By By EMILY DREITZLER / Niles Daily Star
NILES - The focus on Monday night's Niles Township meeting was on the mileage that will be put to vote on Aug. 2 concerning the continuation of the Niles Township Police Department and the increase of the annual assessment for Southwestern Michigan Community Ambulance Service.
First, F/Lt. Lieutenant Mike Brown, with the Michigan State Police Dept, advocated passing the mileage by urging individuals to realize the many benefits that the Niles Township Police Department offers, such as extra protection for the local citizens in the community and the ability to make it easier for police officials to reach an emergency call as quickly as possible.
Brown also added that the Michigan State Police, as well as all local police departments, are working together to provide 24 hour coverage in the greater Niles community and have even added a number of personnel shifts to cover the past gaps the midnight shift used to pose.
In other business, the board voted to raise the tax received by SMCAS from $10 to $13 for two consecutive years.
A representative from SMCAS presented a variety of facts and figures in favor of raising the $10 SMCAS tax to $13 for the next two consecutive years.
The SMCAS representative stated that the extra money was needed for hardware and software that would be placed in each ambulance to help make it easier to provide additional information that the state now requires SMCAS to make available.
The money would also go to purchase an additional ambulance to replace an existing malfunctioning one and toward purchasing supplies that the hospital no longer provides to SMCAS.
SMCAS loses a significant amount of money each year through unpaid services by patients and an increased slashing of funds from Medicaid and Medicare.
The Board of Trustees considered the request by SMCAS and unanimously approved the $3 raise.
The Board of Trustees also reviewed and approved a number of items including; the promotion of Tracy Vines to Full Time Zoning Administrator for Niles Township; the fireworks request from Orchard Hills Country Club; the application of the Berrien County Hazard Mitigation plan to help prepare our community in the event of a disastrous situation; the authorization of the Clerk to purchase several optical scan voting systems, and the approval for the Niles Township Fire Department to obtain money for capital improvement on the subject of command and accountability material.