City offers use of building to DHS

Efforts to stave off the relocation of eight workers from the Presque Isle County Department of Human Resources (DHS) office from Rogers City to Alpena continue, according to dual county director Doug McCombs, with some leads being explored to keep a presence in the county.

While the state is facing a $900 million dollar deficit, DHS has been ordered to trim $140 million from their budget statewide. The ripple effect has reached northern Michigan and forced McCombs to look at an alternative site. The West Third Street building, owned by John Vogelheim, which costs $65,536 annually (which including utilities), is expected to be closed. ?Saving $10,000 would not excite them (state officials),? said McCombs. He said the new facility would have to be at little or no rent.

WITH THE reduction of staff in both counties the last five to 10 years, McCombs said there is plenty of room to move the Presque Isle County staff to Alpena.

Monday, McCombs said he would have a better idea what is going to happen within the next week, possibly by April 16. ?I?m still hopeful,? he said.

The only public proposal has come from the City of Onaway as members of the Onaway City Commission unanimously passed a motion at their meeting earlier this week, supporting a proposal to relocate the DHS office to a city-owned building in downtown, which is currently occupied by the Onaway Police Department. The city would be willing to offer the space at a very affordable rate, said city manager Joe Hefele.

Hefele, who presented the concept, said it would be a temporary location until the third floor of the Onaway Courthouse was renovated.

?WE ARE NOT ready to do that, however. The building that currently houses our police chief is larger than he needs at present, and we wondered if it would be adequate to house DHS,? said Hefele. ?We believe the way that building is set up, it is large enough, and it would meet their needs. That would give us time to complete the third floor of the courthouse.?

The State Street building, directly across from Parrott?s Outpost, has four offices and one restroom. Another restroom would be needed in the lobby for clients. The availability of a T-1 line, another requirement, would be accessible, said Hefele. There would be some parking questions that need to be answered as part of the lot is joined by Tom?s Family Market. The building already is ADA accessible.

The police department, which is manned by chief James Gibson, would possibly move next door to the former city hall building.

?WE WOULD love to see DHS in Onaway, because a great number of their clients are from the west side of the county,? said Hefele. ?For many of them (DHS clients) it is a hardship simply to get over to Rogers City, much less getting to Alpena.

Hefele plans to work with Presque Isle County Commission chair Allan Bruder about the possibility of relocating the office in Onaway.

Nearly 50 percent of the DHS clients are from Onaway. At Wednesday?s meeting of the county board, Bruder requested mileage to Lansing, to testify and ensure Presque Isle County?s voice is heard. He also will advocate staying in the present location, as opposed to moving to another location. He wants to talk to state officials to see if there is room to negotiate the co-locating of other state agencies, such as the state police.

?What I don?t want to do is throw him (Vogelheim) out the window without any discussion at all,? said Bruder. The lease includes utilities, snow plowing, and maintenance. Bruder said there is additional space in the building.

The unemployment rate is 18 percent in Presque Isle County, which is among the top three in Michigan.

DISTRICT 1 COUNTY commissioner Bob Schell, who is supportive of the move to Onaway, said it would be a hardship for people to drive 60 to 70 miles one way to Alpena to receive services. ?This is where it is needed,? said Schell.

It?ll still be up to officials in Lansing to approve an alternative plan, such as finding another building or co-locating with another state agency. The only idea expressed publicly for another location in Rogers City has been the Grambau Center, which has a T-1 line, although some renovation may be needed to suit the needs of DHS.

?It really does not matter where the office is located as long as people have access to those services and they can get there reasonably,? said Mary Schalk, who serves as coordinator of the Presque Isle County Human Services Coordinating Council (HSCC). ?Sometimes the people in our community who struggle the most have difficulties with transportation.? ?Our preference would be to have a

location within Presque Isle County,? added Schalk, ?Wherever that falls.?

In Hefele?s letter to state representatives, the county, and DHS, he stated, ?I hope you, and others involved in making the decision on the future of DHS in Presque Isle County, will consider our offer very carefully.

?Further, if there is any thought of eliminating Rogers City?s State Police post, we have a proposal,? he stated. Onaway expects to receive a USDA Rural Development grant to construct a small police BUILDING. The building would be large enough to house the state troopers presently stationed in Rogers City.

?This is important to us in that, with the cuts in revenue sharing, Onaway is able to employ just one police officer, its chief. A few state troopers operating from here could help provide better law enforcement in our community by simply increasing the presence.?

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