By MICHELLE MULLINSDAILY SOUTHTOWN |OCT 07, 2020 AT 12:01 PM
Control of the Homer Township Road District is at stake in the Nov. 3 election.
Steve Balich Editor note: A no vote keeps things the same with the Road District in place.
Homer Township has a referendum that seeks to abolish the road district that, if approved, would have the township take control of its assets, property and the services it provides, including road maintenance and snow removal. Township officials said residents would see the same services, but the consolidation of the two governmental entities would increase accountability and transparency and streamline services.
The village of Homer Glen, on the other hand, is working with Homer Township Highway Commissioner Mike DeVivo to transfer stewardship of the road district to the village. Village officials say if voters reject the question abolishing the road district, they can proceed with the plan to take ownership of the road district’s assets and create their own public works department.
Village attorney Eric Hanson said that transferring stewardship of the road district’s assets is legal under the Illinois Local Government Property Transfer Act and the Illinois Highway Code.
“We wouldn’t be here if we decided this isn’t something that’s doable,” Hanson said.
Homer Glen, Homer Township and the Homer Township Road District are three separate government bodies. Each year, the road district levies a tax on all township residents to pay for road maintenance.
There are about 233 miles of roads within the boundaries of Homer Township, which includes Homer Glen and parts of Lockport, Lemont and New Lenox. The road district maintains 153 of the miles of roads in the township, of which about 135 miles are within Homer Glen village limits, said Homer Glen Village Manager Karie Friling said.
“Homer Township Board controls the levying of taxes and approval of budgets and the Homer Township Road District controls all the decision-making regarding the maintenance and operations of the roads,” Friling said.
(Steve Balich Editors Note: By Illinois Statute Homer Township Road District Levy includes the entire Township. Cities are responsible to take care of their roads despite taxpayers from these cities paying into the Township Road District. By Illinois Statute there is a formula that equals about half of the money taxed in the Township portion of the city goes back to the city. This is the same rules for every Township in Illinois. Lockport tax is not being unfairly charged. Homer Glen taxpayers fall under the same law, but Homer Glen Hires Homer Township Road District to do Homer Glen Roads. Homer Glen pays Homer Township their half of the Levy as payment. Homer Glen can hire any Company, City, or Road District as Homer Glen sees fit. There is an intra governmental agreement presently between Homer Glen and the Homer Township Road District which is voted on each year.
There are nearly 48 miles of township roads within the city limits of Lockport and nearly 3 miles in New Lenox. These roads are maintained by those towns’ public works departments. Other roads are private or belong to Will County or the Illinois Department of Transportation.
Homer Glen does not have a public works department, but relies on an intergovernmental agreement with the township for road maintenance. Village officials said they are vulnerable because the agreement can be nullified with only one year’s notice.
Mayor George Yukich said when the village incorporated in 2001, it did not have the money to establish a public works department so the new village relied on the partnership with the township.
“The village has grown significantly throughout the years, and we are now ready to take the next step,” Yukich said. “If we don’t, we remain beholden to the township.”
Yukich said Homer Glen is the largest Illinois municipality that is dependent on a road district to oversee its streets.
DeVivo, the township highway commissioner, has been working with the village to pursue a transfer of assets, saying it is “the right thing for every resident in the community.” DeVivo does not plan to run for reelection in the spring when his term ends.
Yukich said that the village wants to control its own destiny and Homer Glen residents have already paid for the road district’s assets.
However, township Supervisor Pam Meyers said that Homer Glen taxpayers aren’t the only residents who have financially contributed to the road district. Taxpayers of unincorporated areas as well as parts of Lockport, New Lenox and Lemont have also paid into the road district and transferring the assets to the village is unfair to all township residents.
Steve Balich Editors Note: As I stated in the above Editor Note, State Law is being followed and cities despite having the burden of maintaining their roads, have no claim to assets or money from the Township Road District since the Road District is and has followed State Statute. This may seem unfair but is State law and followed by all Illinois Townships. If you don’t like the law, get it changed.
Meyers said there are more than 40,000 residents living in the township, and only 25,000 of those residents live in the village of Homer Glen.
Steve Balich Editors Note: Except in townships with fewer than four miles of road, the highway commissioner is responsible for maintenance of all roads and bridges in the district that are not part of any other government road system. (From Township Of Illinois)
The township highway commissioner cannot decide to give away the road district’s assets, which are deemed necessary and not surplus, Meyers said.
DeVivo said Homer Glen is willing to compensate taxpayers of other municipalities that are paying into the road district, and said it is unfair that towns such as Lockport have been paying into the district but are not receiving services.
Steve Balich Editors Note: The Township Road District Could Levy only for 18 miles of unincorporated roads. With that said Homer Glen could still hire out Homer Township to take care of Homer Glen Roads, but would need to Levy the dollars which may be the same as currently being paid, so that is no tax increase. Lockport is currently doing their own roads. By law Lockport can also make an agreement to have Homer Township Road District do all their Roads or a portion of their Roads.
With this option a no vote is required for the Referendum
The village said that if a transfer of stewardship would occur, Homer Township residents who live in Lockport, New Lenox and Lemont would no longer pay taxes to the township for roads.
If the village receives stewardship of the road district, village officials anticipate eliminating the Homer Township Road District levy and then levying the same amount in taxes as a new public works department. Because only Homer Glen residents would pay this, instead of the whole township, village taxes would rise about $57 per $100,000 of home market value, they said.
The village is also willing to enter into an intergovernmental agreement with the township to maintain its 18 miles of roads until these areas are annexed into a neighboring town.
Meyers said this is a concern for township officials because future boards do not have to abide by that agreement.
Meyers said the township and the village’s intergovernmental agreement began to help the fledgling village so residents would continue to have road services. The agreement has worked for the last 20 years and was lauded by the state three years ago as a model of intergovernmental cooperation, Meyers said.
The township was caught off guard when it heard this summer that the village and the township commissioner were working on the transfer of stewardship plan.
As a result, the township placed its referendum on the November ballot and could pursue future litigation against the road district and the village of Homer Glen.
Both township and village officials encourage residents to contact them if they have questions. The township and the village are also updating their websites.
The village will hold a public forum at 7 p.m. Oct. 12 at the Homer Glen Village Hall, 14240 W. 151st St. Residents can also attend the meeting remotely via Zoom. Sign in information for the Zoom connection is at www.homerglenil.org.
Michelle Mullins is a freelance reporter for the Daily
