HILLSDALE — After months of intense debate, officials in Hillsdale County have backed away from placing a bond proposal for LifeWays on the ballot in August.
The Hillsdale County Board of Commissioners voted Feb. 10 against drafted ballot language for the $15.5 million county‑backed bond.
The denial marked a shift from 2025, when Commissioners Kevin Collins, Doug Ingles and Brad Benzing supported putting the decision before voters. Collins reversed course Feb. 10, joining Commissioners Mark Wiley and Brent Leininger in opposing the language, preferring to simply approve or deny the request outright.
LifeWays has repeatedly sought authorization for up to $15.5 million in bonds to finance construction of a new headquarters in Hillsdale. Leininger has stressed the amount given is a maximum, not a guaranteed final number, and that the proposal carries no millage or new taxes.
Last year, commissioners agreed to place the measure on the ballot in 2026 after the emergence of public opposition — but not all officials agreed.
“This is something that should’ve been handled by this body,” Leininger said Feb. 10.
Benzing and Ingles, however, argued the size of the project alone warrants public approval.
“It’s important for this issue and this resolution to be voted on by the people,” Ingles said. “It’s a $15.5 million bond.”
Ingles, among other critics, has argued that a county-backed bond could leave taxpayers responsible for roughly $1 million in annual payments should LifeWays lose federal or state funding.
Collins emphasized that opponents already had an opportunity to challenge the project through a petition drive, which failed.
“Procedurally, since it’s a zero‑millage issue, it’s something we can do ourselves,” Wiley added. “We should’ve done this months or years ago.”
The ballot language resolution failed 2-3, after which Leininger said he intends to introduce a proposal to rescind the measure that originally placed the request on the ballot during officials’ next regular meeting.
LifeWays hasn’t secured federal or commercial financing for the proposed headquarters on pre-purchased land.
The debate is complicated by an ever-narrowing timeline. LifeWays is currently leasing a county-owned building at 25 Care Drive through 2030; though either party can terminate the agreement with proper notice. Recent actions suggest Hillsdale County still intends to relocate the 2B District Court to 25 Care Drive by October 2028, when the municipality must vacate the Courthouse Annex — sold in 2023 to Hillsdale Renaissance.
If officials wait until August to make a decision about the bond, LifeWays could remain reliant on 25 Care Drive; at a time when commissioners must consider how best to convert the building into a functional courthouse. That renovation is estimated to cost more than $4 million, according to previously reviewed renderings — money Hillsdale County doesn’t have to spare.
Officials discussed a possible bond to fund the project during a meeting Jan. 27, but no decision was made.
— Contact reporter Corey Murray at cmurray@hillsdale.net or follow him on X, formerly Twitter, at @cmurrayhdn.
(This story was updated because an earlier version included an inaccuracy.)
This article originally appeared on Hillsdale Daily News: Hillsdale changes course on ballot proposal for LifeWays. Now what?
Reporting by Corey J. Murray, Hillsdale Daily News / Hillsdale Daily News
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