Oshtemo Township’s board continued working through its 2027 budget, focusing on millage rates, police funding, and capital projects.
Building on the revenue shortfall discussed at a previous meeting, officials leaned toward holding both the township’s general operating millage and its police services rates steady for another year rather than raising them, citing concerns about the impact on residents given current economic conditions. Officials said the approach would rely on the township’s existing fund balance to cover the near-term gap between revenue and expenses, while trimming planned capital projects where possible.
Officials discussed the township’s police fund, which is supported through a distinct special assessment rather than the general operating millage. Some officials raised the idea of eventually moving toward the township having its own police department rather than continuing to contract exclusively with the Kalamazoo County Sheriff’s Office, though officials said any change would likely happen gradually, potentially starting with hiring a police chief to oversee deputies already under contract. Officials said that conversation is continuing separately through the township’s police committee and doesn’t need to be resolved this month.
The board also reviewed a slate of road and non-motorized path projects, including work on Drake Road, a bridge project at Asylum Lake Preserve, sidewalk work connecting Ninth Street and Stadium Drive, and a grant-matched project linking Vienna Avenue to Drake Road. Officials said several of these projects are tied to a regional Transportation Improvement Plan with fixed, year-specific funding allocations and if a project isn’t completed in the year it’s assigned, the township could lose that funding entirely, which officials said is part of why staff are tracking project timelines closely.
Officials also discussed longstanding maintenance issues at Township Hall, including ongoing water intrusion, and considered redirecting funds set aside for landscaping repairs toward a broader facilities evaluation plan instead for a more systematic assessment of township buildings’ condition rather than addressing problems one at a time as they come up.
On the parks side, officials weighed how to handle aging playground equipment, noting that fencing off broken equipment hasn’t reliably kept children from using it, which they said raises a liability concern. Officials discussed whether to replace equipment as it fails or remove it instead if funding is tight.
The board’s next budget meeting is scheduled for September 29, when department heads are expected to present detailed budgets before the board finalizes millage rates for 2027.
