Seeking Public Information in Charlevoix County: An Exercise in Dealing with Hubris

There’s carelessness and negligence, and then there is deception and fraud. I’m wondering what we are experiencing now from Charlevoix County Transit.

Many county residents are aware of the problems with transit operations; some may even be aware of my efforts to get transit management to make changes to improve operations. In case you are not aware of the many problems within county transit, helpful information can be found here, here, here, and here. Now I will show how county residents are disrespected when they have the gall to question elected and appointed officials and seek access to public information.

In an effort to better understand the problems that are rife in the transit department of Charlevoix County government, I have listened to transit management and the transit oversight board, county commissioners, transit riders, and other county residents concerned by the issues. What I have heard is troubling.

I have questioned the decisions and the decision-making process of county transit and have been subjected to indifference, spin, misstatements and outright lies.

I have questioned the support of the board of commissioners for the transit department, and its refusal to address the many problems that plague transit. The answers provided have been lacking in several areas and appear to show disbelief that problems exist within transit. It seems that the bureaucratic mindset is one of circle the wagons and not one of genuine inquiry.

I have filed FOIA requests with the county clerk’s office. I won’t get into how I was treated and what I was told at that time, as that is a story unto itself. What I will get into here is the rather obvious attempts to be less than forthright in providing the information sought – information that county residents have a right to access. According to current operational protocol, that access is to be free and unencumbered.

I asked for copies of the minutes from the transit department oversight board meetings for years 2015 and 2016, and the minutes from the transportation authority for 2016. In both cases the fiscal year was used to determine relevant dates. At the same time, I asked for the minutes from the commission on aging for 2016, and the calendar year was used for that determination. My point here is that not providing 4th quarter calendar year meeting minutes was a failure to abide by the letter and intent of the law and my requests.

I tried to gain access to the information sought by filing another request, and it seems that not all of the information was included in that release either. Now I must file yet another request to gain access to information that is supposed to be readily available on-demand online. Not only is it very frustrating and time-consuming, it is uncalled for. The information requested belongs to the residents of Charlevoix County and we should have ready access to it.

One of the reasons for not giving up in this quest to access public information is an attempt to discover just what county government is trying to hide. Another reason is the information requested is not provided on the Charlevoix County website as many county departments appear to be in noncompliance with existing protocol regarding such information. . It is important to remember that county government is supposed to be responsible to the county residents.

It is unconscionable to be so arrogant as to disregard the many calls of concern about the substandard operations of the county transit department; calls that have been addressed to county commissioners by many residents. How can there not be an inquiry into county transit operations with a full public disclosure of findings?

It is rather disgusting to be of the mindset that county residents are a hindrance and not the reason for the board of commissioners’ very existence.

I am aware of how harsh these words are. It is my hope that county government officials will now understand how appalling is their refusal to address the many issues of concern within the transit department.

Securing Our Borders Is Protecting America

When then-candidate Trump said that we would build a wall on our Southern border, I applauded. A sovereign nation must have secure borders or it will cease to exist (which was the plan). When he said that Mexico would pay for it, I was skeptical. As events unfolded I waited to see how such an audacious plan would be put into practice.

I am of the opinion that we have already seen a glimpse of the payment and it is quite striking. Consider the billions of dollars that were about to be invested in Mexico by American companies. Consider the many thousands of jobs getting ready to start in Mexico because of that investment. Now consider the toll to be paid by Mexico in the massive loss of investment and job evaporation. That is what is called payment; in cold hard terms.

One of the main arguments against building a border wall is that it simply won't work. If that is the case, why do the elites keep building their own walls? A few of the elite globalists who have built walls for their personal security are Speaker Paul Ryan, former President Barak Obama, and Facebook mogul Mark Zuckerberg. How could walls be good for them, but not for our nation?

A wall on our Southern border would slow the influx of civilian invaders from many countries, Mexico being but one. A large portion of illegals are simply passing through Mexico on their way here. Building a wall would force Mexico to deal with them; maybe even requiring the Mexican government to build a wall on their Southern border.

I say that it is high time we make America great again, so that we then will be able to assist other nations in their quest for liberty.

County Transit Management Shows Lack Of Concern For Community

If it is true that we will be judged on how we treat the most vulnerable among us, then we have a very serious problem with regard to Charlevoix County government in general, and the county transit department in particular.

The issues of concern with Charlevoix County Transit are numerous and continue without any attempted corrective measures resulting in biased and sometimes discriminatory practices. These concerns have been voiced by many local residents and have been brought to the attention of the transit manager, Jill Drury, in an attempt to bring about changes that would make the system more responsive to the needs of the community - to no avail.

