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BUCHANAN – Buchanan City Commissioners have re-established a special assessment district as the first step to approving a special assessment to support the Southwestern Michigan Community Ambulance Service.

     Buchanan is one of six municipalities that own SMCAS which also contracts with two other Cass County townships to serve them. Historically, residents in the six municipalities have paid an annual assessment to support the ambulance service but a change in the SMCAS bylaws has governments revisiting the subject.

     The proposal in Buchanan is to assess all residential units and commercial/industrial parcels $40 this year and then raising it until it is $50 per unit/parcel in five years. The city and other municipalities previously assessed $20 per unit/parcel for many years.

Municipalities pay their share of SMCAS expenses on a per capita basis. This year, municipalities are choosing a variety of means to pay their shares of SMCAS operations: special assessments, payments out of the general fund, a mix of the two to lower the assessment amount as well as a small millage levy.

People who spoke out, called or sent emails against establishing the district Monday were primarily concerned about seeing their tax bills go higher even if by just a small amount. City Clerk Kalla Langston noted that some who contacted her were confusing this special assessment with the August countywide votes to renew the 9-1-1 and public safety millages.

Randy Biggart noted that their property tax bill had gone from $1,800 to $2,700 a year in five years. “You’re driving home ownership and businesses away,” he said. “At some point, you have to say enough is enough and not require people to pay more.”

Commissioner Dan Vigansky noted that it’s not really an increase but a continuation of past practices. “We’re just doing what we didn’t do last year,” he said. “Last year it was too late to do a hearing so we paid it out of the general fund.”

The next steps in the process include a special meeting Monday, Sept. 30 at 8 a.m. at the Buchanan City Hall to discuss the cost side of the special assessment and a public hearing and approval of the special assessment at the commission’s next regular meeting on Oct. 14. Everything has to be done by mid-October to get the assessment on the winter tax bills.

Monday’s SMCAS discussion didn’t mention topics that had been raised in previous meetings such as SMCAS’ proposed contract to serve the city of Dowagiac and other Cass County municipalities. They lost their ambulance service last year when Pride Care pulled out of the area.

People also didn’t touch on the possibility of SMCAS merging with Medic 1 which serves most of the rest of Berrien County. SMCAS operations manager Josh Kay said Monday outside of the meeting that a possible merger with Medic 1 is just in the discovery stages and would be years away.

Monday’s meeting featured updates on city projects as well as the renewal of a proposal to bring pickleball to the city.

Biggart also spoke about pickleball which he first brought to the commission more than a year ago. Commissioners encouraged him to work again with the Buchanan Area Recreation Board to come up with plans. They agreed that it would be a good project for the city and suggested that Ravish Park would be a good site.

On city projects, City Manager Tim Lynch said that work is progressing on a couple of fronts and that the city has been informed that it will be getting a $558,500 grant to locate and identify lead service lines in the city. The grant comes from the federal government through the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy.

Lynch also said that the design work is complete on replacing the retaining wall on a section of East Front Street. The next step will be to go out for bids to do the work. The wall has been crumbling for a number of years and people cannot walk along that section of sidewalk.

Monday’s meeting also featured a water quality presentation from Marcy Hamilton of the Southwest Michigan Planning Commission, the renewal of three adult use and one medical marijuana permits and a contract with Solberg Knowles & Associates of Zeeland, Mich. to do chemical feed and other maintenance at the water plant for $6,795.