Issues 28 and 29: Two road levies on November ballot for Litchfield Township
From The Gazette:
LITCHFIELD TWP. — There will be a renewal levy and an additional levy for roads for Litchfield Township on the November ballot.
Issue 28 is a 1-mill renewal levy that would last for five years and raise $65,800. If the levy were to pass, it would continue to cost taxpayers $19.44 a year per $100,000 in home valuation.
The township maintains 19 miles of road and more than 38 miles of ditches, Trustee Mike Pope said. The funding would go toward anything related to roads such as paving, repairing, plowing and salt.
Litchfield has not asked for any additional funds since the late 1990s, and it has become more difficult to provide services for roads on that amount of funding, he said.
“We’ve been working real hard, doing our due diligence with our residents’ tax dollars, using them as wisely as we can, getting every nickel out of our dollar, but prices and wages just continue to rise,” he said. “I think we’ve been doing a great job with what we’ve had for so long, and we’re not keeping up now. We’re falling behind.”
Prices for projects and materials have risen significantly just over the past few years, Pope said. The township has applied for grant funding in the past, but it can be difficult to come by.
“In 2018, we could chip seal one mile of road for a little over $19,000,” he said. “Now it’s over $40,000 for that same mile.”
If the renewal does not pass, the township would have to cut back on services for the roads, he said.
“In order to keep the roads salted and plowed, I mean we might have to go down to just plowing the road and salting the intersections,” Pope said. “Hopefully it’ll pass, and we’ll be able to continue to provide good service.”
Issue 29 is a 2-mill additional levy. It would also last for five years and raise $203,200. A homeowner of a $100,000 house will pay $70 a year if the levy passes.
The additional levy is intended to support the renewal and will also go toward the same types of services for the roads. Pope said cutbacks would have to still be done if the additional levy fails.
“Like I said, it’s like trying to go to the grocery store with $10 in your pocket, and you have to feed a family of eight,” he said. “What do you do? You don’t eat, or you try to get more money.”
Contact reporter Madisyn Woodring at (330) 721-4049 or mwoodring@medina-gazette.com.
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