Friday, March 10, 2000
Colerain looks for reason why road levy failed again
BY LEW MOORES
The Cincinnati Enquirer
COLERAIN TOWNSHIP — Trustees probably will discuss at their next meeting what to do in the face of another road levy defeat that has already reduced their road budget by about a third.
It was the second time voters had turned back a proposed road levy. They defeated a continuous 2-mill road levy in November, and rejected a 1.5-mill road levy Tuesday.
“We're going to have to discuss it,” said Trustee Joseph Wolterman. “There's no doubt about it — we need that revenue.”
Township officials are at a loss to explain why the levy was again defeated. There was no organized opposition. Without any polling data, they partly ascribe it to an anti-tax mood of the electorate in general.
“I'd like to get some feedback from the public to find out why it was voted down,” said Trustee Keith Corman. “Since there was no organized opposition, there's no barometer to go on. I think what we have is backlash on many things.”
Trustees could try again with a road levy at a special election, wait until November to put it on the ballot, or do neither. But Mr. Wolterman, for one, does not think the township can get along without a road levy.
The township budgets about $2.5 million for road work, using license plate fees, gasoline taxes and money from the general fund, as well as money from a road levy that expired at the end of 1999. That levy, which had been in effect since 1984, had generated about $845,000 a year.
The road levy on Tuesday's ballot would have generated $1.5 million a year with new property assessments. It was defeated 8,108 to 6,014.
Township officials say the additional money was needed at pay for the rising costs of road work, and to help them secure state grants and low-interest loans.
For instance, Dennis Chapman, public works director for the township, has said officials were able to obtain grants for road work totaling about $8 million over the past five years using money from the old road levy as matching funds.
Before a decision is made on whether to propose another road levy and how much to ask, officials say, trustees will ask Mr. Chapman to prepare an impact study on how to make do with less, and what road projects can and can't be done.
Mr. Wolterman suggested they would need to do a better job in educating the residents about the need for a road levy.
“We have to be convincing,” he said. “I certainly don't want to go backwards. But I think that people are jaded on taxes in general. I think there's just a distrust.”
The next meeting of the board of trustees is 7 p.m. Tuesday at the township government complex on Springdale Road.
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