1976-02-25; Clare Sentinel

              QAKF1EL.D tSEMORtAla   LIBRARY
MCEWAN ST.
CJ.ARS
entmel
FIFTEEN CENTS
SIXTEEN PAGES
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 1976
OUR 96TH YEAR
VOL.84 NO.26
%
MAYORS EXCHANGE - David VV. Coker, left, Farwell village president, and Dorothy Hunawill,
president of Dexter, draw names from the barrel Feb. 18 in the Lansing drawing which paired Michigan
communities for Mayors Exchange. Michigan mayors and village presidents will visit each other's
towns on Monday, May 17, Government Day of Michigan Week. Farwell is paired with Copemish and
Dexter with Carson City for the exchange of officials. Clare is paired with East Tawas and Harrison with
Gobies.
Fired Sheriff
Charges
Politics Are Behind Oustfer
Clare County Sheriff's deputy Dick
Jensen has charged the department with
discrimination and politics after he was
laid off earlier this month.
Jensen said that months" ago, he said
that he would be ousted from the sheriff
department because of his duties with, the
union and the fact that he had backed
former Lt. Ghazey (Gus) Aleck,
Lt. Aleck has filed a $250,000 suit
against Sheriff Raymond Lippold Jr. and
the County Board of Commissioners
following his firing by the sheriff last
Nov. 17.
Jensen is the union steward for the
Fraternal Order of Police and Aleck was
the assistant steward of the union. The
county board last year signed a contract
with the union covering deputies at the
sheriff department.
The initial hearing on the suit by Lt.
Aleck has been set for March 2 at 10 a.m.
in the Circuit Court in Harrison.
Jensen has filed a detailed grievance
against   the  sheriff   department.   The
hearing on the grievanceivill be at 7 p.m:
on March 1 in the county courthouse
before the Board of Commissioners.
According to the contract the board is
set up to hear any grievances where the
problem has not been resolved by the
sheriff department.
Jensen said his layoff is a firing as he
predicted months ago. Jensen said the
reasons given for his layoff is lack of
funds plus the request of the board of
commissioners.
The board has frequently said they
have no control over personnel within the
department. The board minutes do not
indicate any official action in asking that
Jensen be laid off.
Jensen also charged that his position of
detective is listed in the sheriff's budget
that was approved by the board last
October.
He said that the first notice he had of
the current problem cameearly in the
year when he noticed his pay had been
cut.
Bank Names Board
Opens New Branch
He had not received any formal
notification. There was a demotion slip
on file at the treasurers office, he said,
Jensen said he then filed a grievance
saying he was demoted for no reason and
it was a violation of the union contract.
On Feb. 3 Jensen said he received a
letter stating he was reinstated to the
post of detective for 10 days and then
would be laid off effective Feb. 13.
Jensen charges that the switching of
dates and the reinstatement were the
results of someone reading a couple
pages in the contract and trying to cover
the firing in that way.
He detailed a long list of contract
violations. Jensen said the basic issue is
purely political.
"The sheriff for the last year has been
asking more money, more men, more
vehicles because the crime rate was
climbing rapidly in the county.
"Now the sheriff says we don't need a
detective yet the crime is still going up,"
Jensen said.
He said that since his layoff 1 officer
has worked a number of hours overtime.
Jensen asked "Is the sheriff running
the department or ar,e politics. They
should buy a piece of Siberia so that
anyone that bucks the system in Clare
County can.be shipped there."
By Aiired R. Bransdorfer
Editor
Property owners in the City of Clare
will find their assessments going up this
year. Higher assessments mean higher
'taxes if the present millage stays the
.same.
Clare, is only one of 5 units of
government in the county to have total
property assessments boosted.
Some of the other units of government
may see some increases in assessments
in certain types of .property i.e. Grant
Township must boost residential valua-
' tions by $89,083,
The City of Clare faces the biggest
increase in valuation with $946,664 which
must be added to present real estate
valuations.
Of that $843,085 is residential; $57,789 is
industrial and $45,792 is commercial.
Townships which must boost present
overall property valuations are Franklin,
$147,067; Hayes, $738,459; Sheridan,
$28,977 and Summerfield, $322,356.
Other townships have an overall
decline in valuations on all real estate
although they may be upward adjustments in some types such as residential,
commercial, industrial, wild land, agricultural.
The overall valuation of the county has
dropped $4,375,223 in 1976 to $144,985,994
compared to $149,361,217.
