The City of Hillsdale will hold a meeting on April 26 at — Davis Middle School to discuss funding mechanisms for street improvements in the city. Anyone who lives in Hillsdale or works within the city is welcome to come to the 6:30 p.m. meeting.
Last year the city council commissioned Municipal Analytics, an Ann Arbor based financial management firm, to conduct an income feasibility tax study to determine whether an income tax could create a revenue stream large enough to fund Hillsdale road repair.
Hillsdale currently has no way of paying for local street improvements besides drawing from the city’s general fund. Local streets are not eligible for grants unlike major roads, including State Street and Hillsdale Street.
Municipal Analytics looked into several different funding operations for road improvement, including the establishment of an income tax, a millage, a special assessment, and a continuation of current road-funding practices.
The city council, after they determine city residents have been properly informed on the study’s findings, will decide what funding option to pursue. Any new source of revenue for the city must be decided by city voters. The council’s goal is to have their decision on the November ballot.
John Kaczor, founder of Municipal Analytics, will present his firm’s findings the April 26 meeting. The results of the Hillsdale study can be found in a Power Point presentation on the City of Hillsdale’s website.
All members of the public will be given an opportunity to comment or ask questions regarding the study after it is presented.
Other news from Hillsdale’s April 16 City Council meeting:
The council directed the Public Services committee to look at the downtown’s parking policies and determine if they can be improved. Councilwoman Mary Wolfram asked the council to consider changing the parking policy because she has received several complaints about parking in the downtown area.
The council set a public hearing for May 7 to discuss the need for sidewalk improvements or construction in several parts of the city. One of those areas is the stretch of State Street between Lumbard Street and Wolcott Street where currently there is no sidewalk on the south side of the road. The sidewalk, if constructed, would be funded 75 percent by the homeowners whose property the sidewalk passes through and 25 percent by the city.
The council approved the establishment of an election receiving board for each of Hillsdale’s four voting wards. The receiving board is in charge of closing polls at the end of an election day. Currently there is only one receiving board for the city. Four people, called inspectors, manage the polls all day, and two of those people will be appointed to the receiving board for their respective ward, therefore eliminating the two city-wide positions.