BELLVILLE, Ohio — Bellville residents will vote on a 4 mil replacement street levy on Nov 3. Officials say the levy will provide income to maintain streets and alleys in Bellville.
“It is not a new tax,” said Fiscal Officer Brigette Gatton, “but it is a replacement levy and not a renewal levy.”
Gatton said replacement levies are based on the most recent property values. Renewal levies, she explained, are based on what the property values were when the levy was originally passed.
If voters approve the measure, the 4 mil street levy could provide up to $140,000 a year over the next five years. The Village of Bellville collected $96,686.63 from their current street levy this year.
The replacement levy could provide Bellville with an additional $43,000 per year from the same 4 mil rate, Gatton said.
The purpose of the street levy is the “construction, reconstruction and resurfacing of streets and bridges” under the jurisdiction of the village, explained Mayor Darrell Banks. Each year officials in the village prioritize which streets and alleys require repair or paving.
“We need this income very much,” Banks said. He explained that it is a matter of maintaining the necessary infrastructure. “We need to keep up with paving projects. Getting behind results in more costly repairs,” the Mayor said.
Village Administrator Larry Weirich noted that the village has “streets that need worked on.” This year Bellville officials said they paved Huron and School Streets and made repairs to Ogle Street. If passed, the levy would take effect in 2017, officials said.
