The Brady Township will charge actual costs for various functions such as zoning map amendments, special use land permits, land divisions, boundary adjustments and site plan reviews. The change follows approval of a resolution August 6.
“When people come in and want things done, the taxpayers shouldn’t have to pay for that,” said Supervisor Randy Smith. “The person requesting that should pay for it.”
The costs incurred by the Township for such requests include special meetings of the Planning Commission, Zoning Board of Appeals, or other entities. There are also legal fees and costs for publication of various documents.
“We are way off in collecting the right amounts,” said Smith. “The prices have gone up.”
The policy to collect these fees has been in effect for many years, but the fees collected have not kept up with the actual costs. The resolution increases the cost for the various applications.
The resolution also spells out how the clerk and treasurer will track and collect the fees. The township clerk will record costs of each application, then produce an itemized list for the applicant, Smith said. At the end of the process, the person making the request may receive a refund if the actual costs are less than projected. In other cases, additional money may be needed to complete the process.
Each request has a base application fee according to the resolution. For example, the base fee for a zoning map amendment is $1,500 while a temporary use permit is $200. The base fee for a request to amend the Master Plan is $2,500.
“We don’t make any money on this,” said Smith. “It’s what the actual costs are.”
The Board passed the resolution with all members present voting in favor. Trustee Todd Thompson was absent from the meeting.
In other business, the Board voted to allow the clerk to pay bills up to $1,000 as needed so as to avoid late fees that might be incurred if the Board does not meet before the bill is due. Approving the list of bills is always part of the regular monthly meetings.
Treasurer Elise Stephens alerted the Board that it’s going to need a new printer as the one in use is getting slower and slower. That causes problems when the township is printing a large run such as tax bills.
“We need a faster one for sure,” added Clerk Reagan Hunter.
Board members recommended that Stephens get two or three more quotes in addition to one she mentioned at the meeting.
During citizens’ time, Smith presented information sent to him by County Commissioner John Gisler who was unable to attend the meeting. According to Gisler, the Road Commission of Kalamazoo County is hiring three people. Information can be found at the Commission’s website, kalamazoocountyroads.com. Kalamazoo Emergency Management is looking for volunteers to serve as storm spotters which requires two hours of training.
In the Board’s monthly workshop held one half hour before the regular meeting, Supervisor Smith reported that he had attended the Portage City Council meeting where the city voted to go with one waste hauler. This is an issue that the Brady Township Board has been discussing as well.
While the decision in Portage resulted in a reduction of garbage fees for residents, Smith sees the greater issue is damage to the roads.
“It’s extravagant to have multiple waste haulers that beat the heck out of our roads,” he said. “If we want to use our tax dollars wisely, that should be our focus.”
Smith reported that he has had informal discussions with Vicksburg and Schoolcraft Township officials about coming together to get better leverage for waste hauling agreements.
“It will be interesting to see how it plays out for them,” said Stephens referring to the Portage decision.
Clerk Hunter brought up the idea of having a Township cleanup day, noting that she has researched what other municipalities do such as a shredding day or a recycling day for metals or tires.
This could be done by curbside pickup or perhaps at a central location such as at the high school parking lot, she said.
Trustee John Meyer suggested checking out vendors such as College Hunks Hauling Junk.
Supervisor Smith reminded the Board and attendees that the Township pays for residents to be able to dispose of hazardous wastes for free if they’re brought to the Household Hazardous Waste Center at 1301 Lamont Ave. in Kalamazoo.
