“CORN IS AS HIGH AS AN ELEPHANT’S EYE” – These lyrics from the hit song “Oh, what a beautiful morning,” perfectly describe the farm landscape of Allegan County this July. No matter where you look across our county, this year’s corn crop is, as one farmer said, bounteous.

Allegan County Storey

July 14, 2024 - Volume 4 Number 28

OnPoint growth mirrors county

Allegan County’s community mental health agency, doing business as OnPoint, has experienced client growth that mirrors the county’s overall surge. Mark Witte, the OnPoint executive director, presented the agency’s annual report to the Board of Commissioners last Thursday. Among the highlights are the growth in the number of clients served by the agency, from 2,319 two years ago to 3,079 last year. The largest age groups served were below the age of 18 and those between 22 and 65 years of age. Partially fueling the growth, reflected as well in budgetary expansion, is OnPoint’s acceptance as a Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic (CCBHC). The CCBHC allowed OnPoint to provide services to those who are not necessarily receiving Medicaid and may have commercial health insurance. These include veterans and others. The top three areas of service were depression, post traumatic stress disorder and schizophrenia. Witte also reported on the successful merger of the agency’s two building sites on the county’s Dumont Lake Campus to a single location on M-40 south near Allegan Borgess Hospital. Overall, the agency recorded 83,550 service units last year

compared with 79,865 the prior year. One of the handiest and reasonably cost-priced services the agency provides is myStregth, an on-line resource for any Allegan County resident wanting attention to instant stress, challenges, and other mental health or substance issues. The link for enrollment is: https://onpointallegan.org/adult-services/

Game area-DNR director meeting postponed

A much anticipated meeting with the director of the Department of Natural Resources (DNR), scheduled for 3:30pm last Thursday, was postponed that morning without explanation. Eight of the nine legislators who share in representing the county in the Michigan Legislature had penned a letter requesting the meeting to discuss opening the 50,000-acre Allegan state game area to more diverse uses such as bicycle trails. The Board of Commissioners, spurred by biking enthusiasts, requested the legislators’ assistance after three years of back-and-forth communications with local DNR staff failed to produce progress towards authorizing the establishment of bicycle trails within the massive game area expanse. Currently, the game area is largely restricted to use only by hunters and fishing enthusiasts. The county sees the game area as an underutilized resource for the outdoor-oriented visitors to the county that would attract visitors from nearby, out-of-state urban areas. As the week ended, discussions were underway for rescheduling the meeting important to the county’s continued economic progress.

Equalization moves into new quarters

Customer service lobby for drain commissioner, register of deeds, clerk and treasurer still under construction at the county services building. View is from one service window towards entrance adjacent to parking lot.

The county’s equalization department relocated into newly fashioned quarters in the county services building (CSB) this past week, representing the first county service unit to occupy space vacated by OnPoint. The space vacated by the equalization department will now be transformed into new digs for the drain commissioner’s staff. Both actions are part of the rehabilitation of the courthouse to accommodate a new, third circuit court judge and ensuring the courthouse footage is largely reserved for the courts and court-related activities. The remaining departments to be relocated into the customer friendly space are the register of deeds, treasurer and some services of the clerk. The new locations will help residents not participating in court functions easily access services, enabling them to one-stop shop a few steps from the parking CSB parking lot.

Peace and Unity

As this is written, it’s less than 48 hours since the unsuccessful Saturday shooting attack on the life of former President Donald Trump, and the collateral death of a husband, father and community firefighter. Two other innocent attendees were injured by the gunfire. As I listened to the Sunday homily of my pastor, an immigrant and naturalized citizen, I prayed this gives us all a wake-up call for how we participate in elections, especially those who seek power by any means necessary. His message was an urgent prayer plea for peace and unity in our country, in our families, and in our world. Preserving our republic is worth paying attention to how we speak in the public square as no life lost is worth demonizing those with whom one disagrees.

Allegan County Commissioner Jim Storey allegancountystorey@gmail.com 616-848-9767