Ypsilanti Township officials make their case for police millage increase
Ypsilanti Township officials know their task won't be easy: Before this fall's election, they need to convince voters the millage just approved in May won’t be enough to maintain the same level of police protection for the next four years.
Their strategy is blunt. Without the influx of $3.2 million raised immediately by a proposed 2-mill increase, 10 of the current 38 deputy positions contracted through the Washtenaw County Sheriff’s Department will be eliminated, they say.
So until the Nov. 3 election, residents can expect community-wide newsletters and mailings, presentations at their local Neighborhood Watch meetings, and door-to-door visits from township officials or even off-duty deputies trying to convince them to support the tax hike, officials said.
If approved, the owner of a $200,000 home with a taxable value of $100,000 would pay $200 a year.
In May, about 70 percent of voters agreed to renew the current millage rate of 3.49, which maintained the township’s police budget at about $5.4 million.
A survey conducted since then preliminarily showed more than 58 percent of township voters would back the tax levy.
But Mike Radzik, the township’s director of police services, said he has no illusions of how difficult it will be to ask for an increase so soon.
“That election was a renewal of services they expect. This time we’re asking for an increase when everyone is hurting,” he said. "It was not a decision that was made lightly.”
Budget projections the Township Board of Trustees received in July told the story.
The taxable value of residential real estate fell for the second consecutive year in 2009 by 9 percent; it's projected to fall another 15 percent in 2010, township documents show. That number could get between 30 percent and 40 percent by 2013.
The closing of the GM Willow Run transmission plant alone could have a $215 million impact on tax valuations over the next two years.
In addition to decreased tax revenue, the township is getting less funding from the county for police services and less from the state through revenue sharing. On top of that, the cost per deputy will increase by 2 percent in 2010 and by 4 percent in 2011, Radzik said.
Still, the township contracts for the largest number of deputies, is densely populated and has some high-crime areas.
If passed, the increase would take effect in December and would generate roughly $3.2 million in the first year. It would expire in 2013.
Township Supervisor Brenda Stumbo said the ballot language is flexible, and it’s possible to not levy the full 2 mills if ongoing economic development projects build revenue.
“It’d be best to not levy it all,” she said. “The only purpose of this is to maintain the 38 deputies we have now, and our hope is to turn the local economy it around. You simply can’t cut your way out of this.”
The township has avoided layoffs but has kept 26 positions unfilled since 2007 to curb costs, Stumbo said.
Also on the ballot is a countywide enhancement millage proposal for the Washtenaw Intermediate School District and Van Buren school board positions.
Township Clerk Karen Roe estimated the election would likely cost the township at least $25,000.
Art Aisner is a freelance writer for AnnArbor.com. Reach our news desk at news@annarbor.com or 734-623-2530.
Comments
ybecuz
Mon, Sep 21, 2009 : 6:09 a.m.
heres the poop. the twp had 5 deputies in 1960's, population about 20,000.. fire dept had 36 firemen, 1980's population 35,000, police 20 people, fire 33 people, 1990's population 45,000, police 35 people, fire 33 people, 2004 population 55,000 police 47, fire 32...guess who's doing the job with less resources.
fed_up_with_twp_politics
Sat, Sep 19, 2009 : 1:38 p.m.
One word comes to mind with how the Board handles its business with its staff, "Bullying". I have never seen an elected body micro-manage nor "Bully" their own staff so much, No wonder nothing gets accomplished, or as much as should be accomplished. I'm still trying to figure out why the twp. felt it necessary to purchase a GPS tracting system for staff vehicles when they are so BROKE? If I'm broke, I do not buy luxurious items. I spend what I have to. Just another example of our leadership at work I guess? Of course, we did elect all of our beloved officials as well so who do we really have to blame?
dontcrydosomethingnow
Fri, Sep 18, 2009 : 8 p.m.
It has also been said that those same attorneys contribute to Ms. Stumbo's campaign, wouldnt that be unethical as they are hired by Ms. Stumbo. This fact is in the works to be proven and will be brought before a board meeting as soon as all information is gathered. It is also rumored that in the past an unprofessional relationship was taking place between Ms. Stumbo and Mr. Winters that begs to answer to the question why they are the only non-bidded professional service that the township has.
dontcrydosomethingnow
Fri, Sep 18, 2009 : 7:53 p.m.
Very good comments Ben, problem is that not enough of out township taxpayers pay attention to what the township officials are doing with the townships money. You are right in the attorney pay. Actually they have about 6 or 7 attorneys that they pay with McLain and Winters getting about 95% of the over 1,000,000 that is paid out in attorney fees. If you are paying their firm that much money you would think they would be able to handle all cases coming through the township. Without losing them. The only way to fix this township is to get rid of all the "good ole boys" and get people in that really care about the township and not padding their own pockets. RECALL YPSI TOWNSHIP website coming soon....All taxpayers MUST start paying attention before its too late.
BenWoodruff
Fri, Sep 18, 2009 : 11:54 a.m.
