NOVI – Voters in the city will be asked this fall to approve 1 mill for 10 years for capital improvements, a tax proposal officials say is essentially a renewal.
They will not be asked to approve 0.2 mills for the library, as officials will levy that tax without a vote of the city’s residents.
The city council unanimously approved putting the 1 mill capital improvements measure on the November ballot, rather than the August ballot, where a countywide 1.5 mill school enhancement millage request will appear.
“In essence it is a renewal,” City Manager Victor Cardenas said, noting the proposal is the same language used for the capital improvements millage approved in 2016 by voters. “We’ve been using it for the past 10 years. Capital costs are going up – a fire truck in 2022 was $870,000 and now would cost $1.1 million… It helps us do what we need to do to maintain level of service for residents in terms of big capital purchases.”
If approved, the capital improvements millage would raise $5.4 million in the first year and $54 million over the course of a decade, possibly for a community center, or additions to the ITC Sports Park, Cardenas said.
The ballot language explains that capital improvement and project funds can be used for “parks and facilities, land acquisition, pathways, and apparatus (such as fire trucks, heavy equipment), with such funds not to be used for operations or payroll.”
The levy of 1 mill would cost the owner of a home with a taxable value of $200,000 about $200 per year.
During the April 13 city council meeting, the council also briefly discussed a 0.2 millage for the library that is proposed in the 2026-27 city budget. The city is utilizing its ability to levy the tax without putting the issue on the ballot through an 1877 state law, Public Act 164, a mechanism local officials have never used before, Cardenas said.
“I’m not opposed to two-tenths of a mill, but it’s highly unusual to raise taxes without an affirmative vote by the people or council,” Councilman Dave Staudt said. “Not that it is wrong or bad, but we have no discretion, we’re giving the library a million dollars to spend and they have complete discretion on how it is spent.”
Mayor Justin Fischer said the city was in a different position with the library, which has levied 0.34 mills for debt service on the library for the past 15 years and now has the opportunity to lower that tax, reducing it from 0.34 mills to 0.2 mills. The library’s debt service will be paid off in October.
“The library board and director have done a ton of work to show why this makes financial sense,” Fischer said. “We have this unique opportunity for the debt to fall off and say, ‘Taxes are going down, but we don’t have to raise taxes in the future.’ It makes complete sense and they have convinced me this is the right time and place to do it.”
Mayor Pro-tem Laura Marie Casey also voiced her support, saying the funds could be used for future capital projects to keep the now 15-year-old library building in good condition.
The 0.2 mills could be renewed as part of the council’s approval of annual millage rates, which currently includes a standard operating millage for the library of 0.7285 mills. Cardenas said the 0.2 mills will be added to summer tax bills following council’s approval of the 2026-27 budget at the May 4 meeting and is expected to raise nearly $1.1 million.
Contact reporter Susan Bromley at sbromley@hometownlife.com.
This article originally appeared on Hometownlife.com: Novi places tax proposal on ballot, will levy millage for library
Reporting by Susan Bromley, Hometownlife.com / Hometownlife.com
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