By Staff
To the editor:
As Supervisor for Niles Charter Township I have had the great opportunity to serve our residents for the past 10 years. During that time I have learned a great deal from our residents and a great deal about how township government works in Michigan. Today, townships are the areas that are experiencing the greatest amount of growth both in commercial and residential development.
I have learned how very important it is for townships to remain autonomous in the services that they provide for their residents. Niles Charter Township is considered a full service township providing fire, police, assessing, building, water and sewer along with other services that are provided and expected of full service townships. This is not to say that we shouldn't work with all of our neighbors that surround us as we do in many ways providing mutual aid that make sense for all, however, we must be vigilant to make sure that we remain autonomous as a township.
We have one candidate running for the office of supervisor that works for the City of Niles along with his daughter running for treasurer and others that are running for trustee positions that have openly and aggressively campaigned to have the Niles City Police patrol our Niles Township.
In my opinion, once the City takes over providing this service, the next logical step would be for the City to consider annexation of the Township that would only lead to a tax rate that would look more like the 14.6334 mills that Niles City has instead of our current 4.3732 mills now enjoyed by our property owners. For a person with a home that is worth $150,000.00 it would mean an additional $769.51 in property taxes.
I for one don't want to see this happen, nor could I afford this and I hope that all of our voters consider this carefully when they vote for the next supervisor, treasurer and trustees of Niles Charter Township. As you are aware the township is seeking to pass a proposal of 1.5 mills for police protection. The same candidate for supervisor mentioned above claims this millage is not needed. It is my opinion that if this candidate was aware of the financial needs of Niles Charter Township, that he would agree that a millage is indeed needed. If this proposal is voted favorably, a home worth $150,000.00 the additional annual tax would be $112.50. This is a small price to pay for police protection.
As my tenure as supervisor comes to an end, I want to thank all of you for providing me this great opportunity to serve you. I have learned a lot from you and I appreciate the friendships gained. I also want to thank the current board for all their hard work and true dedication in making our Township a great place to live and work. Thank you all.
Niles Charter Township Supervisor