News and Views - Commissioner Price Intrigued At Plymouth Township Supervisor Job

NEWS:

It’s business as usual in Plymouth Township. Chaos and confusion among the Plymouth Township Board of Trustees. In case you haven’t had your eye on your local leadership, things are a mess. A local citizens group called Plymouth Township United Citizens are in the midst of circulating recall petitions for four of the Plymouth Township Board of Trustees members. They are Supervisor Richard Reaume, Treasurer Ron Edwards, Clerk Nancy Conzelman, and Trustee Kay Arnold. The petitions are due to be filed in early February, should they succeed in getting enough signatures to force a recall election, which would be held in May.

VIEWS:

Look, I’m not going to try to tell you either way how to react to the recall effort, but I will just say that it happened because people are fed up with the actions of these particular members of this board. They are sick of the out of control spending on pet projects, they are sick of their voice not being heard, they are sick of the lies, and non transparency, they are sick of the condescending way they are treated by all four of these members of this board, and in particular, they are sick and tired of the way Supervisor Reaume treats taxpayers at the Board of Trustees meetings.

NEWS:

After the Plymouth Township United Citizens had their recall petitions approved by Wayne County, Supervisor Reaume filed recall petition language against the three board members that were not being recalled. Those members are Trustee Bob Doroshewitz, Trustee Mike Kelly, and Trustee Chuck Curmi. Trustee Curmi chose to challenge the language on the petition against him, and prevailed, so he is the only member of the seven member board that is not currently under threat of recall.

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I suspect that Trustees Doroshewitz and Kelly considered Reaume’s recall threat so ridiculous that they did not even bother to challenge, and I agree with them. I know that Trustee Curmi considered it outrageous, and on principal, chose to successfully challenge the recall language, and I agree with him as well. For Reaume to attempt to recall three members of his own board was simply a childish, and desperate attempt at revenge. The problem is that he is seeking revenge on three folks who had nothing whatsoever to do with the recall against him, which has many people in the township questioning his ability to continue to fulfill the responsibilities of the office he was elected to, and this leads to the next bit of news.

NEWS:

Plymouth Township Supervisor Richard Reaume purchased a condo in Florida, and has sold his house in Plymouth Township. He is now renting a room at a place called Historic Beck House of Plymouth. This is a house owned by a couple who converted it into studio apartments, for lack of a better description. They cater to business people who have short to medium stays in the metro area, but do not want to live in hotels. It is a nice place, and very pricy.

VIEWS:

This tells me that Supervisor Reaume plans to resign his position in the very near future. It is becoming very clear to all those who pay attention that Mr. Reaume has been steadily losing his grip on the board as a whole, he is losing control of his meetings, he has been losing control of his temper, and to be quite honest, he is basically just going through the motions in performing the duties of his job. The question is no longer will he resign, but rather, when will he resign. With the recall petitions due in early February, the timing of his resignation becomes very critical, and I’ll get to that later.

NEWS:

Wayne County Commissioner Shannon Price has very recently sold his house in Canton, and purchased a house in Plymouth Township.

VIEWS:

While it seems like no big deal, and Mr. Price has said as much, this is a huge turn of events. It has no effect on his duties as Commissioner, as he represents both Canton and Plymouth Township, but what it does is put him in a position to either be appointed Plymouth Township Supervisor, or be picked to replace Mr. Reaume on the ballot in the event that Mr. Reaume resigns. While this may be a surprising turn of events for some folks in our community, my sources tell me that Mr. Price, and his aide, Mike Mitchell were bragging to GOP officials during the summer that Mr. Price would be coming to Plymouth Township to run for Supervisor in 2016.

NEWS:

There have been increasing rumors and news articles about Commissioner Price, who was just elected to a new 2 year term, considering a run for Plymouth Township Supervisor. Mr. Price has been pretty cagey in his answers, stating that his family just needed a bigger house, but also complained that he’s always getting caught up in rumors. He even got a bit snarky, insinuating that State Representative Kurt Heise has fueled these rumors, saying, “I’m not going to lie, Kurt Heise’s ambitions rule my life. It’s two years off.” Of course, at the same time, he indicated that many folks have encouraged him to run, and stated that, “I’m intrigued, I’d love it.” In the end, he reminded folks that, It’s two years away, right now Richard’s the Supervisor, and I support Richard.”

VIEWS:

In my opinion, Mr. Price is flip flopping. On social media he played the “I’m the victim of all these silly rumors” game, but then when the Observer called, suddenly lot’s of folks have asked him to run, and the he is quoted in the Plymouth Voice as “being intrigued” So which is it? None of these statements square with the fact that he was bragging of a Supervisor run this last summer.

