By Jim Newell

Review Editor

Would Orion Township residents like to see an ice rink, splash park, soccer fields or tennis courts in the township’s future?

Which activities do people use the most: shopping, dining, entertainment, recreation, services?

Would resident’s support a millage for the fire department to provide EMS services? How about dedicated road millage? A parks millage?

These are just some of the questions in the 2017 Orion Township Community Survey, now available for residents to weigh in about the direction the township should take.

The survey link is on the township website, www.oriontownship.org, under the “Current Events” header.

“The community survey is back. The first survey was launched in 2015 and garnered nearly 1,600 responses and helped establish our priorities for the last two years. This year, in just one weekend we have nearly 1,000 responses,” said township Supervisor Chris Barnett.

Township officials hope more residents share their opinions before the survey closes.

The survey is anonymous, but residents can choose to enter their email addresses to get updates from the township.

And while the township will explore what is feasible in the foreseeable future for development, Barnett stresses the significance of residents’ input.

“The survey is important to us because it helps set our agenda and understand what our residents expect from us. It’s important to me, personally and as township supervisor, that our residents know that we listen to them,” Barnett said.

Other questions on the survey include asking why residents chose to live in Orion Township and what was the importance of the schools in their home-buying decision.

“The survey takes about 10 minutes to complete. I hope everyone spreads the word so that we get as much feedback from the community as possible,” Barnett said.

People also will get a chance to rate the township’s various departments and their performance; the amount of time they spend stuck in traffic each day; parks and recreation usage; and the types of crimes they feel are most prevalent in the community.

There is a comment section at the end of the survey for suggestions not listed in the survey: such as, Should residents encourage the township to bid out services to a single garbage hauler?, or other suggestions.