The Nov. 3 ballot should be interesting for local voters.
On Monday, the Van Buren Public Schools Board of Education approved going for a .5 mill renewal of the present 1.13 mills for the sinking fund. That’s for seven years. And, it’s less than half.
On Tuesday, the Van Buren Township Board of Trustees approved a 6.5 mill proposal for the Nov. 3 ballot. That’s the 4 mills already being paid for public safety, plus 2.5 mills more. That’s for seven years, too. That’s much more.
The 4-mill levy currently being paid for public safety doesn’t expire until Dec. 31, 2016, so if the 6.5 mills fail, the township can put other questions before voters until the voters get it right.
On Tuesday, VBT Trustee Brenda McClanahan cast the only no vote against the 6.5-mill question, noting the survey taken by the school district showed local voters were in no mood for higher taxes.
Former VBT Supervisor Paul White and former Public Safety Director Carl McClanahan agreed that 6.5 mills were too much and a 4 mills renewal was reasonable and attainable.
Supervisor Linda Combs said by getting the extra 2.5 mills for public safety, the general fund could get the 2 mills back that it currently puts into public safety to use to pay on the Visteon bonds. White called that thinking “bait and switch.”
The library millage will probably be a part of the 2016 Presidential election. Those tax votes are coming, too.
Taxpayers need to stay alert.
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17 Comments
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Linda Combs, are you kidding me? You are trying to pull a fast one over on the township residents. Whatever happened to just being honest and handle business in an ethical way. This is just another reason why there is so much scandal and corruption going on with the corrupt cop making just as much as the Attorney General, the Supervisor is corrupt herself.
Do you honestly think people are going to vote yes? You have done nothing, absolutely nothing to reassure people that there is even a plan in place to prevent such top heavy payroll. I’m flabbergasted and appalled that you could even ask for an increase. Thank you Mrs. McClanahan for being the only sensible Trustee on the board.
During the July 21, 2015 Board of Trustees Meeting, I made the comment putting 6.5 mills on the ballot for PS and not taking the money from the General Fund in order to increase the General Fund balance was resemblance of a “Bait and Switch” scenario, using the millage to increase the General Fund. Combs made a statement at the LDFA Meeting in the afternoon before the Board Meeting that using the additional millage would allow the General Fund to have more monies available for other uses. At the Board Meeting, Combs basically said she did not make the statement, insinuating I was not being truthful when I made the Trustees aware of her earlier statement at the LDFA meeting. I stated getting the residents to pass a millage for PS was easier than asking for a millage to pay the Visteon Bond, Thank You to the Independent for printing Combs statement about the true reason the PS Millage will be on the ballot. The VBT Board MUST be open and transparent when putting a millage on the ballot. The Landfill tipping fees and guarantees generate about $3.5M annually. This money is to be used for services to our residents. Use it! IF VBT does not prevail in the litigation against Visteon, then at that time, a decision should be made on how to cover the bond shortfall. VBT also has a potential huge shortfall on health care obligations.
And why was she elected? Just to replace Paul? Great, so now we have a Supervisor that plays computer games when she should be working and sleeps at meetings. No wonder she makes stupid decisions and has no follow-thru on tasks she agrees to handle at LDFA meetings.
She was supposed to have a piece of LDFA owned property appraised and a township policy written to sell property over a year ago. Just too busy fighting crimes while she games on the township dollars. Unbelievable!
I attended the LDFA meeting and agree, the proposed Public Safety new millage has nothing to do with Public Safety, just a “nefarious” plan to pay the Visteon bonds.
Paul, I believe her Secretary is telling her what to do and say. From what I know, Linda doesn’t have the depth to make any sound decisions. She is going to cost the township a boat load of money.
It’s a crying shame that politicians can’t be honest about their dealings. Instead they play wolf in sheep clothing and pull the wool over our eyes. I assume Combs thinks she has the Seniors in her pocket. I hope they all revolt and expose her for the liar she is.
