Fuller has served Shelby well as highway superintendent
Editor:
To the Town of Shelby residents, you will be going to vote in the primaries on June 25 and one of the positions that you will be voting for is the Shelby Highway Superintendent. In what I feel was a shocking move, the Shelby Republican committee did not endorse the incumbent highway superintendent, Mike Fuller, who has served the residents of the Town of Shelby for over 40 years.
All of those years were in the highway department as a highway worker, then deputy superintendent, and currently as highway superintendent. In that time, Mike learned and accumulated the knowledge needed to deal with the workings of the Highway Department.
He can do the jobs required by the MEO (motor equipment operator), and as deputy superintendent under the expert guidance of the prior highway superintendent, Carl Caleb. Mike learned to help manage, not only the men working for the department, but also the specifics about the job and budget that are needed to make the right decisions for the workings of the office.
Not only does Mike know and understand the job, his personal character lends itself to working well with the residents of the Town of Shelby and with his men. He does his job with a firm but fair attitude. Having worked for many years in the town offices myself, I know that some residents are so upset that they come through the door in a less than polite manner and expect what is upsetting them to be taken care of immediately. In all the time that I have known Mike, he has always kept his calm demeanor and dealt with the irate citizen in a very polite and professional manner…and as soon as he can, he addresses that citizen’s concerns.
Having FOI’ed many records of the Town of Shelby, I could list several things that would be upsetting to town residents and which are directly attributed to steps to discourage and discredit your current highway superintendent. However, I am respecting Mike’s position that he wants to run a clean campaign to maintain his job.
I do feel, though, it is only fair to address the things said by Dale Root in his letter of May 9, 2019. The highway superintendent receives a salary for being highway superintendent and when said superintendent takes on the responsibility of the water superintendent, then he is compensated by a per unit fee to take on this responsibility. This has been the practice for all highway superintendents for years.
As for the GPS system which Dale Root mentioned not being used, it is not being ignored by your highway superintendent, Mike Fuller. Mike is working on putting it into service on his own instead of having the town spend money on an engineer to do it. He realizes it is a complicated job to accomplish but is working diligently on it. I just wanted to make sure you, as residents, were clear on those issues.
As for better relations with the board as mentioned by Dale Root, I, for one, would rather Mike Fuller did his job with the best interests of the residents of the Town of Shelby in mind than to be the “yes man” that the board wants him to be. In Mike Fuller’s mind, the residents are the ones he serves and needs to keep happy….you are his true boss and he will always put you first.
Under new state rules, there will be a primary election on June 25thof this year. Please exercise your right to vote.
Let Mike Fuller continue to serve with the same expertise and caring as he has done in the past 40 years. We don’t need change when the job is being done efficiently already.
Sincerely,
Gerry Zinkievich
Shelby
Former Shelby Town Clerk
