Council places park replacement levy on ballot

By DREW STAMBAUGH

Enterprise Editor

Swanton Village Council voted last week to place a replacement park levy on the November ballot.

Voters in the village will decide on a 0.5 mill, five-year levy for park improvements. The current 0.5 mill park levy expires at the end of this year.

Councilman Michael Rochelle said it was important that to keep the parks in good shape.

"The tax dollars are used for the maintenance of the park and permanent improvements," he said. "The parks are a prized treasure in our community and we want to keep them accessible and viable for the whole community to enjoy."

Council members had been considering a 0.5-mill renewal levy as well. They ultimately opted for the option that will bring in more money for the parks since the tax base has increased.

"The replacement levy will generate about $3,357 more than a renewal," Rochelle said. "As more homes are built in the community, the tax base increases, therefore increasing the amount of the collected taxes."

If passed, the levy would generate $36,818 per year.

Council passed the resolution as an emergency measure in order to meet the Aug. 4 filing deadline. Passing it as an emergency allows approval in just one reading as opposed to the normal three readings.

The levy is one of two the village has for maintenance and improvements of village parks, Administrator Jon Gochenour said. The other is also a 0.5 mill levy that will be up for renewal in two years.

Also at the meeting, council approved ordinances to go ahead with street lighting and leaf collection assessments. Assessments will remain the same as the previous year.

Village council also approved the second reading of an ordinance for engineering services on a sewer separation project. The Fulton Street Sewer Separation Project will be done in phases over the next five years. It will include a portion of the north end of Swanton to the east of Main Street.

Swanton is in the process of separating all combined sewers in the village after receiving a mandate from the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency. During heavy rains, combined sewers can overflow sewage and other waste into creeks and rivers.