I say we all vote a BIG NO on any millage. Every single one of them. When they start coming to the voters will real solutions to the REAL problems we face, then we will start to approve small millages and see how they do with the responsibility. Until then NO NO NO!
I know Linda and she has changed. It’s not like her to try and deceive people and I’m really disappointed in the way she is handling herself since she was elected. I hope she finds the inner strength to stand up to the bullies that she works with to make a difference. She is bullied by directors also and it needs to end.
I highly doubt she is being bullied. The problem is that she doesn’t take her job seriously. It’s evident by the way she conducts herself and her business. Someone mentioned that her assistant makes all the decisions for her and if that is true, it’s a misrepresentation of office. Knowing what we know now, I wish I could take back my vote. Also, I am a senior and will not fall victim to her lies any longer.
Do they really think we are dum enough to give them more money when the Fire Chief has two new vehicles for his exclusive use with civilian plates and added illegal privacy window tinting and they continue to pay public safety officers many tens of thousands of dollars in overtime when they are turning away early qualified people for$14/hour part time positions.
John- they are not for his EXCLUSIVE use, his wife uses them too 😉
The problem is if the Fire Chief hires more P/T they will fill up the schedule and his buddies wont be able to get so much in OT.
You have an inside source but what you said is very accurate. There is a huge scam going on inside both PD and FD. They are racking in the dough and don’t even have to be there. Fire Chief gets paid to work at Van Buren however, he teaches at Schoolcraft college during daytime hours. Not only are we paying him to be there he is not available for business. I find this sickening. Everyone knows about the highest paid officer being paid to not be at either PD or FD. Then you have the PS Director who also uses his department issued vehicle to get groceries or run errands. So, you have all this and then some going on, yet the board has the audacity to ask the tax payers for MORE MONEY. You need to show that you have been diligent and frugal with spending before you stick your hands out and beg for more. The township board is just as bad as the panhandlers who scam on the the I-94 off ramps in the township.
I’m jumping off this sinking ship.
Lets not forget that Chief Besson uses Van Buren time for his second job at Schoolcraft college. This is in addition to all of his other frills, paid exclusively by the residents of Van Buren Township. I hope the Chief hasn’t neglected purchasing needs like new gloves and fire protection equipment so he could spend money detailing his 2 new vehicles. Who approved this anyway? Lets not forget when at the polls, Linda Combs is absent from her position and has lied to the voters. Lets not forget there is still an issue with the amount of wages/hours we are paying the Police Officers who also work as Firefighters. Voters are going to stand their ground and vote no. Figure out another way to hide your incompetence.
I’m voting no and not because of the money, because of the principle behind the politics. This administration will never earn my trust back.
We are asking for a millage increase and have no knowledge of where the money is going. Currently, we have several police officers making over $150,000 annually, uneducated directors and politicians, and an unethical approach to solving Visteon’s situation by placing the Visteon Bond on a millage for public safety. Van Buren Township Trustees Phil Hart, Jeff Jahr, and Treasurer Budd voted for the Visteon bond that is crippling our community.
Whatever you do DO NOT VOTE FOR PHIL HART FOR TOWNSHIP SUPERVISOR. Phil has a huge lack of integrity, cursed at residents that disagreed with him, voted on the Visteon Bond Guarantee, Voted to reduce the education criteria for the Public Safety Director Position in which the director can have a high school diploma, and coward up when it was time to vote for Director McClanahan who is a person with a Master’s Degree.
Good points… I will not vote for anyone on the current board. It’s time for a change and long overdue. I may consider voting for B. McClanahan since she is the only one who has some common sense.
Check out Van Buren Twp Accountability of FB! We can make changes
It’s possible that Combs is being bullied but this shows a lack of strength on her part. As most of us know the biggest bully of all is Budd because she hides behind a few select/chosen residents that speak for her. The worst type of bully is the one you can not see and she has been hiding behind the scenes for years. Do not underestimate her just because she says nothing at board meetings, notice how Combs looks to her for help at the meetings. I am not sure but I think Budd is the representative on the police contract negotiations which has allowed the blended-rate.