This is a large decline while the City of
Clare must go up near $1,000,000.
The reason for the increase according
to the County Equalization Department
is that the city has not been assessing
property at the 50 per cent of true cash
value as the state requires.
The next move is up to the various
assessors in each unit of government
which must spread the assessments on
the present property rolls.
„ Tm> me.ans jthat^ individual pieces of
■'property may have their assessments
jraised. If not a factor will be applied to
all real estate to bring the valuations up
to equalized valuations.
The present tentative factor for the city
of Clare is 27M> per cent. Since valuations
dropped some last year the actual boost
over the two-year period will be below
the 27% per cent.
Other tentative factors for townships
are Arthur, 5 per cent; Franklin, 23 per
cent; Freeman, less than 1 percent;
Frost, 12M> percent; Garfield, nearly 10
percent; Grant, 18 percent, Greenwood,
nearly 17 percent; Hamilton, 17M> percent; Hatton, 28 percent; Hayes, 23
percent* Lincoln nearly 4 percent;
Redding, 15'i> percent; Sheridan, 8
percent; Summerfield, nearly 33 percent; .Surrey, 8 percent; Winterfield, 11
percent; Harrison, 15 percent.
It is expected that the various assessors will in most cases raise valuations on individual parcels to come up
with the total valuations neejded. In some
cases valuations could go down.
If however the assessors do not come
up with the final totals as listed by the
county equalization department than a
factor will be applied. This could be the
tentative factor but more likely a lower
one since some valuations will be
boosted.
The valuations were based on a study
of 1,141 real  property parcel in  the
county.   Equalization   director   Duane
Hoeft said the study was the best the
county has ever made and  provides
* equity between the units of government.
The County Board of Commissioners
has accepted the figures as detailed by
Hoeft. ,
Part of the overall decline in valuations
in the county can be traced to land
developments which have experienced
problems during the past year.
Last year all real estate in the county
had a factor applied by the State Tax
Commission who disagreed with the
county figures.
The factor was generally 19.28 percent.
In some cases the factor last year was
above that and in some cases below that.
The city of Clare for example had a
19.28 factor applied to property but it was
not a true 19.28 increase since valuations
on real estate were all reduced Before the
factor was applied.
Equalization director Hoeft said in part
in a letter to the Board of Commissioners:
"It is the feeling of the Equalization
Department that this study must be
approved as submitted, since it results in
the best equity between units in the
county that we have ever had. There is
little doubt but that we can again
anticipate a State Equalized Factor if
any alterations are made in these totals.
"At the same time, we have every
reason to believe that the State Tax
Commission will accept these totals, and
in fact if any value were added on by the
State Tax Commission, the Equalization
Department would very strongly
recommend an appeal to the Michigan
Tax Tribunal.
CIare Pupil Spends
Year In Australia
By Bill Chadwick
One Clare High School Student has left
for Australia as an exchange student
while another must wait until August.
Kim Anderson, daughter of Mr. and
Mrs. Giles Anderson, Clare, left for
Melbourne, February 6, to stay with ah
Australian family for one year.
According to Miss Anderson, she will
fly to Melbourne, via Los Angeles, where
she will meet her new family.
When asked why shegpicked a place as.'
the exception of $20 a week, which will be
paid by the Rotarians. Redick feels that
the idea of exchanging students is a good
one.
"It's a wonderful program," said
Redfck.
Clare has an exchange student from
Brazil, Marcio Felix, but Redick said
that Marcio will need a home from
September until the end of the year.
Marcio came to Clare on February 1
.and lives with the Richard Shanahan
family now and will live with (he William
far as Australia, Miss Anders6fll«speff^;^Bifesderbach family from June through
"I've always wanted to go to Australia.
According to Rotary Club member
Dick Redick, another Clare student,
Jackie Folkert, daughter of Mr. and Mrs.
Robert Folkert, Clare, will leave in
August.
Redick said that he wasn't sure on
where Miss Folkert would go but one
possibility is Finland.
The Rotary Club pays all the fees that
come through Rotary International but
the students themselves pay the rest with
August.
Redick said that he needs homes, for
incoming exchange students in August.
Exchange students in the are,a have
regular meetings in Bay City, Alpena,
Grand Rapids, Midland, Cass City, and
other Michigan cities to get orientated to
their new way of life,
Redick said that incoming students can
take tours of Michigan and a bus tour of
the country if they wish to.
