Road commission Managing Director Brendan Mullane explained that the board has been working on a facilities asset management plan.
These discussions have been taking place at strategic planning sessions prior to regular meetings dating back to June 2023.
The road commission formalized a fleet asset management plan in 2022, which determines when the commission purchases new trucks, among other things. Mullane said he hopes a facilities asset management plan will provide similar benefi ts.
Mullane said that the road commission’s garages were built in the 1950s and were designed for trucks that were smaller than their current fleet of vehicles. Now, some of the road commission’s vehicles, equipment, and materials need to be kept outdoors. Mullane said they would like to store nearly everything under roofs to protect from the elements.
As part of their work towards this end through the development of a facilities asset management plan, Mullane approved site surveys at the road commission’s Suttons Bay and Maple City garages by the Traverse City-based contractor Greene Construction Group LLC. In total, these surveys cost the road commission $19,000.
The road commission did not approve these contracts before Mullane signed off on them. Although officials and staff at the May 7 regular meeting seemed to agree that it was within Mullane’s authority to do so, road commission Chairman Bob Joyce nonetheless said that decisions like this should go through the board because of the amount of money involved. He shared this opinion with the road commission’s finance director, Susan Boyd.
Joyce also questioned whether the road commission should be looking to expand its existing facilities when “we’re struggling to figure out how we’re going to help with local roads and stuff (and) we don’t have the extra capital to be spending on this particular project.”
Mullane said that his staff are going to continue gathering information on their needs and will eventually present proposals for site work, where the road commissioners will likely have further discussion on whether the road commission should spare money for facilities projects or focus on helping with local road projects.
The road commissioners also briefly discussed planning their next roads tour but due to scheduling conflicts couldn’t reach a consensus on the date. Mullane said he would email the commissioners some alternate dates and times, which would also allow them to consult with road commission Vice Chairman Jim Calhoun, who was absent from the meeting.
The board ultimately took no action at its May 7 meeting other than authorizing Mullane to enter labor negotiations based on preliminary discussion in closed session.