Madame Clerk, Cutting employee wages- $50,000 Buying Harris Road Property- $100,000 Having no bid professional contracts- Priceless! (Or at least $1,000,000 a year)
BenWoodruff
Wed, Sep 16, 2009 : 11:53 a.m.
Madame Clerk, I'm curious. How much did the failed lawsuit cost that was just denied by the Michigan Supreme Court? Where did that money come from? Will any of this millage be used to supplement that which was spent? Why are you asking for $360,000 per deputy, when the true cost is $180,000 per deputy? Where will the surplus go? Last night you voted to cut your ASFCME employees wages by 20% by reducing their work hours. Have you gotten a 20% reduction from Washtenaw County, or McLain and Winters? Why are you demanding reductions from your employees, while continuing no-bid contracts with your Attorney of record and other Professional Services? You say that your AFSCME took between 7-9% reductions in current contract. Now I guess that would be a 27-29% reduction?
dading dont delete me bro
Mon, Sep 14, 2009 : 8:56 a.m.
taxes are high enough already... "Still, the township contracts for the largest number of deputies, is densely populated and has some high-crime areas." so why is crime so high if we have the highest number of deputies? i just did my part at work taking 2 weeks off over the past 10 weeks. how about township officials do the same and do their part? i don't see how people can pay for increases when houses are being foreclosed on. if people can't pay their house payment, how are they going to do this? sure it's less than $20/month on a $200k house, but if it passes i guess i have no choice then
glimmertwin
Mon, Sep 14, 2009 : 7:21 a.m.
Sorry, I'm one of the 42% that says no way. Besides the park system, Ypsi township is way overpriced for what you get. I'd rather take $200 and put towards a firearm and training for my family to use it. Public safety is a joke. The township can't enforce laws on the books now with existing police levels. How are we suppose to think that paying more is going to do any better?
klovejoyroe-ytownclerk
Fri, Sep 11, 2009 : 8:23 p.m.
Over the past three years Ypsilanti Township has 21 positions that have not been filled when employees retired. Recently the board approved cuts amounting to about 19% for the elected board, and our Teamsters and AFSCME bargaining units along with our management employees have agreed to reductions between 7% and 9%. Some of these cuts have already taken place including a change in our health care plan and all will occur by January of 2010. We still have two other employee groups to work with that represent our Fire Department and Court employees. The township is contemplating going to a 32 hour workweek to save costs. The golf course employees volunteered to take substantial reductions in salary and are operating with less seasonal employees. We are looking at further cuts in all departments as we move forward. We are currently facing a 20% loss in revenue for 2010 and a projected loss of as much as 40% for 2011. Townships unlike most forms of government can only operate programs when the voters approve millages that allow dollars to be collected for specific uses. So we don't dangle or threaten to cut one service area over the other. We can't use the fire dollars for police, or the trash/recycling dollars for police. We can only use our millage for exactly what the ballot language states and only if voters say we can. A small part of our budget is supported by general fund dollars that are provided by the state and not voter approved. These state shared revenues are constantly being reduced with the most recent cut of almost $190,000 that we had to cut immediately from the 2009 budget. Washtenaw County negotiates with the county employees including our deputies and their union. The deputies are not highly paid when you consider the type of work they do. The increases in costs from the county for the township to contract with the deputies do not necessarily reflect an increase in the deputies wages. The deputies are assigned to districts in the township with all areas getting equal service. When extra patrols are needed in one area over another due to a specific need then deputies will be reassigned to meet the needs. On emergency calls deputies respond regardless of what district they are assigned to. We have cut many programs over the past year due to lack of funds. We are making long term structural changes in how we do business in the township. We have less revenue to operate on and a need to still provide services, work on economic development and keep our neighborhoods safe. We are also faced with a tremendous cost of removing homes that can no longer be occupied. We must continue this program to try and preserve our property values and keep our neighborhoods safe. We are receiving some federal dollars for this program, which will help. We will get through these tough times. Our employees are all working very hard and doing more, and they are doing their jobs for less but most importantly we are all working together to serve the community. As always the voters will determine if they want to continue to have 38 deputies servicing our community. The board knows that we will all have to sacrifice as residents to pay to keep our community safe. Every household and family will have to make their own decision regarding the police millage. These are the toughest times my generation has ever faced but just like our parents who faced much more difficult times we will get through this by pulling together, working hard and helping each other. If you need an Absentee Ballot remember to contact me at klovejoyroe@ytown.org and we will send you out an application. Have a great weekend! Karen Lovejoy Roe --Ypsilanti Township Clerk 734.484.4700
D
Fri, Sep 11, 2009 : 6:57 p.m.
My father works in the civic center and I an him were talking and he told me they fired his boss and were talking about him doing earlier retirement and then working 2 days a week at a reduced salary and the are also considering all employees be part time and only open three or four days a week, so do not go saying they are not trying ever thing to cut cost. Also I am willing to pay extra in taxes for more police special after this spring and summer in my neighborhood, and to amberkduncan it really takes 45-60 minutes? then you must live in the extremely busy area around campus I have had to call at all hours of the day and waited no longer than ten minutes but if we lose those extra ten officers then we are all going to be sitting and watching the crimes happen. Just my opinion I could be wrong
Top Cat
Fri, Sep 11, 2009 : 1:18 p.m.
