At the November 15, 2022 Oakland Township Board meeting, Supervisor Dominic Abbate announced that he had submitted his resignation letter with an effective date of November 30th. Dominic gave personal reasons for his decision to resign. The Board had to vote on a motion to accept his resignation. The Board reluctantly approved the motion to accept his resignation.
The Board is now responsible for selecting the Township Supervisor. The process they will use is that any existing Board member can submit their name for consideration. They also indicated that they would consider any resident who was interested, once they filled out an application form that is available on the Townships’s website. The Board will select the Supervisor at a future Board meeting.
Here is a link to the form for applying for the Township Supervisor position. It is the same for other positions in the Township
https://cms4files1.revize.com/oakland/community_info/docs/BOARDS_AND_COMMISSION_APPLICATION.pdf
WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT TO THE CITIZENS OF OAKLAND TOWNSHIP?
Dominic Abbate has been active in Oakland Township for almost 50 years. Dominic first got involved in the Township when Al Taylor was our Supervisor in the 70’s. Dominic has served as a Trustee, Planning Commission member, Board of Review member, and many other positions. He has played a major role in creating the wonderful Township called Oakland. His knowledge and thoughtful demeanor has made him a refreshing leader in our community. He has commanded the respect from all those who have worked with him. We are grateful for his dedicated service to our Township.
The Board now has the important task of selecting our Supervisor. He/she will hold that office until the election in November of 2024. As the Board considers the candidates, citizen input will be important in helping them make an informed decision that could have lasting impact on our Township.
Richard MIchalski
Oakland Township Watchers 
Adam & any other interested parties-
When the Historic District Commission need some new people, a township cattle call had several unqualified people responding to it, in an application, designed by a 6th grader. I was appalled by the unprofessionalism of it. Having some idea of proper HR practices, I came up with an application just for the HDC, that would much more clearly show their understanding of the job and assessing their qualifications and interests. Here we are now, with Mr. Abate leaving and I see the official cattle call has reared its ugly head again, with NO changes in it! One of the biggest problems is it is non-specific, offering to check off as many boards and commissions as you like, NO real credentials and beliefs acknowledged- vetting be damned.
There should be a professional, responsible person, with actual competent HR experience, doing these applications and more than a 2 sentence, description of responsibilities! This can be easily done, via private consultants at low cost, found through the Society for Human Resources Management (SHRM). These documents were all given to the BoT and twp. manager, to no avail. I have attached my original request, and my proposed HDC application, and the Township’s attempt.
If we had people actually following good HR practices, we would not likely needed to have unionized staffers, many people now leaving for better pay, all while the manager & BoT give themselves raises. We have a Preservation Planner at HDC, that is paid on par with the latest Township maintenance guy, while she has a BFA and a Masters in Preservation, wears about 10 job hats and literally runs the department single-handedly. This 13 years’ experience and skills should be worth more than 1 actual raise, in that time!
I would hope that the Oakland Township Sentinel, or someone else, would make the public aware of the incompetent HR practices by the BoT and township managers, and promote some change for the better. Better yet, the Trustees could do what is needed, now.
John Sanderson 248.252.8091
Oakland Township Historic District Commission (2013-2022 retired)
[ I cannot attach the 4 files I mentioned. Send me an email and I will return them]
Hi John,
First of all, Thank you for your service to Oakland Township with your years on the Historic District Commission, your longstanding interest in the issues facing Oakland Township, and your efforts to motivate the leadership of the Township to improve the processes they use in the administration of our Township. Regarding the HR processes, I should suggest that you make a public statement at one of the Board meetings sharing your past experience, and also your apparently ignored recommendation.
Regarding the current issue of replacing our Township Supervisor, the process the Board will use is unknown to the public, and probably the Board members themselves. What are the criteria they will use for selecting the replacement? What vetting process will be used? Will Resident input be considered? Will it only be based on the political ambitions of the members being considered?
This will be a significant decision this Board will make. It could affect the Township for more than the 2 year remaining term of office. We, as citizens, need to do everything we can to help them make the best informed decision.
Thanks Richard-
When Jamie had me thrown out a month early, via 2nd hand email, I went to the May meeting anyways, so we had 8 commissioners! I made it very clear that the Twp. managers screwed up my last meeting, which was May- NOT April. I also reiterated how the selection process for the HDC was so wrong. There were several applicants that checked of 3 to 5 boxes for jobs they wee applying for. All with no supporting skills. The best one said he was sober!
After THAT fiasco, I want nothing to do with the Twp. politics and back bencher people. I did and said all I care to at this point.
Best regards!