The Dexter Leader
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Town meeting on cityhood tonight
By Sean Dalton, Staff Writer
PUBLISHED: June 19, 2008
A meeting to discuss questions about Dexter adopting a city form of government will take place at 7 p.m. tonight at the Dexter Senior Center.
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The questions were posed by the Dexter Citizens for Responsible Government, which has been active in organizing Dexter residents and drawing attention to local issues, such as proposed residential developments and Dexter's potential transformation into a city.
"These are questions that have been raised by Dexter citizens with us over the past few months," said Charles Van Heck, a member of the community group, in an e-mail to the village council.
According to Van Heck, there is a larger push for this town hall meeting after the first one held earlier this year was used to smooth out the process of having a dialogue with the community.
"At the previous town meeting, we presented questions informally to (the council) ... many of those were unanswered due to time constraints," he said.
Van Heck added that he would like the village to make the questions and their subsequent answers a matter of public record and a frame of reference for the future.
Village Trustee Joe Semifero responded to the inquiry by e-mail two weeks ago .
"I thought we did answer all the questions presented at the last town hall meeting, either at the meeting or afterwards," he said.
"I am glad the council has followed through in having these meetings. I am not aware of any other communities in the area doing anything similar or going to the efforts made by the village to provide this type of opportunity."
Semifero answered the questions submitted on behalf of residents who expressed concerns or uncertainties.
Due to space considerations, 11 of the questions and answers were presented in last week's edition of The Dexter Leader, and the remainder are listed here.
What affect will becoming a city have on expanding the business park as a research/manufacturing center to increase revenues? How will it affect the retail businesses in view of the development of Jackson Road as a main strip for businesses in Scio Township?
Becoming a city will not affect the research and manufacturing center. Any proposed expansion would have to be an agreement with Scio Township and any associated landowners regardless of whether we are a village or city.
I believe the retail businesses along Jackson Road are coming regardless of whether the village becomes a city or not.
The development of the entire Jackson Road corridor presents a significant threat to retailers in the village. There is no impact of the village becoming a city in this situation, except that current business owners in the village would not have to pay township taxes if we became a city.
I am not sure how Jackson Road fits into the discussion regarding becoming a city.
How long will the tax reduction for citizens truly last? Haven't Chelsea taxes jumped? Aren't Chelsea residents and businesses unhappy with cityhood? What makes you think you won't have to raise taxes for services?
Taxes in a city or village are driven by the services provided. If the village provides more services, taxes would have to increase. There is no causal relationship between being a city and higher taxes, but there is causation between services and taxes.
For instance, Barton Hills provides very little in services and only levies 10 mills. The taxation level is also related to the fiscal decisions made by the local government. How we handle long-term items such as salaries, health care, retirement benefits, etc., will drive our costs. I do not know what the factors were for Chelsea taxes to increase but there is no service provided by the city that would cause the taxes to increase when compared to a village.
I can only speak about the few people from Chelsea I have spoken with and I have not heard that becoming a city has impacted them in any way.
How will cityhood change our community with its small-town celebrations such as Dexter Daze, the Ice Cream Social, etc.?
There is no change to these celebrations in becoming a city. They are not functions of government.
Aren't we drawing more interest from bicycle clubs and other tourism-related groups as a village than we would as a city? Why aren't we seeking to expand this tourism-related revenue base instead of offering what Ann Arbor and the cities east of Dexter are offering?
Most people I speak with in and out of the village refer to it as a "city" already. Many people do not realize there is a difference.
There is no difference for tourists to the community whether the village becomes a city or not.
Would it be necessary to hire an experienced city manager and staff to replace our current village manager and staff to run the daily operations of the city?
Again, there is no difference between a city and village except as would be specified by the charter.
Our current village manager and staff are extremely capable and could easily handle the additional responsibilities of managing assessing and elections. (Actually, elections would be run by the clerk, I believe.)
What will cityhood do my property values?
I am not aware of how being a city versus a village has a direct impact on property values. It's possible, if taxes levied are lower by not paying township taxes, the value of the house could increase. I don't know what the impact of cityhood had in Chelsea, although I believe if there was any impact it has been greatly overshadowed by other economic forces.
It is said that a city is more respected than a village. Paul Bishop was effective in village management to get the state government to approve an industrial park and we have grown to the point that we have. Respect comes with the ability to negotiate and present an idea for the future. It is nice to say cityhood, but what exactly does it mean for to Dexter to become a city? What are the council's ideas for the future once we become a city, and what are the ideas for Dexter's future of those who want to keep it a village?
For the village to become a city it means, legislatively, that the city would be a recognized governmental entity to the state. As a village we fall under the townships.
I am not aware of any plans specific to becoming a city, i.e., "When we become a city we will..." I do not know what the ideas are for the future of the government of the village if it stays a village.
My assumption would be to not change anything and to continue as we currently are operating.
What will cityhood do my property values?
I am not aware of how being a city versus a village has a direct impact on property values. It is possible, if taxes levied are lower by not paying township taxes, the value of the house could increase. I do not know what the impact of becoming a city had in Chelsea, although I believe if there was any impact it has been greatly overshadowed by other economic forces.
What will be done to ensure that older persons with limited incomes won't be compelled to move because of the potential increases in taxes, as has happened in places such as Ann Arbor and other cities?
There is no potential increase in taxes. Villages legislatively can levy as high a tax burden as a city with the taxes currently available to a village under current law. Ann Arbor taxes increased because of increased services and increased property values and taxes based on those property values.
Becoming a city does not impact property taxes. Proposal A and the Headlee Amendment currently limits the increase in property taxes on a statewide basis.
It seems to me the council wants one thing and some of the people want something different. Can you tell why I should I support cityhood?
It is more accurate to say some people in the village are in favor of becoming a city and some are not. The community will decide through an election whether or not the village should become a city.
Like any other ballot issue, it is up to the individual to make a decision based on how they view the issue.
When will the state requirements for cityhood reach fruition?
There is no definite timeline to cityhood. There is a process that can take a number of years to complete. There is no way to say when it will be complete.
When will the village complete all the requirements for cityhood and submit them for state approval? Will we be allowed to vote before or after state approval on whether or not we want to become a city?
Again, there is no way to state when the process will be completed. There are a number of opportunities for community input through elections through the process.
And the state does not approve a village becoming a city - the people of the village will decide whether the village becomes a city. The state only makes sure the process is followed as required by law.
Who will write the new charter? And who will make the appointments for the candidates to be voted on to write the charter?
As it has been described to me, an elected charter commission would write the charter.
As far as I know, the candidates for a charter commission (and if a charter was approved, candidates for a city council) follow the same process as any other elected position.
This means anyone can get a petition, obtain signatures, and file to be a candidate.
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