The News-Herald
Another Viewpoint Regarding Concord Township Issue 1
Submitted October 29, 2020
The upcoming election represents enormous consequences, certainly on a national level but there are many important local issues as well. And none are more contested than the Issue 1 tax levy being put forth by the trustees of Concord Township to fund a single, exorbitant fire station when both of our community’s stations sorely need to be replaced. And beyond the inappropriate size and cost of the proposed fire stations is the misdirected attempt of our trustees to try and fund this capital project with yet another tax increase.
Factual information is critical for Concord’s voters to be able to support the needs of our first responders, but in a way that taps into other available funding sources and not another rush to burden the residents of this relatively small community with additional taxes.
And the frustrating part of this whole debate is it is nearly the exact same as we at Affordable Concord Taxes (ACT) and our many supporters addressed just one year ago. But in that case, more than 65% of Concord’s voters sent a very clear message to the trustees and Township administration that we refused to pay any more additional taxes and we expected the trustees to go back to the drawing table and present revised plans that were more reasonable and cost-effective – all in line with the size and emergency service needs of a township the size of Concord.
And yet, here we are again. They’ve proposed the same enormous stations and want to raise residents’ taxes for 26 years. The trustees talk about the monthly payment per household will be small, but $1600 over the life of the levy is a lot. It’s important to note that many residents chose the semi-rural lifestyle and benefits of our township because of the lower taxes and with the idea they would retire here, meaning they would be dependent on lower income levels then.
So the facts are important but unfortunately, and just like the national presidential election, there are many claims of “fake news” by the Township.
Here are the facts:
Fact No. 1: The $8 million tax levy will only pay for one enormous $8.8 million main station and the Township plans to spend a total of $13.75 million for both stations.
Fact No. 2: The trustees can build both new fire stations economically, starting with Station No. 2, without raising taxes. Their own financial presentation on July 14,2020 showed the way forward. And they would still have more than $600,000 annually for any emergency expense.
Fact No. 3: The trustees are asking citizens to fund the stations, so they have a large “slush fund” for other unpopular township projects. The trustees collect more than $1 million of special business and employee taxes each year. Over the 26-year levy, that’s $26 million for their “other projects,” such as the restarted Town Center on Capital Parkway.
Fact No. 4: Concord’s plan is excessive compared to fire stations built in the last two years in similar Ohio townships. Concord is a township and it’s not appropriate to compare the cost for stations to cities or municipalities. Other townships we’ve talked to spend $100 to $200 less per square foot on their stations and still provide premiere safety features for their first responders.
ACT strongly encourages the residents of Concord Township to defeat Issue 1 and send a clear message to our elected officials - once again - to meet the safety service needs of our community in a more fiscally responsible manner.
Michael McCullough,
\Concord Township
Get the facts,
not the Township Spin
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DID YOU KNOW?
PRO FIREFIGHTERS • PRO CONCORD • PRO TAXPAYERS
As printed in the News-Herald, Another Viewpoint. Monday, October 26, 2020
Vote no on Concord bond issue
I am writing this article as a 50-year Concord resident, business consultant and former CEO who has managed and overseen many construction projects worth millions of dollars.
One year ago, I joined many of my neighbors and friends to inform voters that Concord could build cost-effective fire stations without raising taxes. The message was heard, and citizens voted two to one to reject the trustees' proposal to build a massive fire station funded by a tax increase.
After the election, I was hopeful that our new trustees would listen to their voters, learn from what similar Ohio townships have done, and quickly come back with a plan to build reasonably sized, cost-effective stations that could be funded with existing township revenue.
If the Trustees had truly listened to the many residents who took the time to attend the "Stakeholder Meetings" back in June and July, they would have implemented the plan they presented, which would use existing taxes to secure financing without raising our taxes and begin building immediately.
Instead, the Trustees proposed an $8 million tax levy that will raise our taxes for 26 years.
Issue 1 only determines how stations are funded. Our first responders deserve safe and updated, but reasonable, facilities.
In fact, the proposed $8 million tax levy will only pay for one enormous $8.8 million main station on Rt. 608, while Station No. 2 on Prouty Rd. -- and which is the neediest of the two -- would not be built for years.
I oppose the 26-year tax increase and the Township's plan to spend $13.75 million for constructing two fire stations, because it will be used to fund stations that are inappropriate to our community's specific needs. Concord is currently being served by two fire stations that total about 8,000 square feet, and receives an excellent ISO 4 rating, which will not improve with new stations.
The justification for bigger stations is to accommodate equipment and operations that are now held outside of the existing stations -- three desks for fire prevention staff, as well as storage space for 10 file cabinets, an ATV style rescue unit and a reserve ambulance. Yes, an improved decontamination area is needed.
But these additions do not justify a quadruple increase in size, with the additional 27,000 square feet.
I also oppose the tax increase because the cost per square foot is excessive.
To call the proposed Station No. 1 a Taj Mahal is not far off, with an estimated cost per square foot of $372, and Station No. 2 has a cost estimate of $430 per square foot. Consider the following comparisons with similar fire stations recently built in townships elsewhere in the state.
The Fire Chief of Truro Township, outside Columbus, reports that they built a 16,400 square foot station for $3.7 million, or $226 per square foot in 2020. And they have more than 7,500 emergency calls per year, compared to 2,639 calls for Concord.
Cincinnati area Goshen Township did even better, building their most recent station for $220 per square foot in 2018, said their Fire Department Lieutenant.
I also oppose paying for any fire station with a tax increase because the township can secure financing that won't raise our taxes and utilize their existing special business and employee taxes, totaling over $1 million annually.
The majority are the Joint Economic Development District (JEDD) funds, set up "provide a funding mechanism to pay for infrastructure and safety issues without increasing property taxes across the township."
Historically, this slush fund has been used for Trustees' pet projects without taxpayer approval, such as the millions spent on the failed Town Center/ Capital Parkway roundabout project.
We have been told that the tax increase is "affordable," but I don't think that it is affordable to spend $1,600 for the average household -- or $63 per year for 26 years -- for excessive stations that can be funded by the Township via other means that won't raise our taxes.
I urge all Concord residents to Vote No on Issue 1 on November 3.
John Pesec
Concord Township Resident
PRO FIREFIGHTERS • PRO CONCORD • PRO TAXPAYERS
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