Ingham County Commissioner Steve Dougan had an idea. At this week’s commissioners’ session, he offered an amendment to reduce the millage to be requested for the Potter Park Zoo by two cents
“I did offer up the two cent reduction on the zoo millage renewal, from .41 to .39, which would have been approximately a $142,000 reduction on the $2.9 million collection,” Dougan explained by e-mail. He noted also that even with the reduced collection, the county would still be pumping $1 million more into the zoo than the city of Lansing did when it ran it.
“I did offer up the two cent reduction on the zoo millage renewal, from .41 to .39, which would have been approximately a $142,000 reduction on the $2.9 million collection,” Dougan explained by e-mail. He noted also that even with the reduced collection, the county would still be pumping $1 million more into the zoo than the city of Lansing did when it ran it.
Dougan says his motion failed 13-3, with Commissioners Don Vickers and Randy Schafer joining him.
So, come November, the voters of Ingham County will be asked to renew the millage for Potter Park Zoo at .41, not .39. Too bad.
Over at his blog, Commissioner Andy Schor explains a bit why he voted against Dougan’s idea, and mentioned that the commissioners don’t need the voters to reduce the millage rate anyway. He also points out that with property values dropping, the zoo will be getting less money. Further reductions mean further cuts to zoo operations.
Good points. But, as has been illustrated repeatedly this year, the county no longer has the funds to cover all of its commitments. In theory, the county could ask for a new millage for a particular investment. In practice, such a request is unlikely to pass.
Far better, in my mind, for the county to create “millage room” via reductions in taxes already collected. Then, the commissioners can ask voters to “restore” the taxation level, with the money going to other priorities.
The top target today, tomorrow and every day until it is gone should be the inane farmland preservation millage that voters inexplicably approved in 2008. But that savings alone would not be enough to deal with all the county’s pressing problems.
As for the zoo, I think there are more opportunities to raise money from visitors. For example, here are the current admission rates:
Resident -- $4
Non-Resident -- $10
Resident Senior -- $3
Non-Resident Senior --$8
Why not add a buck to the resident admission and two bucks to non-resident? Also, the county should get out of the business of senior discounts. Hard-pressed Ingham County families shouldn’t be asked to subsidize well-to-do senior citizens from Michigan’s other 82 counties. (The poverty rate for children is about double the rate for seniors, by the way.)
The zoo draws more than 150,000 visitors a year. Some tinkering with admission and other fees could compensate for a millage pullback.
