Road maintenance millage renewal resolution adopted by Chikaming Township Board

BY FRANCESCA SAGALA

Members of the Chikaming Township Board adopted a resolution for a road maintenance millage renewal proposal that will go on the May 2 election ballot at a special meeting Thursday, Feb. 2.

The special meeting needed to be held because the ballot language was due to the county Feb. 7, which was two days before the board’s monthly Feb. 9 meeting.

Per the resolution, the township is asking that the millage be renewed at up to 0.9785 mills ($0.9785 per $1,000 of taxable value) and levied for six years, “2023 through 2028 inclusive (and will appear on the December 2023 tax bill), for purposes of continuing to provide funds for the maintenance, upkeep and construction of roads within Chikaming Township.”

The millage is estimated to raise $699,381 in the first year it’s levied.

Chikaming Township Supervisor David Bunte said that the public has seen the results of the millage throughout its six years of existence.

“That’s why I think the public is fully aware the money has gone exactly where we said it was going to go – huge improvements in our roads,” he said, adding that he “wants to continue that.”

The millage was originally 1 mill but has been reduced due to Headlee Rollbacks.

Bunte said that the millage is still raising just under $700,000 and that the reason it’s increased is because the township’s valuation has gone up $715 million, adding that they won’t have the new valuation until after the Board of Review in March. Per the assessor, the anticipation is that “we will probably bump up a little bit more” because of the construction going on in the township.

“That, in addition to the Act 51 funds we get from the county, which average around $50,00, gives us an annual budget for that fund at about $750,000,” Bunte said.