COULD THE COUNTY TAKE OVER THE ROAD COMMISSION?

With changes coming to the Berrien County Road Commission with the recent resignation of managing director Louis Csokasy, Berrien County Commissioners are once again taking a look at the future of the road commission.
County commissioners have asked County Administrator William Wolf to look into the possibility of the county taking over the road commission. He is expected to review the study done in 2013 as well as compile a report on other road commissions around the state that have been taken over by counties.
Back in 2013, county commissioners threatened to take over the road commission but ended up backing off. The problems then included claims of poor management and complaints from citizens that work wasn’t being done properly.
Csokasy resigned earlier this year from the road commission after a career in both the public and private sectors. He spent most of his career in the manufacturing sector before taking a job with Cass County in 2008 and then moving on to Berrien County a few years ago.
In addition to the possible county takeover of the road commission, the road commission has also had to deal with vacancies in recent months. County commissioners appointed former county commissioner William Smith to the road commission earlier this month to fill one vacancy while Bainbridge Township Supervisor Bill Hodge has been restored to the road commission after a controversy late last year.
County officials had argued late last year that Hodge could not be a road commission member after being elected township supervisor in November and declared the position vacant. A Berrien County judge ended up ruling in Hodge’s favor and restoring him to the road commission.
The road commission has five members: chairman August Zielke, vice chairman Joseph Margol and commissioners Jess Minks, Bill Hodge and William Smith. They meet every other Wednesday at 9 a.m. at the road commission offices on East Napier Avenue in Benton Harbor.
The road commission has four maintenance garages around the county in Benton Harbor, Eau Claire, Baroda and Buchanan.
County commissioners are also in the midst of discussion a number of animal control topics. Issues being addressed by commissioners and county staff include rabies, euthanasia and all the services provided by Animal Control.
Commissioners heard from Animal Control and Berrien County Health Department staff earlier this month on how human and animal health are related. Topics addressed included animal health, animal bites and rabies vaccine certification.
Berrien County Health Officer Nicki Britten also reported to commissioners about health department activities and grant applications. Health Department officials recently took part in a panel discussion on WNIT public television about opiate and prescription drug abuse and efforts to combat it.
The health department’s meeting room was officially dedicated in the late Frank Poorman’s name recently. Poorman, a Buchanan resident, was the longtime chairman of the Berrien County Board of Health for over 40 years.