Goodrich – Villages are responsible for people, and people are responsible for their village, summarized Michael J. Thorp as Tuesday’s forum ended.
Thorp, known locally as an ABC-12 news anchor and president of the Goodrich Board of Education, agreed to moderate The Citizen’s village dissolution forum Tuesday, where more than 60 local residents heard panelists address questions about what happens if the village dissolves.
Professor Joseph Ohren is an expert on political science. As director of Eastern Michigan University’s Master of Public Administration program, he frequently serves as a resource specialist to the Michigan Municipal League. Ohren has worked with and studied cities, villages, townships, and counties all over the state. Recently he visited Genesee County as a panelist for a Grand Blanc forum.
Residents should consider why villages exist before deciding on village dissolution, said the professor in an opening statement at the forum.
While township boundary lines were set by the state in the 1800s, ‘villages emerged for very different reasons.? Created to deal with residents living in close proximity, village areas wouldn’t necessarily be better managed by townships.
Recalling the village council could delay the process of legally dissolving village government, said Ohren.
‘If you recall the local government body, you have to replace the government body before any actions can be taken by the village.?
In response to articles in The Citizen, readers sent questions regarding after-effects of village dissolution, researched in advance by the evening’s panelists. Questions centered on roads, sewers, drains, services, and taxes.
The issue of clearing away snow was directed to panelist John Daly, manager-director of the Genesee County Road Commission, the agency that would take over village roads, streets, associated streetlights, sidewalks, water areas, and certain drains within the county right-of-way area after dissolution.
Even with a special blizzard plan in place, it’s difficult to project how long it could take to clear side roads of snow accumulations, said Daly, emphasizing main-artery roads in Genesee County’s 1,653 miles of roads must be cleared first in a ‘top-down? process.
‘If you get 10-and-a-half inches of snow and it just stops??
‘And no more is coming down, and given that it’s powder,? said Daly, squinting in concentration, prompting a laugh from the audience, ‘you’re probably into day two before getting everything.?
Although the county is able to borrow funds and purchase items like road salt in bulk for a better price, paying for services through the county instead of the village also has drawbacks, says Daly.
If the county road commission saves dollars in a low-maintenance year, they can’t be saved to use the next year. County dollars can’t be shifted into other funds like village dollars can, and projects have to compete with other county projects for funding, Daly said.
Although the GCRC would control speed limits, they likely wouldn’t change, said Daly.
Road maintenance projects could require a 50 percent-match from the township, possibly by setting up a special assessment district. Street lights could be paid for through the township general fund or a special assessment district as well, Daly said.
Parking lot maintenance likely wouldn’t see many changes, although some village street designs may need to be evaluated to use county equipment.
The current village sewer contract could legally transfer to Atlas Township, said John O’Brien, director of Genesee County Drain Commission Division of Water & Waste Services.
Would the village or township better manage the sewers?
‘That’s a loaded question,? said O’Brien, although Atlas Township is at ‘zero capacity? for sewers and the Village of Goodrich still has ‘significant capacity? in its sanitary sewer system.
It’s not clear whether the township can take over the sewer system contract before the $300,000 still owed by the village is paid off, said O’Brien, who says village residents would get no reimbursement for the $3 million they’ve already paid for the system.
Current village residents still owing tap-in fees would be required to pay in full if the contract transfers to the township.
Transferring the contract wouldn’t affect whether mobile home parks can locate in the area, as developers can bypass the township or village to get a permit from the state.
All of Atlas Township could potentially be serviced by the village sewer system, but it could cost the township in employee compensation. Currently village residents pay $1,000 per tap-in fee; Atlas Township tap-in fees are $6,000 each. If the village is dissolved, the Atlas Township fee would apply until the township could analyze and determine whether to change fees, O’Brien said.
‘If you eliminate the village, services will no longer be provided unless the township decides they want to,? said Ohren, who stressed authority over services and how they’re paid would be vested in the Atlas Township Board, although issues related to assets and liabilities complicate the equation.
If the village dissolves, a petitioning process could establish a special assessment district to pay for drains, said O’Brien.
‘If village residents pay for services through special assessments, how will it affect their income taxes?? was one question asked in the forum.
‘My understanding is if there’s a special assessment, you do not have the benefit of writing it off,? said panelist Adam Kline, village president pro tem.
‘Because a special assessment is designed to enhance the value of your property,? said Ohren, adding uniform taxation would be a problem.
‘It was to my understanding if the village was dissolved, we as a township would have to vote on any tax hikes because the township can’t raise taxes without residents voting on it’is this true?? was a question submitted by one resident.
‘It depends on where you are in terms of tax limits,? said Ohren, who stressed townships can raise taxes as long as they don’t exceed their cap.
Police and fire millages would not change, said panelist Jakki Sidge, village administrator, although it’s unclear how the library would be maintained, since representatives from Atlas Township declined participating in the forum.
Garbage collection is currently paid for in the village by a special assessment; Kline theorized it would be handled ‘like they do in the township.?
Ohren and Kline agreed a moratorium on building might be established in the township until its master plan is updated, due to zoning differences in the village and township.
The name ‘Goodrich? would remain as a postal region; area businesses and schools likely would retain the name, but legally the area would become like the unincorporated village of Atlas, located near Gale and Perry roads.
Dissolving the village as a legal entity doesn’t relieve village residents of village debt, said Ohren. If the boundary disappears, residents still have to assume its responsibilites.
Before any assets are transferred to Atlas Township, they must be used to pay off debt, Daly said, and liquidated if necessary.
Public-sector budgets require a completely different mindset, Daly said. Public sector officials first determine which services are necessary, then tailor budgets to match.
‘Don’t think dollars, think services,? says Daly. ‘What would be unreasonable is to expect the same level of service and see a significant decrease in costs.?
‘There’s no free lunch,? Ohren said. ‘Paying taxes to pay for a village level of services is why villages were created in the first place.?