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Austintown residents face renewal levy
By ROBERT CONNELLY
AUSTINTOWN
Township voters have a renewal levy before them this November.
That renewal, a 0.6-mill general-fund levy, has been in place in Austintown since 1976 and was put on the Nov. 4 ballot by township officials July 28.
Township Administrator Michael Dockry said these levy funds “can be spent on any expense, any township expense” so “here in the administrative office, it pays for the salaries of the people that work here and the office supplies, and we use some of the money for matching grants [and] for road resurfacing.”
The levy also has lost value over the years, Dockry said. It is now closer to 0.22-mill than the originally passed 0.6-mill due to inflation over the years.
“We would get around $300,000 more dollars if it was taxed at the full rate of 0.6-mill,” Dockry said.
The levy will generate $156,285 annually and cost the owner of a $100,000 home $6.70 a year, an official with the Mahoning County Auditor’s Office said.
When trustees unanimously voted to put the matter before voters this November, they emphasized that this was a renewal and no increase to homeowners in the township.
“This is just to continue the services as they have been provided all along,” Trustee Jim Davis said. “For us to be able to continue and to be able to afford this and provide basic service, it’s imperative that we pass this levy.”
Davis also pointed out while the township received the first two $1 million payments from the new Hollywood Gaming at Mahoning Valley Race Course moving into Austintown, the township is still in negotiations to get finalized the $500,000 a year for every year the racino operates here.
“We want people to understand as great as it is to have the racino in our community, we are not receiving all the funds people think we are getting,” he said.