Strategic plan passed amid city manager’s absence

MOUNT CLEMENS — For the most part, the Oct. 7 Mount Clemens City Commission meeting went on as normal, though there were a few absences. Commissioner Barb Dempsey was excused from the meeting, while City Manager Gregg Shipman was away from City Hall due to injuries.

“Our city manager was in an accident last Saturday,” Mayor Laura Kropp said. “He sustained injuries that were pretty extensive. He’s had to have surgery, and he’ll have to have at least one further surgery, so he is going to be out for a little bit.”

Shipman’s injuries have not stopped the city manager from working — Kropp said he takes part in calls remotely and regularly emails city staff — but his absence from the meeting was felt. No moment more was Shipman’s absence present than when commissioners discussed and passed the city’s 2025 strategic plan.

The strategic plan serves as a guideline for city officials and staff to approach their work. The document begins with a snapshot of the city’s demographics, followed by the mission statement of “enhancing our community through effective and equitable public services” and the five core values of “progressive, responsive, inclusive, dynamic and ethical. From there, it highlights various aspects of government and strategies for how to improve it.

“I feel really bad that Gregg’s not here to present this one, because I can tell you that he spent so much time on this with myself and the Hunch Free (marketing) team,” Kropp said. “It’s just so important and I wholeheartedly believe that it has helped us move forward. The whole team is able to be on the same page, literally, and I am really proud of that.”

The strategic plan document is set to be posted to the city’s website and can be found in the meeting packet as well, accessible through the mountcemens.gov website in the “Government” tab by clicking “Agendas and Minutes.”

 

Wastewater expenses
Commissioners took time during the purchases and payments part of the meeting to speak with Utilities Supervisor Leonard Bertrand about some recent expenses made for the wastewater treatment plant.

Most conspicuous of these is the $300,000 rental centrifuge unit from Waste Management. The rental unit replaces a broken waste-separation centrifuge unit — which was already the plant’s sole operating centrifuge after another centrifuge broke down — while the city waits for two new screw press units to replace them.

Though there were delays with the city’s waste separation, Bertrand says that this causes no issues for water customers and that state authorities have been kept informed of centrifuge-related developments.

“We weren’t able to remove solids as fast as we should have been,” Bertrand said after the meeting. “There were no violations in our permit or anything like that. We have to get them out of here now and that is what we’re doing.”

Bertrand expects to have at least one of the screw presses installed by December and is working to have the installation performed ahead of schedule.

A contract to construct an addition to the plant’s pole barn was awarded to Trade Mark Construction, LLC of Casco, for $491,250.