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Township Board Members
Dale Bergman, Supervisor Bonnie
Robinson, Clerk Pat
Fynewever, Treasurer Cliff Anderson, Trustee Tom Antor, Trustee Bill Goodfellow, Trustee Rob Steffens, Trustee
Planning
Commission – 2nd Tuesday 7:00
pm
Zoning Board of Appeals -
2nd Wednesday 7:30
pm
Contact
the Township for:
Passport Applications
Dog Licenses
Cemeteries
Maps, Plat Books
Assessment Information
Election/Voter registration
Building & related Permits
Burning Permits
Non-village Ordinance
Enforcement
Water & Sewer concerns
Village parks & streets
Sidewalks
Village Leaf/Brush Pick-up
Village Ordinance
Enforcement
Hours
of operation:
Mon/Tues- 9am to 8 pm
Wed/Fri- 9am to 5pm
Sat- 9am to 12 noon
Closed Thur
& Sunday
Visit the library - 80 N. Union St. or call 887-9937 for information.
See the enclosed Historical
Commission Newsletter.
Old Fashion Christmas
See the Chamber of Commerce
website (www.spartachamber.com)
for information on Sparta’s holiday celebration, including the hours when Santa will be in
town at the Community Clubhouse behind the Library!
The Community Clubhouse is
available for rental; call the Township office for information.
For larger events, the Sparta Civic Center is
available for rental; call Terry at 887-1224.
Passports
Will soon be
needed for travel to Canada and Mexico. You may apply for one at our
office; it then takes as long as 6 weeks to receive it from the Dept of
State; plan ahead!
2008 Dog licenses
available at the Township December 1 –
March 1.
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Supervisor - Dale Bergman
The Sparta Township Budget
The Sparta Township Board adopts its budget each year at
a budget hearing in March. The budget adopted
last March was $867,625. The major
sources of revenue to operate the Township come from state shared revenue and
property taxes. However, only a very
small portion of your property tax dollars belongs to the Township (2.5%);
the majority of your payment goes to the schools and Kent
County.
Examples of expenditure items in the budget are the fire
dept, library, assessing, elections, attorney fees, salaries, cemeteries,
roads and bridges, historical commission, property insurance and community
development.
The current Sparta Township Board, as well as boards in
the past, have a history of fiscal responsibility
and conservative expenditures.
Clerk - Bonnie Robinson
New Voter ID
Regulations
Starting in November 2007, all voters must show a picture ID in
order to vote in elections. You can
satisfy this requirement by showing your Michigan Driver’s License or State
ID. Your voter card is not acceptable
because it does not have a picture.
Other acceptable IDs are passport, military ID, or Student ID. If you do not have a picture ID, you will
be required to fill out an affidavit stating that you do not have ID. The process for voting will remain the
same, except for showing your ID to the worker who checks your name on the
poll list.
Elections in 2007
January
15th – Presidential Primary (must declare party to vote.)
May 6th
– School Board Election
August 5th
– Primary Election
November
4th – General Election
Treasurer - Pat Fynewever
Enclosed is your 2007 Sparta
Township winter tax bill. Winter taxes are due in our office by February
14. After March 1, all payments (except
personal property tax) must be paid to the Kent
County Treasurer. Postmarks and credit
card payments are not accepted.
If you use electronic checks (on-line banking), please enter your
parcel number as the account number. If
you have any questions about your tax bill, call or e-mail our office.
Assessor – Cliff Turner
The annual
establishment of assessment will be complete by February of 2008. The 2008 assessed values will represent
refinements since last year. You will
receive a notice by the first week in March of next year summarizing the
changes in the assessed or taxable value of your property if there is an
increase in either amount. Unless
there has been construction or demolition of improvements to your property,
or a change of ownership since January of this year, the change in assessed
value will probably not alter your taxable value which
is the basis for your property taxes.
The taxable value will only be increased by the Inflation Rate Multiplier (also known as
the Consumer Price Index or CPI) as issued by the State Tax Commission. This
year’s inflation rate is 1.023 or 2.3% expressed as a percentage. Last year the rate was 1.037 or 3.7%. If you have any questions or concerns about
the value changes in the notice, please call the Assessors Office (887-8863).
For
property owners that are contemplating the division of a parcel of land for
sale or any other purpose such as settlement of an estate, you must apply for
land division compliance. The property
taxes must be paid to date. The form is available on
the township’s web site or at the Township Office. Please call the Assessors Office if you
need assistance.
For
business owners located in the township, the personal property statements are scheduled to be mailed in December of this year. As you may be aware, the form is used for the report of the acquisition cost of fixed
assets subject to taxation. If you do
not receive a form by the end of January, please contact me to avoid any
penalty or interest for late filing.
On behalf of the
Assessors Office, have a safe and enjoyable holiday season.
Library Director – Lois Lovell
Library Programs for
Winter 2008
LAP SIT:
Babies, toddlers, and their parents are invited to join us for
stories, music and rhymes. (Ages 3 &
under with an adult, Wednesday mornings)
TALE
TIME: Stories, songs, crafts and snacks with a
different theme each week. (Ages 3 –
6, Monday evenings)
Winter programs begin January 2008. Call (887-9937) for dates and times.
BEAT THE
WINTER BLAHS READING CLUB FOR ADULTS:
February –
March 2008. Read for prizes. Call the Library for dates.
WRITING
WORKSHOP WITH FACILITATOR CLAIRE FAIRCHILD-BROCK
Improve
your writing skills; poetry, short stories, personal essays, etc.
Tuesday 6:30-8:00
pm, every
other week, Jan 8 – May 20
Ages 17
& older. Call the library 887-9937 to register.
The library welcomes
donations of books & audio/visuals in good clean condition. A donation box is located inside the front
door. Thank you!
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