ARCHBOLD WEATHER

Commissioners Approve Levy For Senior Center




The Fulton County Commissioners will direct the Fulton County Board of Elections to place a 1.1-mill property tax levy renewal on the May 5 special election ballot.

The move came during the commissioner’s regular meeting, Monday, Feb. 9.

Dean Genter, commissioner, said they postponed action on the measure last week in order to meet with the Senior Center’s advisory board and the Toledo-based Area Office on Aging. That meeting was held Friday, Feb. 6.

Genter said the commissioners wanted to "take some time and get a feeling for what the Senior Center Advisory Board felt- whether they could run the center with a renewal.

"They felt they could."

A renewal of the center’s 1.1- mill levy will generate about $880,000 for the center’s operations.

The senior center levy was increased from nine-tenths (.9) of a mill to the 1.1-mill figure in a 2004 vote. Genter said if approved by voters, the renewal would be based on 2004 property valuations. Under Ohio law, property tax levy revenue is not allowed to grow with inflation.

In addition, Genter said in the Feb. 6 meeting, the possibility of applying for federal grant money for the center’s home-delivered meal program was discussed.

"We never applied for those funds. We did at the beginning of the program, but went away from that," he said.

Federal grant money would be used to offset local levy dollars, he said.

Also discussed were new programs aimed at keeping seniors in their own homes.

"As the population gets older, we will need help keeping residents out of nursing homes.

"We know how costly it is to put a loved one in a nursing home. It’s costly for the family, and costly for the State of Ohio," he said.

"The programs are coming," he said.



Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *