It’s time to step back and take a serious look at shared services, fees and the ways those fees are calculated.
That was the decision of the Clarkston City Council who voted 5-1 Monday to move ahead with a feasibility study proposed in April by Independence Township Trustee Dan Kelly.
Councilman Dan Colombo was absent from Monday’s meeting, and Mayor Sharron Catallo cast the opposing vote.
‘I just don’t see what a huge change it would make,? she said. ‘We’re still going to have the same number of shared services.?
But other members agreed that the outcome could help spur needed changes.
‘We all agreed the current structure we’re using for shared services is not fair,? said Councilman Cory Johnston. ‘They may think they need more, we of course want less. But we all understand that basing it on a millage or a 10 percent fee doesn’t reflect the cost, it changes as the tax base changes. It’s a mess for them, it’s a mess for us.?
All references to consolidation were removed from the application by township trustees when members of Clarkston’s council said such language was a deal-breaker.
The study will focus collecting data that will be used to improve the current service and fee arrangement.
‘One of the arguments we had was that they’re charging us for service based on millage, and we don’t get a vote on that,? said Council member Kristy Ottman. ‘They get to take the vote to their people, but we use the services much less (per capita).?
Members of the council had hoped to include Springfield Township and the Clarkston Community Schools in the study, but, said Ottman, the county had time constraints that would not permit such an expansion on the current application.