Troy Township, Millbury levies facing renewal votes
10/11/2006Wood County voters can expect to see three renewal levies on the Nov. 7 ballot - two from a township and one from a village.
Troy Township authorities are asking voters for a three-year, 1.8-mill levy for emergency medical services as well as a three-year, 1-mill levy for police protection.
In Millbury, officials have placed a five-year, 1-mill renewal levy on the ballot for current operating expenses.
The proceeds help pay for park operations, garbage collection, and police protection, among other expenses, Clerk-Treasurer Vicki Schwamberger said.
"It's just to keep the general fund money up to continue the fine services that the village of Millbury provides to its residents," Ms. Schwamberger said about the levy.
The levy, first passed in 1986 and renewed every five years since then, raises $11,319 annually for the village, authorities at the Wood County Auditor's Office said.
If renewed, the levy will continue to cost the owner of a $100,000 owner-occupied home just under $14 a year.
In Troy Township, residents will consider renewing a levy for extra police protection.
Only residents who are living in the township - not in the village of Luckey - will consider this measure.
Robert Emans, chairman of the Troy Township trustees, said the township contracts with the Wood County Sheriff's Department for extra police protection.
The levy guarantees that one police officer is assigned to patrol the township for 40 hours a week.
"This is for a little more safety in Troy Township and for traffic control," he said. "We're pretty strict on traffic control and speeding. We watch that pretty closely. It's just nice to have an extra officer on patrol."
The levy that brings in $62,113 annually will continue costing about $26 a year for the owner of a $100,000 home if passed in November.
And all voters living in Troy Township, including Luckey, will have the opportunity to consider the renewal levy for EMS. The levy generates $136,988 annually and was last replaced in 2003.
Mr. Emans said that levy pays for personnel and equipment related to the township's ambulance services.
"It's just for everyday maintenance, service, and personnel," he said.
If passed, it will cost the owner of a $100,000 home about $50 a year.
Mr. Emans, who has been a trustee for 16 years, said the township has had good luck with renewal levies in the past.
"I don't remember the last time that we've had a renewal turned down," Mr. Emans said. "The residents understand that we wouldn't be asking for it if we didn't think that it was necessary."