Residents in the village should expect exceptional service from Scott Baker, the new Lake Orion Department of Public Works superintendent.
He demands it of himself and he demands it of his employees. His motto while assistant director of municipal services for Plymouth was to provide answers, get things done..now, and follow up.
Baker’s brought that same philosophy to the village.
And after only four months on the job, he’s pretty impressed with the residents and the village staff.
‘The residents are great. No one’s become hotheaded if there was a problem. The staff works hard and gets the job done,? he said.
Baker’s first impression of the village is the infrastructure needs a lot of help. Old sewer and water lines have broken or are leaking. The storm water drains need work. Typical of many older communities, infrastructure problems tend to be out of sight, out of mind, Baker said.
The City of Plymouth, where Baker was the assistant director of municipal services, spent $1 to $6 million a year on infrastructure.
Baker desires a ‘shiny face? on the village. ‘It’s very important the parks are kept clean and nice. I’m a big promoter of parks.?
The fire hydrants should be shiny and red,? he said. ‘We’ll have to tackle ordinance stuff.?
‘I’m going to get rid of the old DPW image. You’ll see us more often.
‘I take pride in the way ‘my? city looks. The village is a very desirable community and the residents have high standards. They expect things to be done the right way, not half way and not the wrong way.
Baker started working in public works when he was 16 (part-time). Besides Plymouth, he worked for Canton Township.
Why did Baker leave Plymouth after having worked there for many years?
He described Plymouth as a fast growing community. Over the years, Baker hired people from other communities (which is typical of municipalities, he said).
After 10 to 12 years of growth, the city developed money problems and started laying people off. Baker chose to take a buy-out because he felt obligated to save the jobs of employees from other communities he had enticed to work for Plymouth.
And Baker admits he loves the new challenge. ‘I don’t like big community government. I love the work. I love being outside,? he said.
Baker said he’s never been a nine to five employee. ‘I’ve always worked more than 40 hours a week . I’ve been coming in here on a lot of my days off.?
Baker, his wife Cheryl and son Zachary, live in Dearborn Heights. According to Baker, they’re looking at property in the area and hope to build a new house.
Driving to Lake Orion every day hasn’t really been a problem for Baker. ‘It takes about 45 minutes. In my favor, I’m going against traffic. I get a chance to think about what needs to be done?
Another goal for Baker is to move Lake Orion into the 21st century as far as communication is concerned.
‘We need more communication with residents. We had incredible email in Plymouth. It’s a good feedback system. In this day and age you’ve got to be online.?
And what does Baker do in his spare time?
He and his son have fished on Lake Orion.
Baker admits Zachary caught more fish than he did.
Because Zachary plays football, Baker has become very involved in the sport. He’s been a coach for nine years and has been the president of the Downriver Football League.