Bruce Township Board Meeting Recap
The Bruce Township Board of Trustees held their regular, monthly meeting Wednesday night at the Bruce Township Hall. Here are the highlights:
- Trustee Paul Okoniewski was on his annual Boy Scout trip and could not be present. Supervisor James Tignanelli, Clerk Susan Brockmann, Treasurer Deborah Obrecht and Trustee Mark Falker were present.
- A local resident addressed the Board, in a moment that turned dramatic. A gentleman who had been forced to relocate from his home on Henry Ross Drive, due to his taxes being too high, “especially while living on a private road.” The man took several long pauses to hold back tears during his speech. Supervisor Tignanelli offered to meet the man in his office to explain why his taxes were the way they were.
- Another resident had a similar complaint to the man before him. He asked the board repeatedly, angrily, why his SEV (State Equalized Value) was so high. He claimed this was his third meeting and that he was ‘treated like crap’ the first two meetings previous.
- The final citizen to speak, Dennis Jokinen, took issue with Susan Brockmann’s role with the Bruce Township Planning Commission. Jokinen felt that Brockmann had too much influence on the Commission. Brockmann stated she was just doing her job taking the minutes of the meetings. Supervisor Tignanelli jumped in to defend Brockmann and the discussion ended shortly thereafter.
- Mary Davis, Howard Hicks and Chief Floyd Shotwell accepted six bids (four actual) for the Firehouse Project. Earthcon (Owned by a Bruce Township resident) won the bid, coming in at $9,616. The Board unanimously approved the bid. Work will begin Friday and is expected to take three to four days.
- The firm of Abraham & Gaffney presented the findings of their audit of the Township for the fiscal year ending Mar. 31, 2012. He said the Township was “healthy” with a 14.9 percent increase on funds coming in, while spending only increased by 2.9 percent. The only major issue the auditors had was with the Township’s sewer system. Bruce Township had $360,000 in sewer assets with $650,000 in sewer liabilities in the last fiscal year. The report recommended the Township consider adopting a sewer budget. Upon completion of the review, the Township thanked Abraham & Gaffney for their service and awarded them a 3-year contract worth just over $19,000 per year.
- Lastly, the Board wanted to remind all that the Township primary elections will be held on Aug. 7, 2012. They have issued 759 absentee voter ballots to date and the last day to pick up an absentee ballot is Aug. 4.
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At the meeting I also addressed the board. I asked for the second month in a row if the Twin Brooks lein letters have been filed with the county. I received the same answer as last month. “We’ll get to it.” No reason for the delay was given. The $1400 tap fees have been deferred until the property changes hands. If the liens are not recorded the fees won’t appear on the closing documents.
Seems to me that taking over three months (and still not done) to file these, the board is not taking their fiducary responsibility to the township seriously.
Richard Bohning
WHY ARE YOU SO WORRIED ABOUT A LEIN LETTER ON TWIN BROOKS MR. BOHNING ??YOU HAVE BEEN GIVEN MISLEADING INFORMATION MR BOHNING, AND IT SOUNDS LIKE IT CAME FROM MR CARL BEAUVAIS AND DEBBIE OBRECHT. YOU SEE NO TITLE COMPANY CAN CLOSE ON ANY CONDO, CASH OR MORTAGE WITHOUT A STATUS LETTER FROM THE MANAGEMENT COMPANY THAT RUNS THE ASSOCIATION WHICH INDICATES ANY MONIES DUE BY THE OWNER. ANY DEBT MUST BE CLEARED BY THE TITLE COMPANY BEFORE THE PROPERTY IS SOLD OR TRANSFERRED. YOU NEED TO QUIT WASTING THE BOARDS TIME.
I am not certain that all of the property owners have returned the promissary note to be filed, so your justified concern may be larger than just getting the lien filed. When that question was asked many months ago, the answer was not all have been received.
Something seems not right.
That entire project, headed by Tignanelli and Brockmann, has been reactionary rather that proactive. Taking three years (and still not completed to my knowledge) to complete a project seems like poor project management, or just plain incompetence on the part of the Bruce Twp. Supervisor and Clerk. According to previous articles on this sewer project, were the residents mislead, misinformed, or just plain duped by the two Twp. Officials? Bruce residents may want to keep this in mind when you go to the polls on August 7th.
Sign me…….Just Sayin’
It sure seems that this website as indicated by this biased article dramatizes issues and situations without knowing all the facts in an attempt to discredit some people on the Bruce Township Board. Let’s get all the facts: people don’t get displaced for high taxes, only for not paying them. There is a formal process with the township, county and state to address any tax assessments that may be deemed incorrect. The people addressing the board just before an election seem bitter and petty in their public discourse; have they ever asked for a meeting with the supervisor or clerk to try to resolve their issues prior to July? Doesn’t it seem strange to this supposed media outlet that the attacks seem orchestrated or is this site just complying with the director of the orchestra?