A palatable compromise.

An older resident of Elmwood Township called the Enterprise office earlier this week while going over her absentee ballot for the Nov. 6 election. She wondered what the Headlee Amendment had to do with the BATA millage request, and if we would suggest voting for the township fire millage.

The first question was time-consuming to answer. The second question was impossible to answer.
She and her husband are living on a fixed income that essentially hasn’t moved in their 20 years of retirement. They will have to cut something out of their budget to pay the higher millage rate.

Given those circumstances, who could suggest they vote "yes?" We simply explained, as best we could, that the higher millage would pay for the continued services of two full-time first responders at the Elmwood Township fire hall.

It’s a predicament. The couple are likely candidates to need emergency help. But they can’t afford higher property taxes. It would be nice if every elected official considered their plight before seeking to increase taxes. There is always a price.

For the record, we believe the 1.272-mill request represents a palatable compromise between those on the Township Board who wanted to again seek 1.572 mills, and those who wanted to drop the request lower. Seeking the higher amount would have been a ticket for disaster. The defeat might have been worse than the 70 percent margin of the first election in August, if that is possible.

Not agreeing to the compromise would have exposed other board members who two years ago voted to hire the full-time first responders without first seeking a funding source from taxpayers. If the board had no intention of seeking a property tax increase, it should not have expanded the fire department.

If approved, the board has pledged not to collect the present .3765-mill tax dedicated to fire protection.
The township drained its General Fund reserve in 2006 partly to fund the fire department, and the 2007 budget predicted another decline. The millage is desperately needed to replace two old fire trucks, especially a 27-year-old pumper whose output falls below insurance standards.

So we agree with the compromise. The fire department needs an injection of money. But the new funding should not create a windfall for the General Fund, which has through the years contributed $80,000 to $100,000 annually to keep the fire department running.

Vote “yes” – if you can pay it.

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Support BATA request.

For most voters in Leelanau County, there will be only one issue on Tuesday’s ballot when they go to the polls: the Bay Area Transportation Authority (BATA) millage renewal request.

Because it’s the only county-wide measure on the ballot, there is concern that voter turnout will be smaller than usual – though we know that Leelanau residents have a long history of exercising their public duty at the polls. We hope that county voters don’t overlook Tuesday’s vote, and further ask them to continue their support for BATA with a “yes” vote.

In 2003, voters in Leelanau and Grand Traverse counties overwhelmingly approved a 5-year millage “to keep the buses rolling.” On Tuesday, voters will be asked if they want to continue the millage by renewing a 0.35-mill measure.

One of the reasons we support the millage request is because BATA has fulfilled the promise it made during the 2003 election to bring fixed-route transportation to Leelanau County. BATA’s Village Connector routes were established with daily runs from Traverse City to both Northport and Empire. As a result, hundreds of county residents have been able to get reliable transportation to Traverse City, where they can access BATA’s fixed-route Cherriot routes and get to jobs, appointments and school on time.

The Village Connector routes are one of many reasons that BATA’s ridership has increased by 20 percent over the last two years. With the price of gas around the $3 a gallon mark, public transportation is taking on an increasingly vital role and BATA has been able to meet the challenge. BATA’s ridership gains are also linked to use of its Health Ride program, which provided more than 9,000 trips alone in 2006 for people to medical appointments. Patients needing three-times-a-week dialysis treatments in Traverse City, often during odd hours of the day, have benefited from the service.

A “yes” vote will also help BATA plan additional Village Connector routes in Leelanau County so that communities like Lake Leelanau and Leland can also be served. We look forward to that and urge people to continue their support for a necessary part of our community’s infrastructure.