Frank Walsh, longtime Meridian Township manager, will resign
MERIDIAN TWP. — Longtime Meridian Township Manager Frank Walsh is resigning.
Walsh, who's been the township manager for nearly 11 years, said the board approached him and asked him if he "wanted to stay on and work through some of the issues or retire, resign."
He declined to give specifics about the issues.
A message was left seeking comment from Patricia Herring Jackson, township supervisor.
Walsh, 59, told the State Journal his resignation will be effective on Monday morning, with the township board set to meet Sunday to discuss the specifics of an agreement for him to "manage a couple key projects going forward."
The township has not posted information for this Sunday's meeting on its online calendar or its page for meeting agendas.
In January, the State Journal submitted a public records request for financial records and documents regarding any investigations involving Walsh. The township declined to release them without a $2,700 payment.
Walsh led the township through some of its more significant challenges in recent years, including its role in the Larry Nassar scandal and the pandemic.
In 2018, Walsh apologized on behalf of the township after a woman came forward who made a complaint against Nassar in 2004 that township police chose not to forward to prosecutors.
The woman, 17 at the time, and her parents approached Meridian Township police with concerns about a recent appointment with Nassar in which he was accused of sexually assaulting her during an appointment for scoliosis. Police told her mother they wouldn’t forward the investigation to prosecutors because Nassar told them his technique was a legitimate medical procedure.
"On behalf of the community, our police department, to you, ... we failed you," Walsh said at the time. “We let you down."
The township made sweeping changes in how it handled sexual assault complaints.
Nearly a decade passed before Nassar was accused again by another woman, although MSU cleared him in that instance as well. He was finally charged in 2016 by the attorney general's office after Rachael Denhollander reported him to MSU police.
In March of 2022, Walsh and his wife wrote a $3,200 personal check to buy gas cards for all township employees.
They bought 160 Okemos Marathon gift cards to provide one $20 card to every township staff member, with Walsh saying he wanted to show appreciation to the staff, who were facing high grocery and gas costs during the pandemic.
Contact reporter Matt Mencarini at 517-377-1026 or mjmencarini@lsj.com.
This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Frank Walsh, longtime Meridian Township manager, will resign
