Vicksburg Village Manager Jim Mallery at a meeting last month read a public statement centering on concerns related to Schoolcraft Township’s tax roll, which includes a portion of the village.
The village has only limited information about the issue, Mallery said, adding that Village Attorney Catherine Kaufman is researching it.
During the Village Council’s Dec. 1 meeting, Mallery broached the subject as part of the manager’s report portion of the agenda. The matter was listed as “Brief Comments on Schoolcraft Township Tax Roll Discovery.”
Mallery prefaced his comments with a few off-script statements, beginning with the fact 2026 marks his 10-year anniversary as Vicksburg’s village manager.
“Ten years ago, I started on this journey (and) part of that foundation has been the commitment to transparency,” Mallery said. “Transparency is excellent, fun and noteworthy when you’re talking about positive things … but if you’re committed to transparency, that also (includes acknowledging) times that aren’t so comfortable.”
Reading from a prepared statement, Mallery then dove into the issue.
“Starting near the end of October, I’ve been working to identify concerns related to the 2025 tax roll prepared by officials of Schoolcraft Township. I initiated meetings with township officials in late October and again in mid-November,” he said. “During these discussions, I became aware that Schoolcraft Township had identified concerns with the tax roll they prepared, potentially as early as February 2025.”
Mallery continued.
“I also learned that the township had engaged a new assessing firm, which began to conduct a comprehensive review of the tax roll throughout the summer months of 2025, and that written communication occurred between Schoolcraft Township officials and certain village of Vicksburg property owners during the late fall of 2025; communication that village officials were neither made aware of nor included in,” Mallery stated. “At this time, the village has only limited information regarding the nature and extent of these potential issues and impact on the village of Vicksburg.”
In conclusion, Mallery said out of obligation to protect the village of Vicksburg and its residents, the municipality has sought the services of village attorney Catherine Kaufman.
“We will continue to gather all relevant facts surrounding the tax roll prepared by Schoolcraft Township. I want to assure the village council and the public that we are treating this matter with the utmost seriousness and transparency,” Mallery noted. “It is my expectation that Schoolcraft Township officials will now do likewise, as well. As additional information becomes available, I’ll keep the council fully informed and provide timely updates to our community.”
Reached after the meeting, Mallery said per the advice of Kaufman, he was not at liberty to elaborate beyond what he shared at the Dec. 1 meeting.
Council members met in closed session Dec. 15 in regard to a “written legal opinion,” though it was not clarified if the 50-minute closed session was related to the matter raised by Mallery two weeks previous.
Council member Ryan Wagner, made a motion to authorize Mallery to contact Kaufman “and authorize action regarding the issue discussed in closed session.” Wagner’s motion was approved unanimously.
An email was sent and phone message was left for Schoolcraft Township Supervisor Don Ulsh via his township email address and to his township telephone extension Dec. 31.
In other business, council members hailed the Dec. 13 “Christmas in the Burg” as a success.
Mallery said the annual event is staged without a lot of focus on the behind-the-scenes effort made by Vicksburg Department of Public Works staff members. He acknowledged DPW and Vicksburg Police Department for their time and commitment to the day-long event.
“We had an event with the added element of extremely cold temperatures but we still had an incredible turnout with the weather that we had,” Mallery said. “We had no incidents … and put a pretty good lid on downtown accessibility so it’s all walkable and safe. I’m really proud of DPW, our police department and staff.”
Trustee Carl Keller said he, too, was impressed with the unified effort put forth to assemble the components of Christmas in the Burg, especially in the face of a deep-freeze the area was experiencing at the time.
“It was really cold … and they were all out there all day long,” he said, referring to DPW and VPD members before adding a moment of levity. “Could’ve used a ride home that night afterwards because my feet were frozen, but that’s OK.”
Trustee Chad Kissinger said he and his family members dressed as if they were going skiing.
“Still, a great turnout for how cold it was and super exciting that we can do this type of thing,” Kissinger said.
Trustee Wendy Pheils said the village is fortunate to have employees who go above and beyond.
“DPW and all of the police officers … we appreciate you when you do things when it’s not below zero temperatures and we extremely appreciate you when you do things (when it is excessively cold),” Pheils said.
In a separate matter, Mallery clarified the village’s Jan. 19 council meeting will be bumped a week to Jan. 26 due to the Martin Luther King federal holiday.
