The Howell Area Parks and Recreation Authority is in the crosshairs of the Livingston County Republican Party for a variety of reasons, from considering a new policy that would provide eligible employees with four weeks of paid parental leave, to treating pickleballers “like stepchildren.”
Add in criticism of HAPRA’s recent hiring decisions and its 2024 millage campaign and you’ve got the wide-ranging, free-flowing, off-the-cuff segment of a recent episode of “The Right Side,” the official podcast of the Livingston County Republican Party, which is moderated by Chair Deb Drick.
Candie Hovarter, Genoa Township’s representative on the HAPRA board, appeared in the first segment, during which Drick said HAPRA is going “crazy on the taxpayer dime.” Drick also said people need to thank Hovarter for “standing up like a Republican” in questioning the HAPRA proposal to grant four-weeks of paid parental leave.
You can watch the podcast in its entirety (warning: it’s over 2 hours long, but the first part of it featuring Hovarter is about a half hour) by clicking here.
Drick urged Republicans to take action: “I think we need Republicans to show up at the meeting and start backing Candie,” Drick said. “She seems to be the one with common sense over there.”
The meeting begins at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, May 20, at HAPRA’s Oceola Community Center at 1661 N. Latson Road in Howell.
How is HAPRA going “crazy on the taxpayer dime”?
The HAPRA board has been considering a policy that would provide eligible employees four weeks of paid parental leave, which it tabled at its April meeting.
That parental leave policy — like most others — would run concurrent with the federal Family Medical Leave Act provisions of 12 weeks of job-protected time off. The HAPRA proposal would pay the first FOUR weeks of leave (not six as Drick claimed during the podcast); in the event of a c-section, an additional week of paid leave can be granted. A gradual return-to-work provision could also be incorporated during the 12-weeks of FMLA.
The policy was developed at the direction of the HAPRA board, and a task force that included HAPRA board members, staffers, and HAPRA Director Tim Church researched similar organizations to determine what benefits, if any, they provide. The task force also reviewed the State of Michigan parental leave policy, which grants employees 12 weeks of paid leave after the birth or adoption of a child — three times longer than what’s being considered by HAPRA.
“This policy shows that our organization supports our employees in times of life changes,” said Church. “It gives them a feeling of security, and allows them comfort in their return while balancing their new home/work life.”
You can read HAPRA’s proposed policy by CLICKING HERE.
Hovarter, elected to the Genoa Township Board in November 2024, is a new member of the HAPRA board. She said she made the motion to table the proposed policy.
“I just thought that seems like too much,” Hovarter told Drick. “I think they’re taxpayer-funded, and I think that we need to be careful with our taxpayer dollars.”
“Oh, good. I think that was just too generous,” Drick said. “That sounds to me spoken like a true Republican. That’s exactly how Republicans think. I think I can hear Wes (Nakagiri) smiling.”
Maybe you don’t need that person on leave
One particular nit Drick and Hovarter picked during the podcast was that the work of the HAPRA employee on leave would be absorbed by the rest of the staff.
“The general rule of thumb with that is … if four can do what five are doing, then you shouldn’t have five,” Drick said. “This is the line that I guess is most important. And that is, it’s all on taxpayer dollars.”
Job protection is one of the aims of the Family and Medical Leave Act, which was signed into law in 1993 to protect workers by allowing them time off to care for themselves and their family members without having to give up their livelihood. For over three decades now, people’s jobs are protected when they take time off for these rare, life-altering events.
It’s been over three decades since FMLA became law, and it’s hard to imagine a world in which welcoming a new child, caring for a dying parent, or undergoing cancer treatment means you lose your job because, for a limited number of weeks, four people did the work of five.
In Genoa Township, the parental leave policy provides job-protected paid time off under short-term disability: 6 weeks of it for a regular delivery, and 8 weeks for a c-section. The leave runs concurrently with FMLA at 66-2/3% of pay. The employee taking leave can choose to bring that amount up to 100% by using accumulated paid time off, as well as vacation and personal time. Any additional leave above that is unpaid. And the work of the employee on leave is absorbed by the rest of the workers.
Livingston County provides employees with up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave per year for birth, adoption or foster care under FMLA. In addition, most employees are eligible for short-term disability coverage, which provides 66% of wage loss benefits for the birth of a child. The county further provides paid sick leave, paid personal leave, and paid vacation time to assist the employee with any remaining wage loss for leaves related to the birth of a child, adoption, or foster care.
The long and winding (millage) road
During the GOP podcast, Drick said HAPRA’s 2024 millage campaign told voters that it would shut down if the issue failed.
“The package I was sold … (was) ‘oh, my gosh, we’re going to close our doors if we don’t get this millage,’” Drick said. “This sounds like (now) we’re going to keep our doors open and we’re going to fund everybody to do all kinds of crazy things.”
