Christine Burns won’t say how she would vote on the issue of cityhood for Oxford Village, if it ever makes the ballot, but she did tell council it needs to establish an official relationship with the committee pushing it.
‘Treat the cityhood committee like you would any other committee that works under you and for the village,? the village clerk/treasurer/assistant manager told council last week. ‘That relationship should be clarified. The village is stepping up to the plate to pay the bills.?
In December 2003, council, at the request of the cityhood committee, hired Sylvan Lake attorney Tom Ryan to handle the issue for $165 per hour.
‘You need to form a relationship with that committee (and) have your arms around it in some way, shape or form because you’re going to be held accountable because you’re the one that’s paying the bills,? explained Burns, who recently authored a research paper for which a cost-benefit analysis of cityhood for the village was conducted.
Steve Allen, acting chairman of the cityhood committee, agreed with Burns.
‘Quite frankly, I think it might be time to go to the next phase and have it become an official village committee because the village is paying the bills,? he told officials.
Councilman Dave Bailey expressed confusion as to how the cityhood committee got started.
‘I presently don’t know whether the cityhood committee was started by the village or whether it formed itself by residents coming together,? he said.
The committee held its first meeting in May 2003 and was formed by Tracy A. Miller, Sr., husband of former village President Renee Donovan, who sat on council at the time.
Allen explained that the original cityhood committee ‘started as a private committee,? then the group formed a political action committee, who ‘brought their findings and their request to the village council, who then endorsed the activity.?
On Tuesday, Allen told this reporter, ‘There is no active committee at this point.?
‘We’ve not had a meeting in months,? Allen said, noting he’s largely just served as the contact person with attorney Ryan.
The cityhood petition was received by the state Boundary Commission on May 29, but, according to commission Manager Christine Holmes, it was sent back June 1 because the map of the area to be incorporated (i.e. the village) ‘did not comply with the legal sufficiency criteria.?
From information that was missing or stated in an incorrect form to print that was either too ‘tiny? or too ‘light,? Holmes said, ‘Most of it had to do with the map.?
Holmes explained the petition won’t be considered ‘official? by the Boundary Commission until the next time it’s submitted. ‘Whatever we receive next is what we will officially assign a docket number (to),? she said.
Although Allen’s the acting chair, there seems to be a question about who speaks for cityhood. Last month, Donovan resigned from council because she and Miller moved to Lapeer County to pursue drag-racing.
Despite Miller’s departure from the village, he’s still being quoted in other newspapers as a spokesperson for the cityhood committee. This is something which Burns said is not good for their cause.
‘I think it jeopardizes the integrity of the movement when you have somebody that no longer lives here acting as spokesperson for something that does not affect them anymore,? Burns told council. ‘People look at him and say, ‘Well, why is he so for this when he doesn’t have a vested interest anymore???
Allen agreed that an official spokesperson needs to be selected.
‘I think that relationship (between the village council and cityhood committee), if this were to go forward, should probably change. And it should be an official council function. Council can then designate their own spokesperson,? Allen explained. ‘My personal preference would be the president of council because the president of council is the official spokesperson of council.?
‘If you have contacts all over the place, people get very confused with where those quotes are coming from,? Allen noted.
Burns also said the cityhood meetings need to stop being private, invitation-only affairs. ‘Those meetings need to be here (in council chambers) or in the community room, open to the public,? she said.
Councilman Tom Benner asked that the cityhood issue and the status of the committee be placed on a future meeting agenda.
‘I think it is time for council to step up and take a position on this issue since it is taxpayer dollars,? Benner said. ‘Time for council to make a stand.?
Councilman Bailey had a different take on things.
‘If the village council does decide to make the committee an official organ of the village, we need not take a position regarding the issue itself,? Bailey said. ‘We need not come out as being in favor of cityhood.?
‘We can, if we choose, simply say, ‘This is an important issue. It’s worth having some experts get together and study it. And who are those experts? They’re the members of the cityhood committee. Those are the people we have chosen to research this.??
Recommendations aside, Burns also discussed her recent research paper on cityhood. ‘I probably have well over 1,000 hours of research that went into this,? she told council. ‘I did not approach this topic lightly at all.?
Burns? paper determined that cityhood was not a cost savings for the village unless residents would be willing to give up township services they pay taxes for like the library and parks and recreation.
She also determined that the village would have to take on the added responsibilities of maintaining the township cemetery on W. Burdick St. and the Oxford Veterans Memorial Civic Center. Both are located within the village boundaries and both are financial drains, meaning much more money is spent to maintain them than is realized in revenue.
Ultimately, Burns? paper showed an increase of 1.58 mills would have to be paid by residents to the new city in the first year to finance a series of onetime costs and new, added responsibilities. In subsequent years, she said the rate could be lowered by approximately 0.47 mills.
In effect, village residents as city residents would no longer be obligated to pay the township’s 0.95 mill operating tax, however, that millage amount, plus more, would have to be paid to the new city. Burns called this a ‘redistribution? of millage, not a savings.
‘The numbers are there for you to see,? Burns told council. ‘I can defend all of them. I have backup for all of them.?
‘The information is there for you to look at. It’s there for everybody else to look at and to decide what’s best for their family and what they think is the best route for this community to take.?
‘I do reserve the right to say that’s why we have a secret ballot. So I’m not going to tell you how I would vote on this issue,? Burns said. ‘I’m not trying to be biased. I’m not trying to sway people one way or the other. I just want to get the facts out there.?
Burns told council her paper contains information and numbers that ‘should have been compiled years ago.?
‘I’ve had some wonderful feedback from a lot of people that have said, ‘You know, it should have been done a long time ago,?? she said.
Council really didn’t have much to say about the paper itself. ‘I’ve read it. I have not studied it,? Bailey said. ‘I intend to study it.?
‘I’d like to read it more thoroughly, but I think it’s something that needed to be done in the community so residents have a fair analysis of which way to vote,? Benner said.
‘I just want to say that I think she did an unbelievable job,? said Councilperson Teri Stiles. ‘Obviously, (this is) something nobody else wanted to tackle. I have a lot of questions on it, but I haven’t even been able to absorb it enough because it’s so detailed.?