Savoie responds to public criticism at meetings

Supervisor Leo Savoie was met with applause after he finished his comments at the Monday, February 24, Bloomfield Township Board of Trustees meeting in response to public comments made at the last few meetings and in the community by an outspoken group in the township. "I want to speak tonight about the truth and I want to speak about integrity," he said. "I want to speak about the facts and how a small group of people in the township who are twisting reality to suit their own purposes." During his comments, Savoie discussed how the group has claimed the board is using scare tactics to promote the upcoming operating millage as well as multiple flyers with inaccurate information the group has made and disbursed. It was also brought up how the group has said the township hasn't made any cuts and have refused to acknowledge additional cuts that are coming. Savoie said personnel has been reduced by $2 million, there's been an insurance savings of $1.1 million, and road spending has been cut by $650,000 for the upcoming proposed budget. Savoie said, among other things, the group wants them to change their compensation for department heads, get rid of employees' four-day work week, and have printed what Savoie called “absolute lies” about the township's water lawsuit. Savoie addressed not only fabrications the group has made about the upcoming millage renewal on the March 10 ballot – which the group opposes – to budget cuts made by Bloomfield Township, but things they've said about Savoie himself. "This group stood at the podium a couple of weeks ago and said, 'Leo, don't make it personal.' I gotta be honest with you, I'm the only one that hasn't made it personal," said Savoie, who mentioned multiple members of the group, not by name, who have lost their homes to foreclosures, who have wage garnishments against them, and one individual in the group who has declared bankruptcy. "I've never mentioned a single name there and I have no intention of doing it but the attacks against me, the attacks against this board, they have no problem, as you heard tonight, making it personal," he said. The group has even gone so far as to threaten the supervisor by saying they have facts they'll reveal about him. The only names Savoie mentioned were former Bloomfield Township Treasurer Dan Devine and current trustee David Buckley, who Savoie said told him as soon as he was appointed supervisor in 2011, instead of Devine, they were going to destroy him. Between the two they have accused Savoie of taking bribes, illegal campaign activity and filed a police report accusing him of kidnapping the former treasurer's daughter, according to Savoie. "Their hatred for me rises above any affection they have for this community and they're willing to destroy our services and our quality of life with their lies," Savoie said. "Believe the (police and fire) chiefs, if this fails, the changes are going to be drastic...I'm begging this community to keep the politics out of it," he said. "We as a community have too much to lose by keeping the politics in it."