Look at this map–the first one proposed–and shift Hebron to be with Alden and Hartland, rather than with Richmond and Burton and you have what the Township Consolidation Task Force recommended Tuesday.
The McHenry County Consolidation Task Force recommended the first map proposed by proponents of merging townships.
The proposal would have the two largest townships–Algonquin and Grafton put together. The combined population would be about one-third of the county’s.
McHenry Township would be merged with Greenwood. That would mean both sides of Wonder Lake would be together. It would also mean that Lakemoor and northern Woodstock would be in the same township.
Nunda Township would be combined with Dorr Township. Nunda starts on the east at Island Lake, includes northern Crystal Lake, most of Bull Valley and most of Woodstock.
Richmond and Burton would be consolidated. It would mirror the current McHenry, Nunda and Algonquin Townships in size.
Alden, Hebron and Hartland Townships would be put together–the only three township proposal. The Alden and Hebron Township area is already joined in a unit school district. Hartland is just south of Alden Township.
Consolidating Chemung and Dunham Townships would put most of Harvard in the same township. Now, Task Force member Donna Kurtz pointed out, there are two township halls four blocks apart.
In the southeastern part of McHenry County, Marengo would be merged with Riley Township.
Just to the east, Coral Township would be joined with Seneca Township. Eastern Seneca Township is in Woodstock.
For any of this to happen, the County Board must order referendums.
If voters in any township in a proposed consolidation plan votes against the merger, it will not go through.
I don’t know if it will save taxpayers a single penny but it will certainly centralize power into the hands of fewer people.
It will also make it easier for the unions to move into the townships with increased worker numbers per township and less boards/government officials to deal with.
Hear hear ONeill
Would that be the 5 member consolidation task force consisting of McHenry County Board members:
– Carolyn Schofield, R-Crystal Lake, chairwoman of the task force
– Donna Kurtz, R-Crystal Lake
– Michele Aavang, R-Woodstock.
plus
– Nunda Township Trustee Michael Shorten – who is active in the group spearheading the consolidation effort
and
Coral Township Supervisor Roger Naylor – who was nominated by the McHenry County Township Supervisors Association.
Northwest Herald
McHenry County township consolidation task force starts meeting Tuesday
July 11, 2015
http://www.nwherald.com/2015/07/10/mchenry-county-township-consolidation-task-force-starts-meeting-tuesday/a3usygk
[clap, clap, clap] Mr. O’Neill
So, why do we even need these township governments at all?
Back east, most services are provided by the county, including school systems.
Of course, the unions don’t rule the roost in VA and MD like they do here.
What a shock that they reached a forgone conclusion, ignoring all the concerns, comments, and “dots” and without facts or figures to support their “vote”.
All I can hope for now is a giant backfire.
Townships exist to serve certain basic functions:
(1) Maintain certain of the roads in unincorporated areas;
(2) Do property assessments in both incorporated and unincorporated areas;
(3) Distribute interim public assistance to persons in need who live in both incorporated and unincorporated areas;
(4) Maintain township cemeteries (rarely used today).
If we didn’t already have townships, would we create 17 separate units of government to perform those functions and, if so , would we locate them without regard to current road or population distributions?
Townships originated in the northeast and settlers brought them to the midwest.
Per the US Census Bureau, 20 states currently have townships.
Connecticut (T)
Massachusetts (T)
New Hampshire (T)
Pennsylvania
Illinois
Michigan
New Jersey
Rhode Island (T)
Indiana
Minnesota (T)
New York (T)
South Dakota
Kansas Missouri
North Dakota
Vermont (T)
Maine (T)
Nebraska
Ohio
Wisconsin (T)
In states with a (T), they are typically referred to as towns.
Source:
US Census Bureau
Individual State Descriptions: 2012
2012 Census of Governments
Issued September 2013
G12-CG-ISD
http://www2.census.gov/govs/cog/2012isd.pdf
In New Jersey, townships act as municipalities, not as a middle layer of government between the county and municipalities.
Just like Illinois, New Jersey has several different names for a municipality, which in the case of New Jersey, in addition to township, is Borough, Township, City, & Town.
There are people in all layers of government in Illinois that know about waste and how to make government more efficient but most are afraid of retribution so don’t speak out.
The need for any taxing district varies depending on the specific situation.
What’s happened in Illinois is as one unit of government will be sunsetted, a different unit of government or line item on a property tax bill will often be created around the same time for a different purpose.
For example there was not always a Housing Authority in each county.
Many of the more recent taxing districts in Illinois were created to expand services, such as park districts and library districts.
Probably one of the best opportunities for consolidation is in fire protection districts and departments.
But once again any time a unit of government is consolidated in Illinois, one has to think long and hard about how that might increase salaries and benefits of those remaining.
Illinois is often a very detailed political environment where almost any reform has potential drawbacks due to all the rules and laws, policies and procedures that have been created over the years.
They are like weeds.
As someone who was born in Maryland and has done some inquiry as to local government there, I believe the schools have been spun off into an entity separate from the county…at least in Talbot County.
School districts are part of county government in Maryland with the exception of Baltimore.
The Census Bureau describes all the forms of local government in each state.
http://www2.census.gov/govs/cog/gc0212md.pdf
The Maryland Legislature also puts out a detailed document which describes local governments in Maryland.
Overview of Maryland Local Governments – Finances and Demographic Information
Department of Legislative Services
Office of Policy Analysis
Maryland General Assembly
Annapolis, Maryland
January 2013
http://dls.state.md.us/data/polanasubare/polanasubare_intmatnpubadm/polanasubare_intmatnpubadm_annrep/Overview-of-Local-Maryland-Governments-WEB-COPY.pdf
If the only impediment to dissolution of townships is a time period of ‘no road or assessment services limbo’, the county board could easily fix this by resolution.
In the eventuality of township abolition, a contract is set in place to pay (either private contractors or current township employees) for interim road maintenance services.
Assessments will be frozen for the short time, or reviewed by county assessor if protested.
The only winner yesterday was the County Democrat party.
This GOP led consolidation effort will result in the election of Democrats to the Board.
Taxpayers are fed up with the ineptitude displayed by this
Task Force and the “Oakland Hills” approach to “hope and change” in the County.
At this point further action by the County Board led by Gottemoller, Walkup and Kurtz will only help the County Democrats.
The report above does not mention that the consolidation of Chemung – Dunham and Richmond – Burton received so-called ‘consenus’.
Kurtz and Shorten pushed for consolidation of Hebron with either Hartland and Alden OR with McHenry and Greenwood.
No other ‘consensus’ was achieved.
In other words, all the taxpayer funded maps etc. left the southern half of the County untouched.
The map displayed here did not receive ‘consensus’ based on my interpretation of yesterday’s fiasco.
Schofield is presenting their findings at the Board meeting on Sept. 1.
Numbers:
Consolidation will help the GOP.
Only townships with over 15,000 population can elect people via partisan elections.
If you combine townships which now have non partisan elections, you will pick up the ability to have GOP candidates in those townships.
Very few Democrats show up to vote in consolidated election years so the GOP candidate almost always wins.