Basketball
The Michigan basketball tournament
will get underway next week for Glare
county teams,
Clare, Farwell, Harrison, Evart, Pine
River and Reed City will play in the
district tournament with all games at
Harrison High School.
Clare will meet Farwell Monday,
March 1 at 7;30 p.m. Evart has a bye.
Harrison and Pine River will meet
the shareholders of Citizens Bank and
Trust Company, Clare, Michigan, at
their annual -meeting on Tuesday,
February 17, re-elected all incumbent
directors, approved a 20 percent stock
dividend, approved a stock option plan for
employees and reviewed the progress
made by the bank in 1975.
Directors re-elected were Robert B,
Bennett; JamesS. Bieknell, III; John M,
Bieknell; Gilbert A. Currie; A.J. Doherty, III; Carl A. Gerstacker; James A.
Kendall; Frank T. LaGoe; Dorsey
Mussell; Dan McDonald; Alan W. Ott;
Eugene B. Skeebo; Neil B. Stirling and
Dirk B, Waltz.
The stock dividend and employees'
stock option plan would increase basic
common capital stock to $1,512,000, of
Which $1,440,000 (72,000 shares) WouW Vft,
outstanding and $73,000 (3<=0v SftareS)
unissued butavailablefor issuance Under
the stock option plan which was adopted.
President Frank LaGoe reported that
bank deposits increased $4,107,000 (9.91
percent) during 1975 and that capital
accounts increased $300,000 after dividends and taxes. Net income decreased
,23 per share (3.18 percent) attributable
to a decrease in loan volume and
increased costs involved in the expansion
and use of the banks enlarged main office
building. It was stated that 1975 was a
Very satisfactory year for the bank.
At the organizational meeting of the
directors following the shareholders
meeting, Wayne Tucker,, formerly Assistant Cashier was promoted to Assistant Vice President, Tucker is head of
the bank's installment loan department.
All other officers were re-elected to their
former posts.
LaGoe announced that the bank's fifth
banking office, located at 3245 North
Clare Avenue. Hayes Township. Harrison, would open for business on Monday.
March 1. The banking office will open in a
temporary structure at a site approximately *2 mile North of Harrison.
An opening ceremony is scheduled for
9:00 a.m., March 1. at which time bank
and community officials will preside and
th epublid is invited. Coffee and'rolls will
be offered to those in attendance.
Plans for a permanent structure to be
built on the site are being prepared by
Alden Dow Associates, Inc. of Midland,
with construction to commence approximately April 1, 1976, with occupancy in
the fall of 1976.
Douglas A. DeGrbtt, Assistant Vice
President, will be manager of the
Harrison Area office, LaGoe said.
DeGroot, formerly an officer of Citizens Commercial^ and Savings Bank,
Flint has moved to Harrison with his
wife, Mary Beth, and 2 children and
resides at 1580 County Farm Road.
AMBULANCE TALK - Bdb Briggs of the Clare County Ambulance Service addresses the Clare eight
grade health class whflfe his partner, Godfrey Langln, looks mi. Briggs and Langin told the approximate
crowd of 30 what the ambulance service does. (Photo by Bill Chadwick). ■
March 1
Tuesday, March 2at 7:30 p.m. Reed City
has a bye.
The winner of the Clare-Farwell game
will play Evart Wednesday, March 3 at
7:30 p.m.
• The winner of the Harrison-Pine River
game will play Reed City on Thursday,
March 4 at 7:30 p.m.
The winners will then play in the finals
on Saturday, March 6 at 7:30 p.m.
Student tickets are $1 if purchased at
Qare High School. Adults tickets are
$1.50 and available at the Clare School
Administration office on Wheaton St.
Tickets' are also available at the
Farwell school. All tickets at the door in
Harrison will be $1.50,
Fleisride
Deadline
Parents who wish to have their
children enrolled in this summer's
topical fluoride program have until
March 3rd to act. This program is
sponsored by the Clare PTA.
All three or four year old preschoolers,
second, fifth or eighth graders are
eligible for the program providing they
have been registered prior to the
deadline.
Parents who wish to enroll their
children but have not received the
registration cards may contact the
School Nurse at 386-9979. A fee of $4.00 to
cover costs of operating the clinic must
be submitted along with the registration
card.
See Farwell Fluroide story on page 6.
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