Ortonville- Jim Lane doesn’t want to bear the cost of sewers any more than many of the people who have publicly objected to a proposed village wastewater treatment system due to the financial burden.
Still, if he could, he would vote yes Nov. 3 to support bringing such a system to the village.
‘I don’t know how we can afford not to have sewers anymore,? said Lane. ‘The sewer situation and the situation with the schools is epidemic.?
Although he owns a village business, Lane Car Company, the Brandon Township resident can’t cast a ballot in the village election. Only voters who reside within the village limits can answer the following question:
‘The proposed Oakland County Ortonville Sewage Disposal System Contract between the County of Oakland and the Village of Ortonville dated as of Dec. 1, 2015 provides for the acquisition and construction of sewage disposal facilities comprising the Oakland County Ortonville Sewage Disposal System Project at an estimated cost of $20,000,000, for the issuance of bonds by the County of Oakland in one or more series to defray the costs of such facilities and for the pledge of the full faith and credit of the Village of Ortonville to the payment of amounts to the County of Oakland which are sufficient to pay the principal of and interest on such bonds. Pursuant to such pledge, the Village of Ortonville is obligated, subject to constitutional, statutory and charter tax limitations, to levy ad valorem taxes on all taxable property in the Village of Ortonville to enable it to make such payments to the County of Oakland to the extent that other funds, including special assessment and sewage disposal system revenues, are not available. Shall the contract be approved??
If a majority of voters say yes, the village will seek a 40-year Rural Development Loan from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to pay for the project, which would put a special assessment of about $25,550 on each residential equivalency unit in the village limits. The typical home is one REU. Businesses, churches, and other buildings including the police substation, the fire hall, the post office, the village and township government offices, schools and more will have varying REUs.
Lane hopes the ballot measure passes for many reasons. He has children who attend Brandon Schools, which has struggled with wastewater treatment problems and expensive repairs for several years. The district has been put on notice by the Department of Environmental Quality that issues with the wastewater treatment plant servicing the high school and middle school must be addressed by November 2019. Brandon Schools Superintendent Matt Outlaw said the district has received an estimate that replacement of the system will cost a little more than $2 million. A treatment plant at Fletcher Intermediate School will also need attention in the next few years, with an estimated cost of $250,000.
If the district ties in to a village wastewater treatment system, the estimated cost for the district will approximately $1.5 million, with possible additional connection fees. Village sewers would accommodate all school buildings (BHS, BMS, BFIS, and the Harvey Swanson-HT Burt complex) with the exception of Oakwood Elementary and the now vacant Belle Ann Elementary.
‘One way or the other, a treatment facility will be put in for the schools that have had nothing but problems,? said Lane. ‘The residents will pay for that no matter what. Isn’t it time that we move forward? Putting our nose in the sand and acting like there are no problems is not realistic.?
Lane believes a sewer system in the village would result in increased property values, as well as new businesses’perhaps a restaurant downtown? and improvements for existing businesses who are unwilling to invest currently because of nagging septic problems. He has suffered his own problems at his business due to the lack of infrastructure. In August, after having multiple septic issues per year for the past five years, Lane had a new septic field put in at the business located at 110 S. Ortonville Road. The septic field cost him $16,000 and should be good for many years, but he remains a sewer advocate, saying he would be ‘delusional? to think there won’t be more problems in the future.
Just down the road, however, Vivian Roy sits on the opposite side of the fence. She has owned the Village Hair Salon, 442 Ortonville Road, for 20 years, faithfully having the septic tank pumped every year, never having to replace it or deal with any septic field issues. She is thankful for that and opposed to a wastewater treatment system because of the cost. Passage of the proposal would likely force her business out of the village, and might also put her tenants out. She rents to Clairmount Dry Cleaners, as well as to a woman who lives in the house adjacent to the businesses.
‘For 20 years, I’ve heard about the sewers, the roads, and the natural gas pipelines,? said Roy, who acknowledged when Consumers Energy finally came through, her gas bill decreased. ‘I know of at least four studies they’ve done on sewers since I’ve been here. At first, it was a lot cheaper for the sewers to go in. Right now, it’s so expensive and they will pass it on to the taxpayers and my taxes are enormous here.?
Roy said she pays roughly $8,000 per year in taxes on her property. She could not withstand the special assessment and accompanying maintenance fees on her buildings and worries that she could not sell the house and businesses with a special assessment on them, either.
‘No one wants to take on the extra $25,000 and the maintenance fee,? said Roy. ‘We already have the 13 mills from the school. They should research to do this a different way, where it is not a burden on taxpayers. We are taxed to the max. They say that the reason the village is not growing is because of sewers. Why they didn’t do something years ago, I’m not sure, but because of these issues, they want to raise our taxes. They are banging their heads against the wall. It’s hard to sell, no one wants the high taxes.?
Roy isn’t convinced the lack of sewers is responsible for a lack of business growth in the village. Two years ago, she had a fast food chain inquire about her property, but after she faxed information with property details, they declined to pursue purchase of the property? not because of the lack of sewers, she said, but because the location wouldn’t create much business for them.
