There are several things I would like to point out right up front.
First is the language on the ballot that seems confusing to most people that I have shown it to. It states "Shall the entire unincorporated portion of Bridgeport Charter Township...". Some people think that means that only part of Bridgeport will be assessed or that it is some kind of subterfuge language. It is not subterfuge it is just legalese language. The assessment will be on ALL tax parcels in Bridgeport that have one or more structures on the parcel, not on any vacant parcels.
Second is that the Bridgeport Downtown Development Authority does not capture any monies from special assessments like these. So no matter what anyone may say, the DDA will not be getting any of this money, it is just for the fire and police departments.
Lastly, these proposals on the ballot will just be to approve the special assessment district. The ballot language does list the proposed flat rate cost for the police and fire departments, but after the assessments are approved, then there will another public hearing on November 17th, 2014 to set the rate. The public can come to this special hearing and have their say on what the costs for the assessment should be. The cost WILL NOT go any higher than what is listed on the ballot. This is my understanding of the technicalities and hopefully I have that correct!
Chief Duffett and Chief Nelson provide such good information on their departments and on the special assessment in this meeting. Please take the time to watch it!!
Here is some information from the handouts they provided at the meeting.
For the Police Department:
The proposed rate is $37.80 per tax parcel with one or more structures for a 5 year period.
The money raised will be used to bring back 2 full time Police Officer positions, and to fund their uniforms and gear.
Their current staffing level includes 1 Police Chief, 1 Sgt/Uniformed Investigator and 6 Patrol Officers. At their current staffing levels there are times when there is no officer on duty due to things like vacations or illness. With two more officers they will be able to maintain 24/7 coverage.
In 2011, they responded to 7,240 calls.
In 2012, they responded to 6,807 calls (the decrease was due to their low staffing levels at that time).
In 2013, they responded to 8,159 calls.
For 2014 they are on pace to respond to approximately 8,800 calls.
With the two new officers they would be able to be proactive in trying to prevent crime in Bridgeport, instead of just reactive.
If you have any questions you can contact them at 989-777-2800 or by email - dduffett@bridgeportmi.org
The township website is www.bridgeportmi.org
The Police Department Facebook page is Bridgeport Township Police Department
For the Fire Department:
They have a lot of information about their department and their needs so it will just be easier to post a copy of the pages of information they provided. Just click on each photo to see a larger version of it.
If you have any questions you can contact them
Fire Chief Patrick Nelson
989-777-2400 ext 233
email - fire@bridgeportmi.org
The township website is www.bridgeportmi.org
The Fire Department Facebook page is Bridgeport Township Fire Department
MY THOUGHTS ON THE ASSESSMENT
I am hoping that our residents will get out and vote for these two assessments!! Anyone that lives in this township knows that we need more police protection. I know right in my neighborhood the crime has increased. Chief Duffett quoted some FBI stats about the police levels for similar population size townships and they have 18 police officers, we only have 8. We need these two other officers and it would be nice to be sure we always have 24/7 protection.
The Fire Department is in need of support from our community. They have a long list of the things they need to just maintain the fire station, their apparatus (vehicles) and their equipment.
The men and women from both of these departments literally put their lives on the line to protect all of us in our community and we need to support them.
PLEASE VOTE YES ON NOVEMBER 4TH FOR THESE TWO ASSESSMENTS
No comments:
Post a Comment