Alleged Towing Contract Violations to be Discussed at Tonight's Board Meeting

Alleged contract violations by the township's towing company will be on the agenda at Tuesday’s Shelby Township Board of Trustees meeting.

Supervisor Rick Stathakis hand-delivered a letter on Dec. 9 to 's owners John and Nick Nightingale detailing the four allegations of contractual inadequacies.

“We plan to have some discussion,” Stathakis said of Tuesday's meeting. “I’m sure board members will have some opinions and questions that need to be answered.”

The allegations in Stathakis' letter include:

• Failure to complete site improvements as described during the bid process before the Township Contract was awarded.

• Failure to prominently display a list of towing charges; a list of storage charges and hours of operation.

• Failure to appropriately charge for services pursuant to the terms of the Township Contract.

• Failure to adequately screen all employees so as to minimize risk to the public receiving services.

Nightingale Service and Towing handles all of the township’s towing. The three-year contract is set to expire in July 2013.

Township Attorney Rob Huth said if the township has issues with a contractor and notifies the company, the company has seven days to respond.

On Friday, Shelby Township-based Attorney Paul S. Kowal, who is outgoing Clerk Terri Kowal’s husband, filed a response on behalf of the Nightingales. The letter, obtained by Patch, states the allegations of inadequate performance were vague and says the Township failed to provide specifics on how the towing company could comply with the requirements.

“I don’t understand what the four things are,” Nick Nigtingale told Patch. "The letter is very vague and does not provide concrete examples.”

The towing company's response also stated that adding the Nightingale Towing contract issue to Tuesday’s Board meeting was premature.

Stathakis disagreed. “I think anytime we have alleged violations they need to be answered, which they were. … It’s up to the board to determine next steps,” said Stathakis.

Supervisor Hires Consultant to Further Investigate Towing Company

Stathakis said a suggested that the township revise the way it auctioned off abandoned vehicles, so he hired a towing policy and procedure consultant to further investigate.

According to township invoices, Russell A Wiepert was paid $2,000 from the police fund to delve deeper into the Nightingale Services and Towing contract.

Stathakis refrained from any further comment, saying Nightingale’s response to alleged contract violations will be further discussed at Tuesday’s meeting.

For more than 50 years, Nightingale Services and Towing has in some capacity handled Shelby Township's towing. In 2009, Shelby Township agreed to hire Utica Van Dyke Services of Sterling Heights, but rescinded its decision before the contract went into effect because it was discovered that the company did not meet the proper requirements requested in the bid proposal.

The towing contract flap created tensions between Nick and John Nightingale and members of the board. Nick Nightingale said that his company is being unfairly targeted.

“What about the other township contracts? … Cleaning and engineering to name a few. How many studies has he (Stathakis) done, or is the towing contract being singled out?” he said.