Complaints filed on both sides

By Sarah Cormier
C & G Staff Writer

HARRISON TOWNSHIP — The Aug. 11 Harrison Township Board of Trustees meeting ended abruptly when two members — trustees James Ulinski and Sharon Eineman — decided to leave, citing that the rest of the board was in violation of the Open Meetings Act.

At the start of the meeting, Township Supervisor Anthony Forlini asked that a new item placed on the agenda be taken care of in closed session. The issue was regarding a grievance that a union has recently filed related to the sudden suspension of Vijay Parakh, the Building Department’s building official, at the last Board of Trustees meeting. 

Two township trustees, Robert Garvin and Michael Rice, were out of town for an approved conference in California. Treasurer Darrin York was set to be out of town for another conference in Grand Rapids, but he decided to make the three-hour trip back specifically for the meeting.

Generally at a meeting, all four trustees will outvote the three full-time officials. At this meeting, it was three full-time officials and two trustees, changing the dynamics of the board.          

“I think what you are trying to do here is a deliberate underhanded effort to … bring Mr. Parakh back to work as long as you think you three full-timers have your little quorum,” said Ulinski to the board.

He told the three officials that he would not stay for the rest of the meeting.

“I am not going to participate in what is clearly an Open Meetings Act violation,” Ulinski added as both he and Eineman grabbed their items and walked out.

After a brief recess, Township Attorney Robert Huth advised the board to file a police report with the Macomb County Sheriff’s Office.

According to Huth, there is a provision in the township’s laws that states that board members are required to attend meetings as long as they are able to do so. Based on that law, Huth recommended that the three full-time officials first make a motion to “compel the attendance of” the other members to the meeting.

Huth told the board that after they file a police report, that an investigation could be done into whether Ulinski and Eineman had done anything wrong.

“If the county prosecutor finds that there’s been illegal conduct regarding any members tonight, it will forward to the sheriff’s department a request for action or a request by a way or warrant … or maybe say that there was no illegal action,” said Huth.

The board unanimously approved the motion to compel the other members.

Township Supervisor Forlini said it appeared that Eineman and Ulinski were unhappy that the vote could potentially not go in their favor because York drove back from the Grand Rapids conference.

“Obviously, that upset somebody,” said Forlini.

“It’s my duty to be at the meeting,” said York, defending why he came to the meeting. 

The following day, Ulinski and Eineman filed a complaint with Macomb County Prosecutor Eric Smith stating that York, Forlini and Township Clerk Jan Jorgensen had violated the Open Meetings Act and they wanted it investigated.

Eineman said that the trio partook in “vote polling” or counting what way the votes would go in order to try to overturn the board’s original decision to suspend Parakh.

“What they are trying to do is muddy the investigation,” she said.

Eineman also alleges that the meeting shouldn’t have continued after she and Ulinski left.

“They continued the illegal meeting even though they only had three people,” she said.

Eineman, who said that threatening circumstances have occurred at her home, said she “won’t be intimidated.”

“I am confident that once all the information comes out that the public will know that we have done our job,” she said.

Several residents were also given a chance to speak at the meeting and voice their opinions about what had happened.

“I have never in my life ever seen such behavior by adults,” said resident Marie Rozgowski, who added that what the two trustees did was an “insult.”

“This community deserves better. This community expects better,” she said.

It was unknown if Ulinski and Eineman were going to still be paid for attending the meeting for about six minutes. Each member makes approximately $370 a meeting.

Garvin said that there have been other occasions where officials have also walked out of a meeting early.

“If the citizens are going to ask for money back, then they need to go ask for money from all of them,” he said.

You can reach Staff Writer Sarah Cormier at scormier@candgnews.com or at (586) 498-1095.