Wyandotte Commissioners Appoint Interim Recreation Superintendent

The No. 2 man in the is now the No. 1 man, for the time being.

Members of the Wyandotte Recreation Commission on Tuesday unanimously appointed Tim Beaker as the interim superintendent of recreation.

He will assume the position on Thursday, which is the last day for because his wife accepted a job offer out of state.

Beaker has been with the department since March as the part-time program coordinator.

He said he plans to apply for the top position and is honored to assume it now on an interim basis.

“I look forward in continuing what’s going on in the city and all of the great work done by Mr. Pischke,” Beaker said. “In recreation, you want to make sure the children, as well as the adults, are busy and are having fun doing so. It creates better neighborhoods and better living environments and decreases crime.”

City officials, however, have not yet decided whether the position will be filled.

Because of a looming $1.4 million budget deficit, officials are waiting to make a decision until after a special election on Nov. 8. , which will generate about $1 million in revenue to help offset the $1.4 million shortfall.

If the millage is defeated, officials said, drastic cuts would have to be made to city services, which could affect recreation.

“I think Nov. 8 is a big day for all of us here,” City Administrator Todd Drysdale told commissioners on Tuesday. “That millage will determine what happens in the short-term, but people can’t ignore what happens in the long-term either. … We don’t want to bring people in knowing we are going to have to let them go. You don’t know what recreation or any of these nonessential services are going to be if the millage fails.”

Commissioner Wally Merritt took exception to recreation being a nonessential service. When stacked against and , Drysdale said, residents would be more apt to see recreation services be diminished over public safety.

If the superintendent’s position gets filled, Drysdale said, it wouldn't be at Pischke's $73,000 annual salary.

A new hire would make between $46,000 and $56,000, Drysdale said. That pay range was established after looking at a survey of recreation director positions in nearby communities, which had an average $58,000 annual compensation, Drysdale said.

“We can’t afford to pay the same salaries anymore,” Mayor Joseph Peterson said. “As the opening came up, this is the time and place to do it now.”

There’s also the possibility of consolidating the position with another city.

Drysdale said he’s already received a call from a Riverview official who expressed interest in merging recreation services with his city.

“There are no assurances,” Drysdale said. “I don’t know how it’s all going to work. … We must look at the numbers and figure out how we want to see this department five or 10 years down the road.”