But Drick appears to have misinterpreted the campaign.
I hunted down HAPRA’s 2024 campaign material, and found this video on YouTube.
You can check out the HAPRA millage general campaign information by CLICKING HERE, and you can read its pass/fail info by CLICKING HERE.
The road to a dedicated millage for HAPRA has been a long one.
Besides establishing a dedicated source of funding for HAPRA, a millage would also even out the funding inequities between the City of Howell and the participating townships.
When the newly formed Howell Area Parks and Recreation Authority tried for a millage in 2006, in addition to user fees, it was funded by annual contributions of $600,000 from the City of Howell, $81,000 from Oceola Township, $65,000 from Genoa Township, and $54,000 from Marion Township. (Howell Township had not yet joined the authority.)
Voters gave the 1 mill request a thumbs down.
A decade later, HAPRA attempted to pass a 0.75 mill proposal, which failed.
Eight years after that, in 2024, HAPRA went for a new 0.5 mill proposal. While the request passed overall, losing by 200 votes in Marion Township means it failed by not clearing the statutory bar of wins in each participating municipality.
At that point, the authority had to decide whether it wanted to continue.
In Michigan, when a recreation authority millage fails, all participating municipalities have to vote within 90 days whether to continue or dissolve. If 2/3 of the municipalities in the authority vote to continue, the authority remains operational, and the residents of the municipalities voting NOT to return are treated as non-residents for participation; if 2/3 of the municipalities don’t vote to continue, the authority must dissolve.
That’s not a campaign tactic. That’s Michigan law.
In HAPRA’s case, after losing in the August 2024 primary, the participating municipalities voted to try again for the millage in the November general election. The millage request passed in all participating municipalities, and the authority remains intact.
But before anyone gets too comfortable, know that the same process will take place when HAPRA’s millage is up for renewal in 2029.
How big is HAPRA’s ‘big’ millage?
Drick said during the podcast that this spending “craziness” comes after HAPRA “passed a big millage.”
While it’s like comparing apples and oranges and pickles as different kinds of authorities have different missions, I thought it might be interesting to take a look at the authority rates currently in effect in Livingston County. When you consider just the millage amount, HAPRA’s is one of the smallest currently levied in Livingston County.
The biggest authority millages are, understandably, those for firefighting: if your house is burning down, firefighters — not pickleballers — will show up with their costly emergency equipment to fight it, and that comes at a price. But I thought it would be interesting to see what’s being levied in the community.
These are the current figures from the Livingston County Equalization Department in descending order:
Fire authorities
• The Brighton Area Fire Authority — 2.3502 mills
• Fowlerville Fire Authority — 2 mills
• Howell Area Fire Authority — 1.9840 mills
Libraries
• The Pinckney District Library — 1.9632 mills
• Cromaine District Library in Hartland — 1.4215 mills
• Fowlerville District Library — 1.3210 mills
• Howell Carnegie District Library — 1.0232 mills
• Brighton District Library — 0.8180 mills
Roads
Handy Township — 0.9526 mills
Recreation
• Howell Area Parks and Recreation — 0.5 mills
• Huron Clinton Metropark Authority — 0.2062 mills
Veterans
• The Veterans Relief countywide millage — 0.0918 mills
Does HAPRA even need its director?
During the Livingston GOP’s podcast, Drick took direct aim at HAPRA Director Tim Church, questioning the hiring of a deputy director, as well as contracting with a consultant for 14 months at a cost of $23,000. (During the podcast, Hovarter, who sits on the HAPRA board, said the consultant was being brought in to “help with policies, management, things like that.”)
“So we went from not being able to hold our doors open to now we are giving out all these leaves,” Drick said. “Plus, we’re hiring on a deputy.”
“I understand that we now got this millage so we can keep the doors open, and (HAPRA Director Tim Church is) hiring additional staff management … he hired somebody as a deputy that’s basically going to do his job now … so why do we need him? I guess that’s the big question,” Drick said. “She (the assistant) is full time. That’s not assisting.”
Drick also questioned the wisdom of contracting with a consultant, “in addition to getting a new deputy.”
“We’re going to (hire) a management consultant, basically managing staff, etc., in addition to getting a new deputy. And so … now that he’s been there over 11 years and he needs a consultant for management, what’s he been doing all this time?”
Of fobs and courts and pickleball, of chowderheads and things
“Don’t get me wrong. We do have some great recreational programs in our community,” Drick said. “That’s part of what makes our community great. I’m not disputing the recreation that they do. I’m not disputing the programs, although, I’ve got to tell you: I feel like they treat pickleball people like they’re the stepchildren, and I don’t feel like they get a fair shake at all. But that’s my personal opinion.
