County pledges full faith and credit for Goguac Lake special assessment notes to fund drainage work

The Calhoun County Board of Commissioners approved a request Dec. 4 to pledge the county’s full faith and credit to secure approximately $450,000 in special‑assessment notes to fund design and engineering work to set lake levels for Goguac Lake and related drainage district work.

County administration described the financing mechanism: the water resources office will issue notes to pay contractors, and property owners in the drainage district will be assessed to repay those notes once the project proceeds. Water Resources Commissioner Tommy Miller, present at the meeting, said the project follows a petition that the board approved in early 2023 and that the county has already spent about $74,000 on work that will be assessed.

Miller told the board that Emerald and Laird lakes have historically been receiving water from Goguac through a piping system and that prior users were not paying assessments. The project will require easements and permit work; Miller said the plan could include pumping into the City of Battle Creek storm sewer in some scenarios. Miller emphasized the need to establish a legal lake level and to secure easements before the county can fully control the system.

The board voted to approve the pledge by a 6–0 vote. Scott and Miller noted the low fiscal risk to the county because special assessments will repay the financing; the water resources office legal counsel drafted the resolution and will proceed with required steps including permits and easements.

The motion passed on a unanimous vote; the county clerk will record the special assessment notes and related documentation as the project moves into design and permitting.