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Seniors levy to be on November ballot
By Elise Franco
Township trustees will ask voters to approve a senior-services levy in November to ensure the township’s popular Senior Citizens Center stays put.
Chairman Jim Davis said the board voted to request information on that levy and two township renewal levies from the Mahoning County Auditor’s office.
Davis said the senior levy will be 0.5-mill, five-year levy that will fund the senior center, which is operating solely through donations at the Westchester Building on Westchester Drive.
Because the senior center doesn’t pay rent, Davis said if a rent-paying tenant wanted the space, the senior center would have to vacate. Passing this levy would alleviate that threat.
“It [the levy] will also pay for the employment for personnel who would work at the center, such as the administrator and a coordinator.”
The Westchester Building was donated to the township by Walter Terlecky, who stipulated that any money generated be given to the parks and recreation department, Davis said. It’s been home to the senior center since October 2010. He said the center has 400 members and averages 50 to 60 people daily.
“The only way to ensure they’re kept in that building is to put this levy on and give the public the opportunity to decide whether this is worth maintaining,” Davis said.
He said the township will also ask voters to renew the 0.8-mill, five-year parks and recreation and 1.5-mill, five-year road department levies.
Davis said the parks levy was first approved by voters in 1981, the road levy in 1976. He said they’ve been approved every five years since then.
He said the board won’t know exactly how much each levy will generate until they hear back from the auditor’s office. Deadline to place items on the November ballot is in August.
One thing Davis said voters won’t have to worry just yet is a general-fund operating levy.
“We’ve talked about doing it, but not at this time,” he said. “We’re concentrating more on making sure these renewals get passed.”