Bonds, special assessment district to fund $6.5M infrastructure project

HILLSDALE — Despite mixed feelings from council members and residents alike, the Hillsdale City Council approved two measures Monday night to fund a major infrastructure project spanning much of Ward 3.

Council chambers was standing-room-only as dozens of residents of Ward 3 filed in for a public hearing on establishing a special assessment district that will ultimately cost taxpayers in the special district $5,000 for every parcel of land owned over the next 10 years.

The district includes “the full extent” of Westwood Drive, Sumac Drive, Picardy Place, Azalea Court, Corona Circle, Scenic Drive and Cold Springs Circle in addition to Westwood Street from Cold Springs Circle to Lewis Street and Highland and Glendale Avenues from Westwood Street to Bacon Street.

Infrastructure in these areas is failing with numerous water main breaks reported each year and Ward 3 Councilman Bruce Sharp compared the roads in the district with roads of a third world country.

City Clerk Katy Price said she received 18 letters from concerned citizens within the district opposing the special district with only five letters supporting the move. A number of residents spoke during a public hearing Monday to express support and opposition to the special district.

“We’ve already paid for this in my mind,” Mike Clark said. “Sixty years worth of taxes paid with little work done on the streets.”

A neighbor of Clark’s, Jeremiah Regan, also opposed the special assessment district calling it a “massive tax on the few.”

Ed Swanson, a resident of Sumac Drive, said he has spent $18,000 over the years to correct surface water issues to prevent his basement from flooding.

Despite the opposition, many agreed the project — a total infrastructure replacement to include water mains, curb, sidewalk, sub-road materials and at least four inches of new asphalt — was necessary, but they wanted the council to explore other options for funding the project without the district assessment.

Ian Church said the $5,000 assessment would force a financial burden on residents for years to come.

A few also spoke in favor of the district including Gary Wolfram, an economics professor at Hillsdale College and resident of Corona Court.

“It’s time to do something,” Greg Kurtz said. “Nobody likes to pay extra taxes and extra money, but man, every time I drive out of my driveway, there’s pot holes. It’s time to bite the bullet.”

City Manager David Mackie said that, ultimately, if the move did not pass, it could be as long as 20 years before the city looks at the project again, with 70 percent of the city’s roads needing some level of repairs or infrastructure work.

“The city has already spent $150,000 in ARPA funds to design the plans for this project,” Mackie added.

Councilman Rob Socha said he initially opposed special assessment districts, but concurred there was no other way to fund major infrastructure projects.

“I never dreamed that we would be doing special assessments to fix all the roads in every neighborhood,” Mayor Adam Stockford said. “We’ve thrown a million things at the wall. Some of it sticks and some of it don’t.”

Ultimately, the council voted to pass the special assessment district with Stockford, Councilman Ray Briner and Councilwoman Cynthia Pratt voting against the measure.

The district assessment will fund approximately 16 percent of the $6.5 million project, which should begin next spring, City Enginer Kristin Bauer said.

Immediately following the special assessment district public hearing, the council voted to approve a $6.5 million bond proposal over the next 20 years to fund the majority of the infrastructure projects in Ward 3, which will be paid back with revenues from the city’s street funds, sewer and water rates in increments through 2042.

Stockford was the only nay vote on the bond issue.

Bauer said the total infrastructure project in Ward 3 is being engineered by an outside agency and should begin in the spring of 2023 and ideally would be finished by October 2023.

“It is going to be a headache for those living in the area (once construction starts),” Bauer said. “And there’s no guarantee that it will be done in October.”

Bauer said that supply chain issues could effect the timeline with some materials taking as much as six months for delivery.

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“We will not be putting shovels in the ground until we have the materials on hand,” Bauer said.

The city has used special assessment districts elsewhere for infrastructure projects with one ongoing project on South Howell Street, Morey Street and Lynwood Street that should be completed yet this year.

Across town in Ward 1, a special assessment district repaved a number of roads in quiet neighborhoods off State Street last year.

Poor road conditions and failing infrastructure has been a top priority of the council for years and five years ago, less then 10 percent of the city’s roads were in good condition.

Those statistics are closer to 30 percent in good condition currently, thanks to a number of grants, special assessments and “outside the box” thinking to begin tackling the neglected infrastructure.

This article originally appeared on Hillsdale Daily News: Bonds, special assessment district to fund Hillsdale's $6.5M roads project