GREENWOOD TWP- Moving the Greenwood Township annual meeting from March to June did nothing to boost attendance. Fewer than 15 township residents showed up for the June 23 reconvened annual meeting, down from almost 40 who attended the meeting on March 8.
At the March 8 meeting, residents voted 25-13 to recess the meeting and reconvene in June.
“Many of our voters are gone,” said Barb Lofquist at the March meeting. “It would be nice to have it in June.”
In past years, attendance at a summer annual meeting has drawn a crowd, but apparently with little question about the annual levy, and with the changeover of the balance of power on the town board, there was no question the vote would be anticlimactic.
Those in the audience at Thursday’s meeting were all of one mind, and the vote to set the levy at $150,000 was unanimous on a voice vote.
Jeff Maus was elected moderator of the meeting.
Budget information presented by John Bassing showed projected township financial reserves dropping from $592,030 at the end of 2022 to $525,228 at the end of 2023. This includes two restricted funds, the Isle of Pines bridge fund, which is paid for by island residents for future bridge replacement costs, and the trail fund, for which the township levies $2,000 a year. This leaves an unrestricted projected balance of $471,730, still higher than the project township budget spending of $360,785 in 2023. (See chart on tax comparison.)
Bassing also did research on the tax levy impact on Greenwood residents, which showed it to be significantly lower than Breitung, Eagles Nest, and Tower.
The residents had a discussion about ambulance service and the wish of many residents to have paramedic-staffed rigs serving the area. The town board has called for proposals for a study to see if such a service would be feasible and will be discussing the proposals at their regular meeting on July 12.
The residents set the 2023 annual meeting for June 22 at 6 p.m. on a voice vote with one resident, Supervisor Paul Skubic, voting against. He noted that the meeting would still need to be opened on the regular annual meeting date in March, which is also township election day. Chairman Sue Drobac noted that meeting often goes very late, and the town board needs to meet afterwards to pay bills and canvass votes.