Turf Battles
West Bloomfield positions attract several candidates.
BILL CARROLL
Special to the Jewish News
T
wo West Bloomfield retirees want to go back
to work full time in a new job: supervisor of
the 31-square-mile, 20,000-acre Oakland
County township with a population of 65,000.
Allen Adelberg, who is Jewish and currently a West
Bloomfield trustee, retired two years ago as a financial
analyst for Ford Motor Company, after 35 years with
the firm. Michael Madigan retired last year after 34
years with the West Bloomfield Police Department.
They're battling it out on the Republican ticket of
the Aug. 3 primary for the right to oppose Jewish
incumbent Democrat Supervisor David Flaisher in the
Nov. 2 general election. Flaisher, completing his first
four-year term, is unopposed in the primary. The job's
salary is $96,000 a year.
Six candidates — four of them Jewish — are run-
ning for four nominations in the Democrat race for
the board of trustees. They are incumbent Smart
Brickner, and Gerald Chudler, Larry Horn and Robert
Spector. The other two are Heddie O'Connor and
Catherine Shaughnessy. Four Republican trustee candi-
dates are assured of spots on the November ballot
because they have no opposition in the primary. They
are incumbent Debbie Macon, plus Roberta Boyle,
Todd Kokko and Diane Reis-Harnisch.
A total of four from the two parties will be elected in
November for four-year terms. There will be at least
two new faces on the board because Adelberg and
Steven Kaplan, who also is Jewish, are not seeking re-
election. The latter is running for Oakland County's
48th district judge post. Trustee compensation is $100
per meeting.
Incumbent Denise Hammond (Republican) and
Sandra Shipper (Democrat), who is Jewish, are unop-
posed in the treasurer's contest, which has a $93,000 a
year salary. Maxine Brickner, who is Jewish, the wife of
Smart Brickner, and a member of the Library Board, is
unopposed in the Democrat race for township clerk.
But a battle is shaping up on the Republican side
between incumbent Clerk Sharon Law and challenger
Nancy Reed. The job also pays 593,000 a year.
He also favors making it easier and less costly for res-
idents to obtain permits for home improvements. He
wants to create a better business climate and maintain
property values — while strictly enforcing environ-
mental laws.
Adelberg Profile
Adelberg, 61, has lived in West
Bloomfield for 30 years, and is
completing his second term as a
trustee, having been appointed to
the board in 1998. He and his wife,
Penny, have two children and two
grandchildren. Adelberg is a gradu-
ate of Detroit's Mumford High
Adelberg
School (1961) and Wayne State
University. He holds a BA degree in
accounting and an MBA in finance. He's vice president
of the West Bloomfield Optimist Club and co-chair-
man of the Gus Macker 3-on-3 basketball tournament,
which has brought $70,000 to local charities in the
past four years. He's not affiliated with any synagogue.
Michael Madigan, Republican
Making his first bid for public office, Madigan
retired from the West Bloomfield Police Department
with the rank of detective lieutenant, supervising 17
people and handling budgets. He feels there's poor
morale among township employees, mainly because of
lack of communication, "and it's affecting service to
the public."
He says public safety is his strong suit, and traffic
congestion is the township's main problem. "We must
go forward as soon as possible with the east-west road
widenings, intersection roundabouts and improved
traffic light timing on all thoroughfares, especially
northbound Orchard Lake Road," he asserted. "There
should be more officers in the police traffic bureau."
Madigan also wants to make sure wetlands are main-
tained, preserving wildlife and trees. " But we have to
keep the aura of a suburban bedroom community"
For West Bloomfield Supervisor
Allen Adelberg, Republican
Adelberg says his main goal in the supervisor's race is
to "get David Flaisher out of office," and points to his
trustee position background and experience in "com-
munity leadership and budget and business matters" as
the best way to do it. "According to the residents I talk
to, the biggest issue in West Bloomfield involves roads
and traffic congestion," he said. "We've had the longest
pending improvements in our roads in state history. It's
about time the improvements were made, such as the
widening of Orchard Lake and Maple roads. We need
to be proactive, not reactive."
7/30
2004
14
Madigan
Madigan Profile
Madigan, 58, and his wife, Sally,
have five children and five grand-
children, and have lived in West
Bloomfield for 30 years. He attend-
ed high school in Dearborn, then
Northwestern (Mich.) College and
Oakland Community College. He
was vice president of the Fraternal
Order of Police #128, and the fam-
ily belongs to Our Lady of Refuge
Catholic Church.
David Flaisher, incumbent Democrat
As his role in the most significant accomplishments
in the past four years, Flaisher points to voter approval
of a public safety millage increase (in 1992), building a
police station addition and hiring four more officers; a
new $3.5 million fire station on Maple Road, with 10
more firefighters; re-instating Saturday hazardous waste
collections at West Bloomfield High School, and
progress on the township's master plan to help ease
traffic congestion.
Answering his critics on delays in implementing
road improvements, he stressed that traffic round-
abouts are planned for Maple and Drake roads (2005),
then Maple and Farmington roads (2006), widening of
Orchard Lake Road to six lanes, 14-Mile to three
lanes, and eventually Maple to four lanes.
"But one of our biggest problems continues to be
lack of cooperation, along political lines, from the clerk
and treasurer (both Republicans) who are exceeding
their authority on every issue," asserted Flaisher. 'Also,
the day I was sworn in, I was faced with an insolvent
water and sewer department. Rates had been frozen for
five years, so we had to raise rates by 25 percent. The
department is on a sound basis now, and I voted
against another rate increase recently (a 9 percent hike
passed, 5-2)."
The biggest issue ahead for the township, according
to Flaisher, is the rise in health care costs for employees
and retirees. "I proposed $2 to $3 million in budget
cuts — mainly for employees to pay more for health
care — but the rest of the board opposed this," he
said.
Flaisher Profile
Flaisher, 52, has lived in West
Bloomfield for 16 years. He gradu-
ated from Detroit's Cass Tech High
School and Wayne State University
with a business degree. He former-
ly was a CPA for 18 years. He and
his wife, Enid, have a daughter and
they belong to Adat Shalom
Flaisher
Synagogue. He always brings the
halavah to the Orchard Lake
Middle School PTO ethnic meals. Flaisher is vice pres-
ident of the Michigan Townships Association, Oakland
County chapter, and treasurer of the county's
Association of Township Supervisors.
For Township Trustee
Stuart Brickner, incumbent Democrat
Brickner, running for a third term, is deeply involved
in the township's infrastructure, serving as chairman of
the Water and Sewer Committee and Transportation
and Roads Committee, as a Planning Commission
member and past chairman of the Lakes Area Advisory
Council.
"I want to continue working to relieve road conges-
tion, drainage problems and lake pollution, keep
builders from damaging wetlands, prevent basement
flooding and improve water quality," he said.