Resident questions large reserves; trustees say funds are earmarked for major projects

During public comment, resident Rusty Holman told the board he reviewed recent financials and urged trustees to pursue returning money to taxpayers. Holman said that after accounting for the public works bond, the township still showed "over 19,000,000, almost $20,000,000 in reserves" against $18,000,000 in appropriations and described that as "over a 12 month supply of money."

Trustees and staff responded with detailed context. An unidentified trustee and Mister Wright said the apparent reserves reflect planned capital spending: a $5,000,000 bond issuance for the Public Works building (with an expected drawdown of about $2,000,000 in the near term), ARPA funds allocated to Mounts Park remediation, funds set aside for a ladder truck purchase and other designated uses. Mister Wright explained the township intentionally saved roughly $2–2.5 million to reduce borrowing and limit interest expense.

Trustees also discussed differences between township outside millage and city revenue structures to explain why levy and carryover calculations differ from perceptions. Staff said certain reserve categories are legally or practically sequestered — for example, roadway levy funds are dedicated to road maintenance and are not used for the Public Works building.

The board thanked Rusty Holman for his comments and summarized that while reserves appear large in aggregate, substantial near‑term obligations and budgeted capital projects will materially reduce those balances.