Sharon Township board discusses online tax payments, election results

by Claire Pajka

The brief Sharon Township Board meeting was held on Thursday August 6, with six members of the public, and four members of the board in attendance. Clerk Kimberley Potocki was absent.

After the June 23 meeting minutes were approved, Peter Psarouthakis gave the Supervisor’s Report, and stated that the only incident on the July police report for the township was one citation for speeding. He also stated that the Southwest Washtenaw Council of Governments will be holding a meeting on August 26 at 7 pm at Freedom Township Hall, 11508 Pleasant Lake Road.

Brian Brickley gave the financial report, and asked the board for opinions on allowing residents to pay their taxes online, as two residents had already reached out to him asking about the possibility of filing online. He explained that with a program like Invoice Cloud, residents would only pay around a $3 charge to pay online, while the township would pay $600 per year after the first year. Board Member Bob Guysky was very vocal against this option, explaining that too few residents have requested it to justify the cost to the board. Psarouthakis brought up that typically, dozens of people call and ask about filing taxes online every year. The Board decided to wait to speak more about it when Clerk Potocki is in attendance. During public comment, one resident spoke in favor of the convenience of paying taxes online.

Zoning Administrator Dave Wilson gave the zoning report, and reported two family houses and a garage as among the few permits issued during July. There were no complaints to the zoning commission in the last month.

Trudi Cooper gave the report from the planning commission, and stated that the commission did not meet in July, but has a meeting coming up on Wednesday, August 12 at 7 pm. On the agenda for that meeting is the cemetery ordinance, blight ordinance, and gravel pit zoning. Cooper also stated that the public hearing for the new Sharon Township master plan will be on September 29, at 7 pm at the Sharon Township Hall.

Psarouthakis gave an update on the cemetery, and highlighted the new parking lot at the side and at the back, as well as the fact that they stayed within the anticipated budget. A landscaper will come at the end of August to clean out some brush and trees. During public comment, a resident noted that they had parked in the new parking lot, and had trouble seeing westbound traffic on Pleasant Lake Road. Psarouthakis explained that the landscapers coming in August can clear an area to increase visibility.

Psarouthakis praised Clerk Potocki for the last election, stating that she did an excellent job and worked at all hours to get everything accomplished. He went on to express his concern with the slow mail service, and inconsistencies with the ballots. He said that there was a significant difference between the number of people who requested absentee ballots and the number of absentee ballots the board received back. The board discussed the difficulty in distinguishing whether this inconsistency was due to delay from the postal service in delivering completed ballots, or whether ballots simply had not been mailed in by residents.

The meeting adjourned at 7:44 pm.

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by Marsha Chartrand

Marsha Johnson Chartrand, a founder, writer, and copy editor with the Manchester Mirror, is a 50-year resident of Manchester. She has a long history of volunteer and community involvement.