“It’s not a taxpayer-funded mess up that they don’t like pickleballers or that they prefer basketball.”
Drick then launched into an explanation of why she’s done with HAPRA.
“I used to be a member there and I used to pay the annual thing,” Drick said. “I showed up one time and I said I lost my fob. And (the HAPRA employee) goes, ‘OK, well, you got it, it’s five bucks.’ OK, I’ll give her five bucks for a new one, right?”
After taking Drick’s $5 for a new fob, the employee discovered Drick’s membership had expired.
“I said I’ll renew, but knock five bucks off for that fob,” Drick said. “(Or) why don’t you give me the five bucks back and then I’ll just get a new one,” assuming it would come with her membership renewal.
The HAPRA employee refused.
“That woman dug in,” Drick said. “I was just so frustrated.”
“If I showed up and bought a new membership, I would get a fob and a membership … I had to pay extra for the fob because I’m renewing. Why wouldn’t you reward someone for renewing?”
Then came the final straw. It happened at noon one day, when the pickleball nets were being removed to make way for basketball.
“There was still about 20 pickleballers there … and we were still playing,” Drick said.
Since she didn’t see any basketball players, Drick asked if a court could be left open for pickleballers.
“If for some reason you get a rush of basketball players, we’ll leave,” she said to the HAPRA employee on duty.
But the HAPRA employee refused.
When Drick asked why, she said the employee told her it was because some of the pickleball players had yelled at a staffer the week before.
“On behalf of all the pickleball people that didn’t yell, we apologize,” Drick said. “I’ll give you an apology. … I don’t think people should be yelled at.”
But the employee “dug in,” and Drick said he told her that he might “consider it in a few months.”
“It was at that moment right there I decided ‘enough,’” Drick said. “I’m not putting another dime in here. I’m not paying another membership ’til we get somebody else in here.
“I tried to talk after that … but they have no interest in pickleballers. The pickleball people that play there will absolutely agree with me.”
Genoa Township Trustee Bill Reiber, who also sits on the executive committee of the Livingston County Republican Party, texted a comment to the podcast: “Did they forget who pays their wages?”
“Yes,” Drick said. “The customer service was just awful. I will never forget that woman refusing me that fob even though I was buying another membership.”
Drick now plays pickleball in Hartland. The cost is less, and “they like pickleball people there,” she said, while HAPRA is “chasing people away.”
“No wonder they need their stinking millage,” Drick said. “Because they’re giving their money away.”
“The consultant,” Hovarter said. “Maybe that will help.”
“Maybe the consultant says ‘Stop. Stop paying money like a chowderhead. Stop, seriously,’” Drick said, adding that she fears the consultant will instead say, “well, you don’t give enough leave. You need to give more leave.”
Reiber texted in again: “I want my tax money spent on stuff I need or want. Not on fluffy benefits.”
“Reasonable benefits are OK,” Drick said.
Stacy Rutledge, a candidate for the Howell City Council, then texted in: “Settle down, Deb.”
“It is not my job to settle down,” she said.
Calling HAPRA “craziness,” Drick put out a call to action: “I feel like some intervention may be called for at the HAPRA board meeting. … I encourage anybody to start showing up at these meetings.”
What about the cost of the courts lawsuit?
All of this interest on how units of government spend their tax dollars makes one naturally wonder when “The Right Side” podcast will go after the Livingston County Board of Commissioners, which found itself on the hook for $345,000 in legal fees on just one lawsuit last year. The payment came after the county suffered an embarrassing loss of the lawsuit filed against it by the county court system, which had suffered through some clumsy county commission meddling and axe-grinding.
(I strongly encourage you to read the details of the suit and settlement by clicking here.)
The suit, filed in March 2024, was resolved by mediation in late October; when the smoke cleared, the county board got its ears boxed, and the courts got everything for which they sued: retroactive raises for court employees, money for a court salary study, and reimbursement of every single penny of its legal expenses.
The total cost to us taxpayers for the county board’s ham-handedness: Just under $590,000.
So, let’s do a little math: The average HAPRA manager who would be eligible for the proposed leave makes around $55,000 a year, so those four weeks of parental leave would cost about $4,200.
That means the county’s total cost to settle just the court lawsuit would fund 140 four-week parental leaves — 140.
One might wonder why it is that the Livingston County GOP isn’t howling about that. And it might beg the question: Who is standing up for the taxpayers of Livingston County when it comes to the county commission?
It’s disingenuous that instead of apologizing to every single county taxpayer for that gobsmackingly expensive legal debacle by the all-Republican county board, the local GOP instead uses its official podcast to make four weeks of paid parental leave its cause célébre.
