McRoberts

ALPENA –Alpena County’s District 1 will have a new commissioner after Jan.1, as Brad McRoberts has decided not to seek another term.

McRoberts cited health issues and a desire to spend more time with family and enjoying activities he loves as the primary reasons he chose to walk away from local government after working for the county for 42 years.

McRoberts said he worked for the Sheriff’s Office for 23 years, then an additional decade as the information technology director. He worked for five years as a part-time technician for the county before retiring and running for commissioner in 2016.

He said bowing out now is the responsible thing to do, because it is likely his illness will continue to worsen and, at some point, he will become unable to meet the demands of being a commissioner and won’t be able to do the job the way people in the county deserve.

“At this point in my life, I have to start thinking more about Brad and his family,” McRoberts said, referring to himself. “I have a hereditary kidney disease that I have known about for a long time, and, once I’m connected to a dialysis machine, it will restrict what I will be able to do. This is not just in my best interest, but also my constituents’, because I don’t want it to get to the point where I can’t come to meetings or do the type of job they deserve. It’s time. It’s just time.”

McRoberts said the county has seen several major accomplishments during his nearly four years on the county board. The new terminal opening Tuesday at the Alpena County Regional Airport and the new county jail under construction now are huge, he said, because they were both badly needed.

McRoberts said he is going to finish out his term, which ends Dec. 31. When it is over, he will miss it, as well as all the people he has met and worked with.

“The hard part is I’m going to miss the people, many of which I have worked with a for a very long time,” he said. “Of course, I will still see them from time to time, but it will be different. I must say the county has some great people working for it and it is very lucky.”

Residents of District 1, which covers the southeast portion of the city, have until 4 p.m. April 21 to file to compete in the August primary for McRoberts’ seat. Voters will choose his successor on Nov. 3.

Steve Schulwitz can be reached at 989-358-5689 at sschulwitz@thealpenanews.com. Follow him on Twitter @ss_alpenanews.com.