The steps taken include telephone conversations and meetings with Jill Drury, transit manager; and the concerns have been presented at a meeting of the oversight board, and also the Charlevoix County Board of Commissioners. So far the many problems plaguing transit remain uncorrected except for very minor, sometimes cosmetic changes that were only addressed after they were made public, with one exception; the serious problems with the telephone system have finally been addressed, after continuous public outcry that lasted for more than a year, and while far from perfect, the improvements have made a big difference to the many residents who previously encountered difficulties attempting to contact the dispatch office.

Many more problems exist with our beloved pickle bus, and some are quite serious. Problems such as the termination of needed service without notice or substantive reasons, a marked and noticeable change from serving the needs of the community to serving visitors and local bars, changing focus from public transportation to that of tour agency as evidenced by the change of description on the official transit Facebook page, and more, many more. Why county government would be willing to ignore these serious issues, reducing local residents to “second class” citizens is beyond my comprehension.

When the Transit Oversight Board Chair offers diametrically opposed excuses for termination of service, when the transit manager laughs off the stranding of passengers, when evening weekend service that is only available in the Boyne City area and subsidized by local bars is given priority over the needs of county residents, when the new dispatch software is not used for the evening bus service but is demanded for daytime riders, when the new dispatch software has increased time to make trip arrangements, when access to proof of cost and mileage reduction is denied, when transit management and oversight board admit that they have no statistics to base their decisions on, when transit management can mix public and private sector duties on county payroll, when the transit manager’s husband, John Drury, a private consultant and lobbyist, and Executive Director of MASSTrans, a public transit lobbying organization, can sit on the board of the  Charlevoix County Transportation Authority, when both Jill Drury and John Drury sit on the board of MASSTrans, when Jill Drury refuses to answer legitimate questions and doesn’t release public documents that are supposed to be available on the official county website, then we most certainly do have trouble with a capital T, right here in River City.

I understand that not every rider experiences the same deficiencies, and that some riders are quite pleased with the transit system as it is. That in no way can be construed as a ringing endorsement. Indeed, the problems do exist, have not been addressed, and there should be no place in county government for those willing to compromise the civil rights of senior, disabled or low-income residents as has been done repeatedly by the county transit department. Just ask the seniors that utilize the pickle bus to get to local medical care, or ask the local medical facilities – they know all too well that seniors are being subjected to unfair practices.

At the Charlevoix County Board of Commissioners meeting of January 11, 2017, I called for the termination of Jill Drury and the transit oversight board. The exact wording of the document presented at that meeting can be found here.

This is not the position I wanted to take. All I ever wanted was a fair and equitable solution. Having silently observed the mistreatment of many local residents and hoping for the needed changes, I finally stepped up to seek corrective action. The transit system is too valuable to let it slide into a caricature of bureaucratic elitism and indifference so I have spent months researching the issues and reaching out to Jill Drury and the oversight board; however the efforts to seek a workable solution to the many problems with county transit have gone unheeded.

I fully intend to keep sounding the call for fair and unbiased service, and will seek the needed changes through any and all legal means at my disposal. You can expect to see me at commission meetings, and you can count on me to continue writing about the gross inequities within our county government.

Heretics on Display

I’m going out on a limb, but what the heck; here goes.

In no way shape or form can I be called a “Trumpbot”.  My first choice for the GOP nominee was Senator Cruz. I admire his adherence to the Constitution, his obvious intelligence, and grasp of the important issues facing America and the world. Is he perfect? No. Perfection is not humanly attainable. Would he make a good president? I believe so but that is background, and not what I wish to address.

I thought this election cycle would bring a chance for a new beginning as was experienced in 1854 with the birth of the Republican Party. Can you imagine the electricity in the air in Jackson Michigan when the fledgling Republicans held their first meeting since inception and thousands attended? No internet, no phones, no TV, no radio. Now that is magic; and that is what I wanted to happen this election cycle; a cleansing, a rebirth, a recommitment to core values. Well, it happened; just not the way I expected.

It was a movement of everyday Americans eager to put forth a more realistic and moralistic government who formed the Republican Party and brought about the changes needed to ensure civil rights and equal rights. The same people who made up the constituency of the new Republican Party in the 1850’s are the same as we find in the current conservative/populist movement; mostly good decent Americans seeking to make a better way for themselves and their families without infringing upon the rights of their neighbors, and without the government infringing upon them. The Republican Party was born of Americans seeking to carve out a fair and equitable existence for all, with a clear disdain for elitists. After all what could possibly be more elitist than pro-slavers?

