Alpena Township to place fire millage on ballot again
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ALPENA -- A week after voters in Alpena Township rejected a property tax increase to help fund the Alpena Township Fire Department, the township Board of Trustees voted to put the proposal back on the ballot in November.
The vote was five to two, with Trustees Steve Lappan and Cash Kroll, Treasurer Laura Ellery-Somers, Clerk Michele Palevich, and Supervisor Nathan Skibbe voting to seek voter approval again, while Trustees Russ Rhynard and Norm Poli voted against the motion.
The township only had until Aug. 16 to file the ballot language with Alpena County to get it on the ballot in November.
The tax proposal will once again seek a 3-mill tax increase that would cost the owner of a $100,000 house about $150 a year and raise about $1.1 million a year to fund operations and equipment at the Alpena Township Fire Department. The township would levy the property tax for six years.
In last week's election, an identical proposal failed by a vote of 1,446 to 1,191, but some trustees believed the margin was narrow enough that it could pass the second time around.
Turnout is generally significantly higher in fall general elections than summer primaries.
The township says it needs the additional tax money to bolster staff, add equipment, and repair and maintain its two fire stations. The department has struggled to recruit firefighters and keep them on the payroll, as fire departments nationwide have struggled to do.
Lappan said he believes better educating the public about the proposal -- including how the money would be used and the consequences of the proposal failing -- would help improve the odds that more people support the tax hike.
"The vote was pretty close, and that tells me, with a little bit more marketing and a little bit more understanding, this could have passed," Lappan said. "I'm concerned that, if we just do nothing, the trickle effect would be catastrophic in the future."
Township property owners already pay 1.5 mills -- about $75 a year for the owner of a $100,000 house -- for firefighting operations and will pay that tax through 2027. Another 0.65-mill tax for firefighting equipment -- costing the owner of a $100,000 house about $32.50 per year -- will be charged for the last time this year.
Skibbe voted to place the proposal back on the ballot but did so while stressing the importance of formulating a plan for the department should the voters reject the tax proposal again. He said the full Board of Trustees needs to meet on the matter during workshops or special meetings to develop a Plan B.
"It would be irresponsible for us to put all of our eggs in one basket," Skibbe said.
Despite attempts to schedule a meeting to begin planning, no date was set and it could be weeks before one is held.
Palevich and Somers requested that meetings regarding the fire department begin after Labor Day, and Lappan said he would be out of town for the month of September but would be able to attend workshops via videoconferencing, depending on internet availability.
The township's budget runs through March 31, so the department is funded until at least then.
Last year, the township negotiated a contract with the Alpena Fire Department that would have had the city handling emergency response calls for the township. The contract, however, was defeated in a four-to-three vote.
The township would have paid the city $400,000 a year and, after three years, a 2% increase of that payment would have kicked in until it hit a $475,000 a year cap.
Rhynard, who supported the contract with the city, agreed with Skibbe that all options regarding the future of the fire department have to be considered, including working with other municipalities or exclusively using paid-on-call employees.
"We had an opportunity before to provide fire services to us for about one-third of the cost, have two people in each station instead of one, including one paramedic on duty," he said. "I don't know if we have that opportunity any more, but I would sure like to explore it again. I think sending this back to the ballot in November will just make people angry, and I think our results will be the same."
Voters last week also defeated a second township tax proposal that sought 2 mills (about $100 a year for the owner of a $100,000 house) for roads.
That proposal will not be placed on the ballot in November.