IRON MOUNTAIN — Dickinson County Board is taking Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to task for failing to include anyone from the Upper Peninsula in the first round of appointments to the Growing Michigan Together Council.

In a July 24 letter, the board claims the U.P. “has been an afterthought in the eyes of the leadership at the state level numerous times.” The region has 15 of the state’s 83 counties but only about 3% of Michigan’s population.

The council was appointed by Whitmer after a report from the nonpartisan Citizens Research Council of Michigan and nonprofit consulting organization Altarum warned the state has “fallen behind other states in population growth, jobs, earnings, health, educational achievement, and the quality of public services at the state and local levels.”

Unveiled by the Democratic governor on June 1, the council is led by Republican businessman John Rakolta and Democratic education leader Shirley Stancato. Its focus is on growing Michigan’s population and economy.

On July 13, after concerns about a lack of U.P. representation were voiced, Whitmer named Marty Fittante of Kingsford as co-chair of the council’s Jobs, Talent, People workgroup. Fittante is CEO of Invest UP, a private sector-led regional economic organization based in Marquette.

At a county board meeting Monday, Commissioner Joe Stevens acknowledged Fittante’s appointment as a non-voting member, speculating that protests from the region had some effect. Still, none of the council’s current 20 voting members are from the U.P.

Whitmer wants to add a Republican senator to the panel, but has yet to reach a consensus with the Senate Republican Caucus on that final appointee.

“We should always have someone (from the U.P.) on these committees,” Commissioner Ann Martin said.

The board’s letter, approved unanimously Monday, expresses “disdain” over the council appointments. “To not have a seat at the table to capture the whole picture of the State of Michigan is unacceptable and disheartening,” it states.

“The Upper Peninsula has always had to pull together to move forward,” it continues. “We have always collaborated and pooled our resources to obtain our goals out of necessity. It does not seem the lower peninsula values our needs nor our input,” it concludes.

In other action Monday, the county board:

— Authorized Dickinson Trail Network to build additional non-motorized trails on county property east of Pine Mountain Road and west of Kramer Drive and the ski jump.

≤ Approved $5,233 to the city of Kingsford for designing water and sewer pipes for an upcoming project on Carpenter Avenue. This represents the balance of a $100,000 commitment of federal American Rescue Plan funds redirected by the county to the city. The remainder was spent on Westwood Avenue paving.

≤ Transferred $235,000 from a fund for post-employment benefits to the public improvement fund for the purchase of 23 acres north of Ford Airport. The payment will be reimbursed by the Federal Aviation Administration and the money transferred back to the benefits fund, Controller Brian Bousley said. Even though the FAA process may take up to two years, it won’t affect county operations, he said. The county planned to close on the purchase Wednesday, acquiring 23 acres from the Basil J. Smeester Living Trust. The land along Wagner Drive and Riverhills Road adds to the runway protection zone and includes a garage and large storage building.