It would be quite easy to find positions held by the new Republican administration that are worthy of criticism, but keep in mind that we are all human and very imperfect. What I am having difficulty with is the progressive wing of the Republican Party; those people who claim to be Republican while actively working to subvert our new Republican president. What has Trump done that so infuriates them? How is it possible that the party of Lincoln and Reagan can be so offended by the free exercise of our constitutional right to choose our leaders? I maintain that President Donald J Trump has shown incredible negotiating skill and has already been more presidential than Barak Obama in his entire eight years as president – and President Trump has just taken the oath of office.

As the Trump administration reasserts the exceptionalism of America, he may well also be heralding a new era of détente. I for one hope and pray that he succeeds. Since America is in need of serious rebuilding, I say let’s pitch in and give President Donald J Trump a hand.

A Good Start To The New Year

I was feeling quite anxious about my struggle to get the county transit department to make needed changes in operations. At times it felt that no progress was being made and the blow-back from some quarters was disheartening. However today is a new day; one that holds promise for the many local residents who have suffered the indignities of biased and prejudicial actions on the part of the transit department.

This morning when I logged on to the internet, a notification was waiting for me. It seems that someone saw one of my pieces and commented on it. Here is his comment: “I ride the bus a lot and I hope you can make some changes, most of my Ride's are bad”. That really got my day off to a great start. Knowing that my efforts are appreciated by those who most need an advocate is fantastic news and gave me a much needed boost.

Then I noticed that the transit page of the official county government website has the scheduled holiday hours listed for this year, and guess what? No four day holiday weekends. That is great news for the many county residents who have no other transportation options and will be able to better schedule errands and social outings.

Additionally, I saw this in the minutes of the last county commission meeting: “UNSCHEDULED PUBLIC COMMENT” “Chet Falkowski, citizen of Boyne City, discussed Charlevoix County Transit and read a document expressing his concerns”. I was somewhat bemused by that notation as the document I read was a call for the termination of the transit manager and the entire transit oversight board.

Calling for the termination of the transit department leadership was not something I wanted to do, nor is it something I take lightly; however, it was warranted due to their refusal to take corrective action. It seems more than a little interesting that it was mentioned in the official minutes as simply a document, with no mention of the call for termination, which is what the document is in its entirety.

The day after the commission meeting was the transit oversight board meeting. Being aware of the call for termination, it looks like they are now taking CYA actions like removing the official transit Facebook page, presumably to get rid of the incriminating posts made by transit management. Thankfully I captured many of them in advance.

The struggle continues, as much more action is needed on the part of county transit, but all in all, this year is off to a good start.

Enough Is Enough

Time to End the Charade

WHEREAS Charlevoix County Transit is no longer focused on the needs of the community,

And

WHEREAS Charlevoix County Transit, under the management of Jill Drury, has placed the desires of visitors ahead of the needs of county residents,

And

WHEREAS Charlevoix County Transit has failed to provide safe, fair, and adequate service to county residents seeking transportation,

And

WHEREAS the Transit Oversight Board has made demonstrably false and misleading statements concerning distribution of service,

And

WHEREAS statements made by Jill Drury on the official transit Facebook page, in local media, and in person, show a pattern of neglect and disrespect for, and infringement of civil rights of, a large portion of transit riders,

And

WHEREAS Jill Drury and the Transit Oversight Board have repeatedly refused to work toward remediation of inequities,

And

WHEREAS these claims have been documented in my various articles, blog posts, complaints, and presentations to the Charlevoix County Board of Commissioners,

I do HEREBY call for the immediate termination of the Charlevoix County Transit Oversight Board, and Jill Drury, Charlevoix County Transit Manager.


Chet Falkowski

On What Moral Ground Does Charlevoix County Government Stand?

The Charlevoix County Commission seems to feel that county government serves we the commissioners, not we the people, as evidenced by yet another deceitful and discriminatory stance.

"The stigma is that transit is only used by people who are low-income, handicapped and seniors.”… Jill Drury, manager of the Charlevoix County Transit System as quoted in The Petoskey News-Review.

That is perhaps the most unfair, biased, bigoted, defamatory, and discriminatory statement made by a county official in recent memory. The connotation is completely negative and in no way should it be allowed to stand.

The quote by Jill Drury further states: “That's not the case in Charlevoix County. We do a number of students with school of choice. And we have people using it to go back and forth to work, to visit loved ones, and more.”

