County road millage back before voters Aug. 6

CENTREVILLE – St. Joseph County’s registered voters are less than two weeks from deciding the fate of a millage renewal sought by the county’s road commission.

At stake Aug. 6 is a request whether to renew 1 mill to maintain funding for the Centreville-based agency.

Road commission manager John Lindsey said the 1 mill was passed by voters in 1994, renewed in 2004 and endorsed once again in 2014. The mill generates about $2.5 million annually.

“Probably the biggest takeaway from the request, in my opinion, is it’s a countywide millage, and the cities and villages collect this tax, too, for their roads,” Lindsey said. “It’s a proportionate amount based on population … $200 and some thousand for Sturgis, $200 and some thousand for Three Rivers and the smaller villages get less, of course.”

In all, $640,000 of the $2.5 million is allocated to the county’s two cities and six villages. Meanwhile, about half is set aside for projects supported through township matching funds.

As it has in the past, the life of the so-called Road Millage is for a 10-year period, if approved next month.

Lindsey said the value of the voter-backed mill the past three decades is obvious when he travels to counties that do not have the same luxury.

“St. Joseph County has good roads, whether people want to believe it or not. If you ever go to Battle Creek or anywhere in Calhoun County, do not take the main roads in. I’m serious,” he said. “So, if you think we have bad roads, what do you think subtracting more than $2 million will do to make them better?”

Meanwhile, Lindsey said the 1 mill has allowed St. Joseph County to pave a number of roads that previously were gravel. He said 82% of the county’s roads are hard surface. By comparison, Branch County’s amount of hard-surface roads is 65%. Fifty-five percent of Barry County’s roads are hard surface and Cass County is about 74% hard surface.

“And the only way we’re going to maintain 82% is through this millage,” he said. “So, this is not a tax increase, it’s just a renewal of the same millage that’s been there since 1994.”

This article originally appeared on Sturgis Journal: County road millage back before voters Aug. 6