Our advice on local ballot issues

Voters in the city of Orchard Lake Village and West Bloomfield Township have before them ballot questions in the Tuesday, Nov. 8 election relating to the abandonment of city property, as well as a critical public safety funding for the township’s police and fire departments. We are urging residents of those two communities to vote YES on vacating of a piece of property on Willow Lane in Orchard Lake, and YES on a renewal and hike in West Bloomfield’s millage collections for public safety services.

ORCHARD LAKE VILLAGE
Willow Lane Property Abandonment

Orchard Lake voters will be asked to weigh in on whether the city should vacate a portion of city-owned property on Willow Lane, located on the west shore of Orchard Lake on Willow Lane, off of Old Orchard Trail near Birchway. The property juts out to where Willow Lane dead-ends. The measure deserves a YES vote.

The official ballot language reads as follows:

“Shall the City of Orchard Lake Village vacate, discontinue and abolish 40 feet of roadway located at the end of Willow Lane, formerly known as Troy Street, in the City of Orchard Lake Village, and then sell the vacated portion of the road?”

The road-ending is a grassy, non-improved trail that projects into a 1.56-acre parcel currently for sale at 44890 Birchway.

As it currently stands, the property is not used and serves no real useful purpose. If voters approve the measure, the property has the chance to be sold and developed for a potential building site, meaning that the property would go on the city’s tax rolls. In addition, the city would get a one-time cash injection from the sale — not a large amount of money, admittedly, but every little bit helps.

We can honestly think of no logical reason why voters shouldn’t cast their ballots in favor of the Willow Lane land abandonment.

WEST BLOOMFIELD TOWNSHIP
Public Safety Millage Proposals

We advocated two weeks ago (Oct. 19, 2011 Spinal Column Newsweekly) for passage of two ballot questions West Bloomfield voters are to decide on Nov. 8 for public safety funding, and we are reminding the electorate that the two proposals before them are needed to ensure adequate police and fire funding to support existing services into the future.

The first ballot question seeks to renew the township’s existing public safety millage at its current rate of 3.1378 mills for 10 years. If authorized by voters, the renewed millage would be collected from 2012 to 2021.

The second ballot question asks voters to approve an 11-year increase of 2.85 mills. If approved by voters, this new millage would be collected from 2011 through 2021.

The township’s police and fire departments have already done a significant amount of cutting, implementing a variety of cost-saving measures. We’re convinced the departments have been good stewards of the taxpayers’ money. Both need these millage proposals approved in order to maintain — not expand — existing police and fire services.

Vote YES on the millage renewal and increase proposals on Nov. 8.