could be discussed at a future upcoming meeting.

“The goal would be (for the board) to better the meet the needs of the department,” says DeHaan, describing a priority shift from administration to policy-making, “and to provide advice to the new director.”

Animal Control
Following nearly 10 months without an animal control officer in Grand Traverse County, administrators have reinstated staffing to the department by hiring a part-time animal control officer.

The female employee began work October 17. According to DeHaan, she is currently working Monday-Friday from 1-6pm, though “we are working to figure out the best schedule for providing animal control services,” says DeHaan.

“Animals don’t run free on a Monday-Friday, 1-6pm schedule, so we’re trying to design something that provides the best coverage,” she says. The county has a second open part-time position posted for an animal control specialist – which doesn’t require the same level of certification as an officer – and is recruiting to fill that role as well.

Courthouse Bell
After county commissioners voted in January to expand the bell-ringing hours at the county’s historic courthouse to 24/7, neighbors have made enough noise to prompt administrators to recommend silencing the chimes at night.

County commissioners will meet Wednesday to discuss a recommendation from Planning Director John Sych to shorten the bell-ringing hours to 6am-11pm. “There has been continued discussion and debate by the neighboring residents and considerable amount of staff time has been assigned to this issue in an attempt to come to a mutually agreeable solution,” Sych wrote in a memo to the board. “In light of this ongoing debate, and to provide some closure to the issue, a compromise is warranted. A move back to slightly limited ring times would provide a resolution that respects both the historical context of the bell and the peace and quiet desired by neighboring residents during sleep time hours.”

Commissioners will discuss the potential change in ringing hours at 6pm Wednesday at the Governmental Center.