You might call it a dream come true.
Oakland County Commissioner and Lake Orion resident Larry Obrecht recently announced he was resigning his position to become director of Oakland County Animal Control. Obrecht said running animal control is something he’s always wanted to do.
Obrecht turned in his resignation on Feb. 13, which will become officially effective on March 3.
“I was considering maybe running for another office,” Obrecht said, adding that many years ago he stated an interest in running animal control.
“I never expected to get the opportunity,” he said. “But Sandy Gay (former animal control director) retired.”
Obrecht said he immediately threw his “name in the hat.” “It’s something I’ve been interested in for a long time,” he said. “I used to breed Arabian horses, and I’ve always had dogs.”
Obrecht said in the last eight years or so, animal control has changed its focus.
“The focus now is finding good homes for good animals,” he said. “They’ve been very successful over there…(Gay) did a heck of a job.”
Obrecht said he will try to find some “new and innovative” ways to place dogs in homes.
“What Sandy did was educate people about neuturing their dogs…if we could get people to do that, there would be no need for animal control,” Obrecht said.
In order to replace Obrecht on the county commission, an election must be held. But, Obrecht said the commission can either allow people to run now or appoint someone for the interium to finish out his term.
“My recommendation is that they appoint,” he said, adding that Orion Township Trustee Eric Wilson is a possible front-runner for the job.
“The last time they had an election (in this situation), they missed 54 votes,” Obrecht said. “I don’t want to see that happen because we’re dealing with so many important issues over there now.”
Wilson said that the county commissioner position is something he’s been interested in for years. If he were appointed to the commission, he would have to resign as township trustee.
“I’d like an opportunity, based on my experience at the township, to continue the programs Larry started,” Wilson said. “I wish him well…I’d like an opportunity to fill his shoes.”
Obrecht said he doesn’t plan to leave his work at the county commission unfinished.
“I will continue with some projects…the completion of the Polly Ann Trail this summer, and the support of NOTA (the North Oakland Transportation Authority), the completion of Phase I of the Orion War Memorial. I’m also on the advisory committee for Clubhouse Inspiration.”
Obrecht said he has loved being a county commissioner, and particulary enjoyed getting people the help they needed.
“This is a tough decision for me,” he said. “I had lots of daily contact (as a commissioner) with people…People would call me. I enjoyed that. I enjoyed making the call to get them some assistance.
“I will also miss being at the county and taking part in the debates,” he said.
Asked what he’s most proud of in his career as county commissioner, Obrecht said the Polly Ann Trail and NOTA, among other projects, stand out in his mind.
“I’ve sat on the Veteran’s Memorial for seven years,” he said. “I’m proud that I was accessible to the people. People had my home phone number. I’ll truly miss that (contact).”
Obrecht is also proud of the annual Youth Assistance recognition dinner that he was able to convince Orion car dealers to help fund.
“I said ‘I’ll never ask for a campaign contribution if you donate to this program,’ he said. “They each give $250 for the Youth Assistance dinner. Those kind of things are what (being a county comissioner) is all about.”