MADISON TWP. — Madison Township officials know there’s a flooding issue on Geller Drive.
They also know the Waltermire Tile Drain needs to be fixed to help alleviate the problem.
However, township officials don’t understand why Madison Township has been assessed more in costs than some other parties involved, such as Lenawee County, the Michigan Department of Transportation and Norfolk Southern Railroad.
The township board called a special meeting Friday afternoon to determine whether or not it should appeal the $72,500, or 13.3 percent, the township has been assessed for the total cost of the drain project, which is estimated at $545,000. By a unanimous vote, the board decided to appeal the drain special assessment to Lenawee County Probate Court. That appeal will cost $2,000.
If the township wins its appeal it would get back the $2,000 and could see a decrease in costs. If it loses then it would lose the $2,000 and end up paying what it originally was assessed.
The township’s portion of the drain bill will not have to be paid at once, but over the course of 10 to 15 years, with interest.
Supervisor Gary Griewahn and clerk Terry Etter said they know the drain needs a fix, but before the township pays they want to know how the township’s share was determined to be 13.3 percent.
“We want to help, but we also want to know how they arrived at that percentage,” Etter said.
The assessments were set by the Lenawee County Drain Commission. County drains are not maintained by the county’s general fund taxes, so special assessments are set up to cover costs for such things as improvements. All property owners within a drainage district receive an assessment, unless exempted by law.
According to township officials, the Waltermire assessment has Lenawee County being assessed 5.2 percent, MDOT at 4.3 percent and the railroad at 4.3 percent.
The Waltermire drain area is made up of 281 acres and 55 properties. Madison Township oversees Geller Drive.
Township attorney Fred Lucas said he was surprised to see such a difference between the township and other parties, such as the county and MDOT.
The county drain commission office was closed Friday, so comment could not be sought from it by The Daily Telegram at the time this story was printed.
According to the drain commission’s website, the law requires assessments be based on the benefits derived as determined by the drain commissioner. In addition, all properties within the drainage district are assessed based on the size of the parcel and land use. Distances from the drain or the location of the property within the drainage district may be factors as well.
Lucas said by going through the appeal process, the township may be able to get a better understanding of how the percentage was determined for this project and this may help them understand what to expect for other, future drainage projects.
Improvement work on the drain has not begun yet, but is expected to occur this year.