Salt Creek Township is
east of Bloomington. Its northern boundary is near Ind. 46, and the north end
of the Ind. 446 causeway is at the township’s southern edge. About a quarter of
the township lies east of Lake Monroe and borders Brown County.
The Hoosier National
Forest, Paynetown State Recreation Area and Yellowwood State Forest occupy a
big chunk of the township, which, according to the 2010 U.S. census, has 1,513
residents.
And those 1,513
residents, plus visitors recreating in the township, sometimes need emergency
services.
There aren’t enough
residents in the township to staff a volunteer fire department, said Trustee
Donn Hall.
So
the township contracts with Bloomington Fire Department for fire protection
each year, and the township’s breach of that contract is the source of the high
tax rate.
…
In 2010, the fire
protection contract cost the township $119,212; in 2011, the bill was $115,684,
and in 2012, $127,233.
But the sparsely
populated township, whose advisory board usually meets only once a year,
doesn’t have that kind of money sitting around.
In previous years, the
trustee has taken out a bank loan to pay for the fire protection contract, then
repaid the loan with property tax collections.
But it missed a
deadline to publicly advertise that it intended to take out a loan, and so did
not get permission from the state Department of Local Government Finance to do
so.
The township didn’t
pay for fire protection last year, and the city sued the township for breach of
contract, explained Bloomington attorney Guy Loftman, whom the township board
hired to represent the township.
Monroe Circuit Court
ruled against the township, saying it owed the city $234,800, according to
Cathy Wolter, an attorney for the DLGF.
The township didn’t
contest the judgment, Hall said, and that amount covers the fire protection
contract for both 2011 and 2012.
In
2011, Salt Creek Township property owners saw their property taxes drop over
those of 2010 because they didn’t pay for fire protection that year, and this
year, property taxpayers are footing the bill for two years’ worth of fire
protection.
…
So in 2012, Salt Creek
Township property owners are paying double. In 2013, they should see a drop in
the township tax bill to a level that will pay for fire protection during the
year — just one year.
