A Township Shrinks

The Village of Fletcher and Brown Township undergo an amicable divorce

Hey there! If you're not familiar with the way our county is set up, let me explain a bit about Brown Township and Fletcher. Brown Township is a quiet area in the northeast part of the county. It's the smallest township in terms of the number of people living there – only 1,134 residents! And guess what? The only village in this township is Fletcher, with a population of 451 people.

So, here's the story: a while back, the people in Brown Township had a vote. They were deciding whether or not to add a little extra money to help with the township's expenses. This kind of extra money is called a "mill levy." The vote was really close – 37 people said "yes," but 46 people said "no."

But wait, there's more to the story! Brown Township thought that the people in the Village of Fletcher had a big say in this decision. They believed that the votes from Fletcher might have changed the outcome. It kind of makes sense – the township doesn't offer services to the village that the extra money would pay for. So, why would the village folks want higher taxes without any clear benefit for them?

So, what's the solution? Well, it's a bit surprising. There's a rule called Section 503.07 in the Ohio Revised Code that says villages and cities can separate themselves from the townships they're in. Both the township and the village need to agree, and then the County Commissioners need to say "yes." On July 13th, the Miami County Commissioners said "yes" to letting the Village of Fletcher be its own thing, separate from Brown Township. Just like that, the smallest township got even smaller!

Now, later this fall, the people in the township will vote again. They're going to ask if they can have that extra bit of money they wanted before. Will the split between the village and the township change things and make the vote different this time? We'll find out in November when people make their choice.

What's Up with Towns and Townships?

You know, there's something really interesting about how towns and townships work together, especially here in Miami County.

In a place like Troy, everyone who lives in the city is also considered a part of Concord Township. Even if you live in the northern part of the city, which used to be a different area called Staunton Township, you're still connected to the township. That means city folks pay a small bit of their property taxes to the township. They also get to vote for township officials. However, there are some things they can't vote on – like certain taxes – because those are only for people who live outside the city.

In Piqua, when new areas become part of the city, they leave either Washington or Spring Creek Townships. Piqua and the townships made special agreements to keep things clear between the city and the township.

It's kind of the same with Huber Heights and Bethel Township, but there's no special agreement here. For a while, Huber Heights added land from Bethel Township and kept it in both the city and the township. But things changed in the early 2000s. Huber Heights made a rule to take that land out of the township. So, when they add new places from Bethel Township, those places stop being part of the township.

Thanks for reading! If you want to share your thoughts, feel free to comment below or drop me a line at william.lutz17@gmail.com.