Farmers Weekly Review

By Karen Haave

Green Garden Township officials have been taxing residents there “for many years” for funds to build a new town hall.

To date, $659,301.54 has been collected, but there has been no forward movement to replace or renovate the old, tiny, ADA-non compliant building at the corner of Center and Monee-Manhattan Roads.

So 15 registered voters, tired of waiting, submitted a resolution instructing the town board to either make some construction plans or give the money back to the taxpayers.

The resolution will be included on the annual Town Hall Meeting agenda for April 18. There had been some confusion because the resolution was not on the agenda posted on the township’s website as of April 13.

Contacted directly on April 13, Township Supervisor Don Murday said the resolution would be on the April 18 Town Hall agenda, and he would direct the clerk to update the agenda on the website.

Asked if he had any comment on the resolution, Murday said no.

The resolution calls for “information that will need to be presented to the residents of Green Garden on behalf of the Capital Fund Project. Green Garden residents need to have complete information presented and acted upon pertaining to the funds and future plans of the township town hall.”

According to the resolution, the township owns 40 acres of land where a meeting hall could be built.

“Whereas, there needs to be a clear definition of the status of the future plans of the future town hall or other use of the Capital funds,” it reads. “Plans need to be available for residents to view. Included should be a selected location, drawing or renderings available for all residents to see, as well as anticipated timeframe for beginning and for completion of any proposed projects. Residents will have input for the amount of Capital funds or any other funds which will be used for (it) in the future. The estimated cost needs to be addressed and what the reality of the plan will be, and the estimated funds needed for this project.”

The document also notes that the public record of the township’s June 13, 2022, board meeting, Murday reported that he and Trustee Bill Wagner “met with Ragan Pattison, director of Business Development, and Matt Zilecki, Project Executive for Wight & Company, to discuss future town hall options, and what may be logical and realistic.”

The resolution calls for “a committee of non-bias (sic) and non-affiliated residents who will meet on a monthly basis to consider the use of our existing properties and cost considerations, with a committee member from each quadrant of Green Garden. This committee would be able to present to Green Garden Township Trustees the pros and cons of all possible solutions each month until finalized. Once the committee research is complete, the township trustees will vote to proceed to the next step in the process of making the town hall a reality. This would be a recommending body only.”

In closing, the resolution notes that “the committee will recommend whether this plan is a feasible option, or if the proposed renovation of the current town hall will be sufficient to serve all residents of Green Garden Township going forward, and therefore returning the Capital funds to the taxpayers of Green Garden Township.”

Karen Haave is a freelance reporter. Note: Farmers Weekly Review will have an update on Facebook following the April 18 Town Hall Meeting.