KALAMAZOO COUNTY, MI (WKZO AM/FM) – The Kalamazoo County Board of Commissioners has selected Monteze Morales to fill the vacant seat representing District 2.
The position was opened up following previous Commissioner Zac Bauer stepping down from his position earlier this month.
Morales had previously run for the seat in 2019 against Bauer.
Monteze Morales will represent District 2 of Kalamazoo County as of June 29, 2021. (Image via PMN Civic through Zoom meeting).
During a special virtual meeting Tuesday, Commissioners interviewed a total of three candidates.
County documents had previously stated that there would be five interviews, but two candidates had withdrawn their applications, leaving the decision between applicants Thom Miller, Monteze Morales and Tammy Taylor.
A candidate would need six votes to pass, and Morales made out with a total of seven after being nominated.
Morales, a Democrat, says she has been a resident of Kalamazoo County for almost 40 years. She currently works for Kalamazoo Valley Community College as a program manager for Kalamazoo Promise services.
She also works for the Public Housing Commission as Vice Chair. She cited her experience with this and other boards, such as OutFront Kalamazoo, as qualifiers for the position.
In speaking why she wants to serve for District 2, Morales said she is committed to the role.
“District 2, as you all know, has had some issues with keeping the position filled,” Morales said. “District 2 needs a person who is committed, they need someone who understands this community, and they need someone who is just not gonna listen to what they have to say, but to amplify their voices. I live in the Milwood district and I’m always in tune with what our constituents want.”
She also pointed to environmental issues such as flooding as points of focus.
“District 2 has been hit hard with flooding, just like other districts, we have some water issues going on,” Morales said. “I think that having someone who plans to be here, as someone who has built a sound relationship where I can go into the community and they know who I am, they can email me, they can call me, and even if it’s not the solution that they want, they’re going to get an answer and they know someone is fighting for them.”
She also said that as a Commissioner, the priorities for the position should be setting policy, having legislative oversight, and listening to constituents. As far as her own priorities, she said the budget would be the most critical to serving citizens.
“If you don’t have a balanced budget, you can’t do what you need to do, and that creates an issue,” Morales said. “County budgets are already limited, so I believe those resources need to go to the most critical areas.”
She also said housing would be at the forefront of her priorities.
“We know there is a housing crisis,” Morales said. “As the vice chair of the Public Housing Commission, and working with different entities, it’s hard to get the people we do have information for into affordable housing. So my hope is that with this [Homes for All millage], one of the things I propose is that if it’s really homes for all, we look at 30 to 40 percent of that budget going into home ownership to ensure people aren’t going in and out of programs and maxing out, and then in a year and a half, we’re back to square one with folks being homeless.”
She said education of home ownership would be critical to making sure that doesn’t happen.
She also pointed to diversity and inclusion as another area of focus.
Commissioners stated that all three candidates were highly qualified for the position, and all gave excellent interviews. Morales was nominated by Commissioner Michael Quinn and Vice Chair Tami Rey.
Commissioner Dale Shugars stated that since Zac Bauer was a Democrat, he felt it would be the appropriate choice to nominate a Democrat, though he felt all three would be good picks for the position.
“I think that to appoint somebody other than a Democrat would not be in the spirit of the people that elected in that district,” Shugars said.
After further statements by board members, Morales was selected for the position with seven “yes” votes. She will be sworn in at a later time, which will be coordinated by county staff.
Morales is expected to make her first appearance as a county commissioner at the next board meeting in July.
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