BAY MILLS - The Bay Mills Executive Council met on Monday, Feb. 13 for a regularly scheduled meeting. All board members were present.
Bay Mills Assistant Housing Authority Director and Credit Counselor Gail Glezen approached the council about the Community Development Financial Institution. Bay Mills, which recently received the $80,000 technical assistance grant, is looking to put an entity in place which could lend money to tribal members for small business start-up loans, home renovations, and possibly to those who are not eligible for conventional mortgages.
Glezen introduced the council to her brother-in-law, Kirk Glezen, a lawyer from the Detroit area, whom the council subsequently voted to oversee the development of the non-profit organization. Glezen said Bay Mills was one of two tribes to receive moneys for the CDFI, the other being the Little Traverse Band. Glezen added that he hopes to steer funds into home renovation projects and small business start-up funds, adding that they plan to use one of the vacant BMCC dorms as a base of operations.
In other business, Chairman Jeff Parker asked Secretary Richard LeBlanc how the Intermediate Review Board, which LeBlanc currently sits on, operates. LeBlanc said that the IRB was established to receive grievances from employees and then make a determination on whether those grievances were viable or not. If they are viable, those grievances are then submitted to the Grievance Board. By establishing the IRB, LeBlanc said the amount of trivial and frivolous grievances the Grievance Board receives is reduced drastically.
Parker asked LeBlanc if the IRB has run across any problems with due process. Parker said he has concerns about allowing management to explain to the IRB why certain decisions or actions were taken against an employee, but not allowing the employee to explain their side of the story. LeBlanc said he had not come across any problems with due process, adding that the IRB does not speak with the employee face-to-face, but receives a written statement from them, or speaks with their direct supervisor. After much discussion, the council approved the 14 names, submitted by the Human Resources Department, for approval to the Grievance Board and the IRB.
In other business, the Executive Council reaffirmed a phone vote taken earlier in the week, approving a promissory note for a tribal member for dental services, approving the Department of Recreation and Health Promotion Fitness Center policies, and approving the authorization to borrow funds to update the Micros Point of Sale system.
Discussion on the Rehmann Robson Contract with the Bay Mills Health Center, the Community Health Center staffing, and the Gaming Commission's budget were tabled until the next meeting. The next Executive Council meeting will be held on Monday, Feb. 27 in the tribal courtroom.