What was probably the most unfortunate statement that Mr. Price made, was Commissioner Price’s public support for Supervisor Reaume. This was very telling, because it seems to suggest that Price not only supports Reaume, but the other three recall targets as well, especially Treasurer Edwards, who is apparently playing kingmaker in this deal if the chatter I hear is correct. I am hearing that Mr. Edwards has been bragging about recruiting Mr. Price to come to Plymouth Township to run for Supervisor. That’s certainly not going to sit very well with a great many folks in Plymouth Township, as many see the obvious relationship between Mr. Price, and Treasurer Edwards as more of the same shenanigans that have actually caused the recall to begin with.

There are many folks in the township that believe this relationship has been evolving since this past summer during the primary. There are quite a few people that believe that Mr. Price, and Matt Edwards, (Ron Edwards son) were helping each other out in the primary this past summer. Mr. Price vehemently denied helping young Matt Edwards, but I have to tell you, when I asked Mr. Price about this, his face had more nervous tics than a Lyme disease research facility. Worst poker face I ever saw.

At the time, I had to take Shannon at his word, even though my instincts were screaming otherwise. Then, a few months down the road, came another revelation. Mr. Price was spotted late one night at the Plymouth Pub having drinks with Treasurer Edwards, and Price’s aide Mike Mitchell. Well, I’m a believer that where there is smoke, there is fire, and I happened to mention this little gathering on my Facebook page just to see the response. I got an immediate response from Mr. Price, and it was not kind. If it’s just an innocent meeting of friends, why so angry? Smoke, meet fire.

I would also add that shortly thereafter, I had some of my contacts telling me that Mr. Price was telling folks that he had dirt on me. He calls himself the Bulldog, so I was not surprised, and to be honest, that’s not news to anybody who pays attention to my blogs. I have had my issues in the past, and I made a point to write about them. I have nothing to hide. I’m not the one who wants to be Supervisor, nor do I seek any other position on the board for that matter. So I contacted Mr. Price, and simply told him that his threat, if true, means nothing to me, and if he wants to attack me and my family, that is his choice to make, but it will do nothing to change the truth about him, and his actions.

Moving on, we find out that Mr. Price is selling his house, and the rumors about him wanting to be Supervisor picked up steam. Still the denials from not only Mr. Price, but also friends of his as well. I have had multiple people who are friends of Mr. Price tell me that there was nothing to the rumors of Shannon moving to Plymouth Township to become Supervisor. I was told that Shannon was just messing with Rep. Heise. Trying to get in his head, and it was all in fun. I didn’t believe it then, and I was obviously right, based on how “intrigued” Mr. Price suddenly is about the prospect of being our new Supervisor. Smoke/Fire

If Mr. Price is to be believed, why would he sell his house, and uproot his family in the dead of winter, in the middle of the school year? His wife is a highly accomplished, and award winning teacher as well, so why put her through a huge move in the middle of her school year, when a move would be so much easier on his whole family in the summer? It makes no sense.

It makes a ton of sense though if you had plans all along to be Plymouth Township Supervisor, and you knew that there could be a recall, and you knew that you had to establish residency by early February in case the current Supervisor resigned under pressure. Yep, that is the only way it makes sense. If you had cut a deal for Ron Edward’s support, and were planning to be Supervisor since July, before you were even re-elected, moving in the dead of winter is the only thing that makes sense, because you could not afford to gamble on Supervisor Reaume packing up and leaving for sunny Florida.

Look, obviously the Price camp is going to call all of this pure hokum, and that’s okay. It is simply my opinion based on a series of events that I have watched play out over the last several months. Look, I have no problem with Mr. Price having ambitions, and have absolutely no problem with him wanting to be the Plymouth Township Supervisor at some point. My problem comes when you are sneaky about how you approach these goals. My problem gets a whole lot bigger if you are cutting deals with the board’s current cast of characters, because I have huge issues with the way they have done business these past few years. I also have a problem if you think you can pack up and move to our community, and suddenly become the default choice for Plymouth Township Supervisor. My biggest problem comes when I see the possibility for the system, and or election, to be rigged, which leads us to the next piece of news.

NEWS:

Recall laws were changed in the State of Michigan in 2012.

VIEWS:

This legislation is new, and is most likely going to cause chaos in Plymouth Township. It shouldn’t cause chaos, but if someone attempts to manipulate the intent of the law to suit their own desires, things will get chaotic. Most folks really don’t know how things are going to work out, if or when Supervisor Reaume resigns. There are two schools of thought here, and the Price/Edwards camp are trying to set themselves up to be successful in either scenario.

The first school of thought is that the minute the recall language is approved, the Plymouth Township Board of Trustees can not, in the event of a resignation, appoint a replacement. In other words, if Mr. Reaume resigned today, that position would remain vacant until the recall issue were completed. If enough signatures were gathered to bring the recall to a vote in May, then the executive committee of the Wayne 11 Congressional District Republican Committee would have to choose a candidate to replace Reaume on the ballot. Mr. Reaume could also choose to wait it out, and see if there are enough signatures for a recall vote before he resigns. If they turn in enough signatures, he has first right to be on the ballot. If he chooses not to be a part of the recall, that the Wayne 11 CDRC appoints a candidate for the Republican slot. Anyone else, Republican or otherwise would have to either run as a Democrat or an Independent. Conceivably, Shannon Price could move into Plymouth Township on February 4th, and be picked by a committee of as little as three people, and end up being elected Supervisor of Plymouth Township two months later. The word carpetbagger comes to mind.