Despite the fact that only village residents can vote in the Nov. 3 election, Brandon Township taxpayers also have a stake, not only because of the school buildings located within the village, but also because of the special assessments that would be levied on each municipal building if the proposal passes. Located within the village are the township government offices, as well as the police substation, Brandon Fire Station #1, and the Brandon Township Library.
Supervisor Kathy Thurman doesn’t know the REUs for each building and thus, subsequent cost that would be passed along to township taxpayers.
‘I figure if sewers are coming in, we’re paying,? said Thurman. ‘I think ultimately something needs to be done because so many septics are failing… We had to replace our septic tank a couple years ago at the township offices. It wasn’t the whole field, just the tank. I feel it’s a matter of time before we have to make a bigger investment in our septic system.?
On Wednesday, Water Resources Commission Chief Deputy Phil Sanzica confirmed numbers he gave to The Citizen, and which were first reported in February, continue to be accurate.
Construction of the system would be $13,983,400, with engineering design and construction to cost $1,534,900, legal and financial costs estimated at $397,000, project management $1,166,660, right of way and land acquisition costs $516,660 and contingency of $2,446,340 for a total estimated cost of the system at $20,000,000.
The county would finance the project through a 40-year U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development Loan with an interest rate of approximately 3.75 percent. However, the interest rate passed on to residents will be about 1 percent higher to cover billing and other costs. The interest rate is one important variable. Another is cost of construction, which can’t be known until bids come in.
If the project is approved, all village residents would have a special assessment on their tax bill for 40 years. The construction cost per residency equivalent unit is $25,550 with the average tax bill over 40 years (including interest) $1,200 annually. A payment schedule provided by Bendzinski Financial Advisers to Oakland County shows principal payments consistently at $638.75 annually for the 40 years. However, the interest payments (at 4.5 percent on the schedule) would be sliding, with the first interest payment at $1,121.01, for a total special assessment in 2017 of $1,759.76 for each residence, and decreasing from there annually until the final payment in 2055 of $667.49 (interest and principal). In all, a village resident paying the special assessment for 40 years, including interest, would pay $47,970.13 based on estimated numbers.
Sanzica emphasized that the $20 million project cost is estimated high and could be ‘much lower? after construction bids are received and may also be reduced through a grant if the average median household income in the village is less than $56,000.
Other costs to residents include a maintenance fee to Oakland County of roughly $600 per year that will be adjusted in the future based on inflation and the cost of living.
Village Manager John Lyons reiterated that the numbers are just estimates and believes the project cost will be closer to $16 million.
‘People want to take these numbers and run with them,? he said. ‘We have to do a preliminary estimate to come up with some kind of number. They are not going to be right and it’s nobody’s fault.The whole thing is whether the village can be sustained. Property values plummet when we don’t have sewers and are stuck with septic. The criteria to be met by these septics is going to change and be worse and everyone will have to do an engineered field sooner rather than later.?
There have been 38 septic system failures in the village since 2008. Some have required replacement with an engineered system at a cost that can exceed $20,000. Others have been in a more typical range of $6,000-$8,000.
Dave Pratt has been through the battle for sewers before. This will be the third time he has witnessed a vote on sewers in a community he has lived in. His first time was as a property owner near Lake Nepessing more than 15 years ago and the second time was as a pastor of Heritage United Methodist Church in Snover about seven years ago.
Both communities approved sewers and he sees pros and cons. Lake Nepessing became a much cleaner lake with better fishing after sewers were put in, he said, and in Snover, where a lot of waste was going into a tributary of the Cass River, bad odors disappeared.
‘In both cases, it came down to, ‘You can pass this vote or the DEQ can come in and tell you how to do it, and it will cost you twice as much,?? said Pratt. ‘I understand people don’t want their taxes raised, but as far as the water quality from Kearsley Creek and on down the line, as well as the problem with the very high water table here? if you haven’t put in a new septic field, you will, they only last so long. It’s just really difficult because of the funding.?
Pratt is concerned with how much the church will pay if the wastewater treatment system proposal is passed. According to the REU schedule, churches are assigned .008 REU per seat, meaning a capacity of 125 people would equal a special assessment of 1 REU, or equivalent to the $25,550 assessed on a house. The church has a capacity of more than 125, said Pratt. Additionally, they own the parsonage and an office building in the village. Based on the Bendzinski financial schedule, the current estimated interest rate and construction cost, the church could potentially be assessed as much as $300 per month for all their village buildings.
‘That could hurt us,? said Pratt. ‘We may have to eliminate a position? not be able to afford the choir director or go to a part-time pastor. I support the concept of sewers, but it would cause a hardship. It doesn’t mean it’s not a good idea, but sometimes, you can’t follow through on good ideas. Sewers also increase value when you sell the house and you don’t have to worry about the septic tank being cleaned or getting plugged or replacement? those worries are gone. There are pros and cons and it just depends on the day and what side of the fence you’re on or if you’re straddling it, like me.?