Implicit in the words of Jill Drury, the manager of Charlevoix County Transit System, a department of county government, is the belief that low-income, handicapped and senior residents use the services of county transit for purposes other than going to work, school or vocational training, socializing, shopping, or other “normal” types of trips. It also implies that they are somehow not as worthy of the services of Charlevoix County government.

Jill Drury has been shown to be to be insulting, degrading and bigoted, but the ultimate responsibility for such abuse must fall upon the Charlevoix County Commissioners, individually and collectively. For any county commissioner to disregard the reprehensible words of Jill Drury would only exacerbate the situation and further expose Charlevoix County to legal action.

It is therefore imperative that the Charlevoix County Board of Commissioners take immediate action to condemn such abhorrent behavior by terminating Jill Drury and the entire Charlevoix County Transit Oversight Board.

Puff Piece Propaganda Proudly Placed in Petoskey News-Review

What about objective journalism?

As one who uses Charlevoix County Transit, but is critical of management and distribution of service, I was eager to read the article by Matt Mikus of January 5, 2017 about public transportation. When I finished, my reaction was “Wow. Just. Wow.” I cannot recall a more flagrant puff piece for any government agency. Anywhere. Ever.

This article reeks of propaganda. Of spin. Of being totally one-sided. This is the type of piece usually utilized by community boosters and reserved for the opening of a new donut shop or specialty retailer. It lacks any semblance of objective journalism. My disappointment is so profound that I am left wondering about the motivation for such an article.

My experience with public transportation in Northern Michigan is limited to Charlevoix County Transit, so that is where my critique will be focused. As a disabled senior I rely on public transportation, and appreciate the service provided. However, when transportation service to medical appointments is terminated without notice, as was done with regard to travel to medical specialists in Traverse City, it presents undue hardships upon those who have come to rely on public transit to get needed medical care. Additionally, the options for shopping are very limited, and while we were provided with transportation to the major retailers in Emmet County, sadly, that too has been terminated.

With regard to those trips to Traverse City for medical care, the article states that Charlevoix County Transit manager, Jill Drury, said rides from Charlevoix County to Traverse City were phased out because of limits on staff and vehicles. I believe that to be inherently false. First, Charlevoix County Transit maintains two (2) vehicles specifically designated for medical trips. Second, the service was not phased out, but rather terminated without notice about the same time as weekend “bar hopping” service was implemented, and finally, my research indicates that the main staffing issue is not an inability to hire drivers, but an inability to retain them.

The quote attributed to Jill Drury, "The stigma is that transit is only used by people who are low-income, handicapped and seniors. That's not the case in Charlevoix County. We do a number of students with school of choice. And we have people using it to go back and forth to work, to visit loved ones, and more" seems to show an attempt to denigrate county residents who rely on public transit. Why would the adjectives, low-income, handicapped, and seniors be classified as stigma? The term has a completely negative connotation, and other than students, most riders, whether for work, personal visits, shopping, or other general trips, are indeed low-income, disabled, and/or seniors, and that is not a slight in any way, fashion or form. It is simply a statement of fact, and the reporter, Matt Mikus, should have challenged Jill Drury on the use of such a derogatory term to describe the county residents she is tasked with serving. Those county residents who public transit was intended to serve can in no way be considered “a mark of disgrace associated with a particular circumstance, quality, or person,” as stigma is defined by Google.

I do not know of anyone who disapproves of more service hours, but to ignore the fact that much needed service was terminated to allow for the added hours shows a blatant neglect of those most vulnerable, and most in need of service. The position of Charlevoix County Transit is that weekend service subsidized by local bars is more crucial than service to medical care, and is illustrated by the addition of weekend evening hours at the expense of trips for medical appointments.

A quote from the article claims that Jill Drury “said her staff constantly reevaluates its ridership service, depending on resources and what riders are interested in”. I challenge that statement, as information has been repeatedly requested that would show the validity of statements such as that, but no such information was provided. Indeed, on at least one occasion Jill Drury stated that such statistics were not available. How then are the alleged transit staff evaluations conducted?

The article goes on to state that many of the riders complimented the professionalism of the service and the drivers. I wholeheartedly agree, the public transit drivers are quite professional, friendly and willing to assist riders whenever needed. That in no way negates the flaws in the priorities, delivery of service, or understanding of the needs of the community on the part of transit management.

Jill Drury listed Charlevoix County Transit as a tour agency on the official transit Facebook page. Yes. She did. And Matt Mikus states on his Facebook page that he is  proud of the article on public transit. Wow. Just. Wow.

Happy New Year!!!

Hoping 2017 is your best year yet!