And some wonder why we are experiencing a dramatic increase in the sale of firearms.
eyeonthenews
Fri, Sep 11, 2009 : 12:41 p.m.
In the past I supported the millage increases for public safety but feel we were misled in the previous millage that said we would have two additional deputies added to the Sheriff's dept. only to be told later by Jamnick... Sorry, but we used the money to give everyone in the dept. a pay raise. That was the last straw for me. We are taxed to death and the price of everything has gone up and still rising so I think it's time some of these people consider looking in to some pay cuts like a lot of others have had to do in order to keep their jobs.
hiphopopotamus
Fri, Sep 11, 2009 : 10:25 a.m.
Has Ypsilanti Twp cut their "Golf Pro and Assistant Golf Pro" positions? I'm not sure if they have, but if not they need to go; now. I know they gave them a pay cut that allotted $14,000 savings. However, this is a good example of programs that need to be cut before you ever consider laying off a Firefighter or Sheriff's Deputy. I'm also not positive, but I do recall seeing somewhere that Leon Jackson's (they Ypsi Twp golf pro) salary exceeds $100,000 a year. That is insane. I'll support the levy increase just to keep myself and my family safe. Ypsilanti Twp government needs to quit being part of the good 'ol boy network and stop handing out six figure "jobs" to friends and family. They're paying this clown $100,000 a year and they still don't have a fire chief? This shouldn't even be an issue.
Mick52
Fri, Sep 11, 2009 : 9:36 a.m.
Typically when local governments need to cut, they dangle police and fire because its easier to claim its essential. Two items in this story bug me. First, off duty deputies are going door to door urging passage of this tax. Second the 2 & 4% increases in the next two years. I hope those percentages are not raises. Those deps should be waiving pay increases due to the economic downturn. This is a time for everyone to say, "what can I do for my government, not what can govt do for me," as Pres Kennedy stated. Not many are asking what they can do. I fault the writer for not explaining the 2/4% increases and for not reporting what cuts county employees have made. The big problem right now is at the fed level. Excessive spending that will likely result in higher taxes make people vote down local and state tax increases. I would rather pay more to my state and local govt than the fed, because those are the services we rely on the most, and fed spending is often ludicrous. At the state and local level you have a stronger voice with your representatives.
brownfields
Fri, Sep 11, 2009 : 8:41 a.m.
Everyone should be concerned with this. Ever consider why it takes so long for police to respond? Try the fact that there fewer of them now than on 9/11. Yes, the ecomony takes a dive and crime goes up. Sure, lets not consider what will happen with even less police on the street.
Fred Posner
Fri, Sep 11, 2009 : 8:34 a.m.
When you're talking about a budget crisis, everything should be open to be cut. Fire, Police, and mandated services should be the last to go. If it's not mandated by law, it should be cut. Police and Fire must be ready to sacrifice if jobs are on the line. A small salary reduction across the board can save a few jobs. If that's not acceptable to the unions, then some people may have to be laid off... just like the community. Raising taxes will not work. One person may say "Ok, I'll pay 200.00 for more police." Great... and it's great you can afford it. In the meantime, 3 people that can't afford it move away... now, next year... you have to pay more (and so on and so on). There's an exodus out of Michigan to the likes that has never been seen before. This means fewer federal dollars will be coming in... things must change.
wacky_walrus
Fri, Sep 11, 2009 : 8:27 a.m.
I don't know about the rest of you, but I'd much rather pay an extra $200 a year to keep 10 extra police officers on the force. There has been A LOT of crime in my neighborhood this summer, and I'd hate to have fewer officers available to help battle this problem.
amberkduncan
Fri, Sep 11, 2009 : 8:15 a.m.
So what about the people who can't afford another tax increase? I never see the police in my neighborhood and when I call them they take 45-60 to show up, so at this point making the police cuts doesn't even hurt the some of us. It seems as though the Township only really cares about the higher income areas and forgets about the hard working people who can't afford the increase because they work for $10 an hour.
brownfields
Fri, Sep 11, 2009 : 7:02 a.m.
Fred, what do you propose the Township cut? The reductions in funding from the Feds, State and County are exactley what you describe, "tightening their belt". The question is what do we expect local units of government to provide us?
Fred Posner
Fri, Sep 11, 2009 : 6:46 a.m.
There's no reason for increased taxes - especially now. Quite simply, programs must be cut. Salaries can be reduced. And if people are unwilling to take a salary cut, then you cut the position. When you have an unemployment rate of 15%, an exodus from the state (one of the worse in the nation), then you must think different. Why would you raise taxes on the people who choose to stay? If you raise taxes on the small portion of employed persons still staying in the area, then you simply are out of touch with reality. In times of trouble, you cut, trim, and tighten the belt. Families all over the state are tightening their belts... only to be saddled with the government shaking them down for more money. It's not fun to lose programs. But you cut them. If you don't, then you will never win. More people will leave for areas that result in them keeping a higher percentage of their money.