The other school of thought is that if Reaume were to resign today, that would immediately void the recall for him. In that case, the Plymouth Township Board of Trustees could immediately go about the business of appointing a replacement for Supervisor Reaume. Mr. Price could literally unpack his bags, spend his first night in his new digs, and end up being appointed Supervisor within the next month, depending on how the board handles the appointment process. The carpetbag of all time. My guess is that this is going to end up in court, and our next Supervisor could end up being decided by a judge, and not the taxpayers of Plymouth Township.

So ultimately, the relationship that Shannon Price has with Ron Edwards is of paramount importance. Mr. Edwards will sway the vote of the other two members of this board, the ones being recalled with him, and that is three of the four votes needed in an appointment situation. It can be assumed that Doroshewitz, and Curmi would vote against a Price appointment, so it would all come down to the vote of Mike Kelly. Mike Kelly could very well be the man who decides who the next Supervisor of Plymouth Township is.

If this thing does indeed come down to an appointment situation, I would encourage the taxpayers of Plymouth Township to pay close attention. I would also suggest that the Plymouth Township Board of Trustees make absolutely sure that they have an open and honest selection process for Supervisor. This process needs to be public, and by that I mean not only resumes, but interviews as well. The possible candidates should be thoroughly vetted, and that should include tax records as well as credit and financial checks. I want to know who my Supervisor has been doing work for the past few years or so. I want to know that my Supervisor has the business acumen to make sound financial decisions, therefore I need to know if he has good credit, I need to know if he has ever filed for bankruptcy. I want to know every single thing about the next Supervisor, so that we never end up in this ridiculous situation again. Is that too much to ask? I think not.

The way I see it though, is that Ron Edwards, and Shannon Price have this appointment or election rigged every which way you can, and that is a shame. It is a shame because we have so many good candidates from Plymouth Township. Nothing against Mr. Price, but in the case of a Reaume resignation, it is my opinion that we have plenty of good candidates to fill Reaume’s position right here in town. We don’t need some self appointed savior coming in from Canton to take over our township. A few names come immediately to mind, and the likely candidates are State Representative Kurt Heise, who is term limited, and has most likely been considering running for Supervisor for quite some time. It is a natural progression for him, and he has the perfect resume for the job. Other likely candidates are Trustee Bob Doroshewitz, and Trustee Chuck Curmi. Both of these men are smart, qualified, and have been leaders in our community for quite some time. So why appoint a person who has lived in the community for a couple months at most, when you have quality people who have been here for years and years? It makes no sense.

This whole thing reminds me of when Jase Bolger got caught up in the election rigging scandal back in 2012. It darn near cost him his election, and was a huge embarrassment to the Republican Party. If voters see that Treasurer Edwards, or any other GOP operatives manipulated our state’s recall laws to carpetbag Commissioner Price into the Supervisor’s position, they will not react well when he has to be re-elected in 2016. Bottom line is that folks don’t like it when politicians start making a mockery of the democratic process.

I would humbly suggest that Mr. Price serve the rest of his term as our Wayne County Commissioner regardless of whether Reaume resigns or not. Heck, I voted for the guy, and I don’t regret my vote. I would suggest he serve his term, get to know our community, meet and get to know some of our community members, and run for Supervisor if he chooses, in 2016. If Mr. Price wins the primary for Supervisor in 2016, I’ll be the first man to step up and support him, in the general election. Right now though, our community is in a crisis of sorts, and we need a local person, a person who knows our community to step to the plate, and help lead us out of it. Heck, if I had to pick a dream team, and this is just me, I’d like all three of the local candidates in the Township Hall. I think Plymouth Township would be served well with Heise, Doroshewitz, and Curmi handling the township’s business.

In the end, I really feel that the best thing that could happen is for the current regime to do their part to put a stop to this madness. This current board of trustees still has the chance to offer to sit down and deal with the recall folks. These people are not the enemy they just want to be treated with respect. They just want a say in their government. This whole recall thing could go away next week if the Plymouth Township Board of Trustees would agree to sit down and negotiate some common sense solutions to some of the issues. I know this is possible because I have spoken to one of the influential members of this group.

Nobody wins if this recall goes forward. The community gets divided, it costs the taxpayers money, progress in our community is put on hold, it’s just a huge embarrassment, and it could end immediately if the Plymouth Township Board of Trustees wanted it to end. It could end immediately if Ron Edwards wanted it to end.

It could end immediately, and there wouldn’t be all these hard feelings...