The Montague Township Board commended township staff during its Aug. 11 meeting for their work during the Aug. 4 primary elections, which saw a turnout of 381 Montague Township voters, both in-person and through absentee ballots.
None of the proposed millages throughout Muskegon County passed during this election, including the millage that would allow Fruitland Township to enter into a contract with the White Lake Ambulance Authority. Both Montague Township Supervisor Jeff King and Clerk Drew Roesler expressed disappointment in the millage’s failure.
“I’m not surprised,” King said of the millage failing, “There was a vocal group against it, and they put out a bit of misinformation. Things were not very clear.”
There was also concern over a lack of clarity in the language of the millage, as it stipulated WLAA could levy up to 1.9 mills, although the current millage across participating communities is presently set at 1.65 mills.
“Emergency services are never something that people think or want to pay for until they’re in a time of need,” concluded Roesler.
Also at the meeting, King reported a letter he’d received from a family interested in purchasing township property on Anderson Road. The land is not currently listed for sale, but regardless, the interested party expressed interest in moving to the area and building a home, offering to purchase the property at fair market value.
King brought up instances in the past wherein the township sold unlisted property to interested parties, and asked the rest of the board for their input.
Trustee Jay Goodrich gave his, saying, “I’ve thought for a long time it’d be nice to create some area where people can build some nice homes… We have so much acreage and it's not bringing in any tax revenue. At the same time. our schools need more students.”
King agreed with the sentiment of bringing in younger families, “I like the idea of [helping] somebody get started.”
The board left the discussion as something to consider and come back to at a later time, as the interested party was in no rush to purchase the property.
