Trustees in Franklin, Needham and Union Townships are laying the groundwork to merge by 2023.
The three trustees say the merger will save taxpayers money and result in better services.
The idea is to merge the three townships into one under one trustee with one three-member township board. Services would be administered at the Franklin Township Trustee office located at 20 Circle Drive, Franklin.
Timeline for merger
The trustees are in the early stages of planning the merger and are working with the Indiana Township Association and an attorney to map out the process, said Lydia Wales, Franklin Township trustee.
Trustees don’t expect to merge until January 1, 2023, but they have begun to take steps forward in the process.
Wales introduced the idea of the merger to city and county leaders in August, and plans to speak with the Bargersville Town Council soon. County and Franklin leaders, so far, have expressed support for the merger.
Trustees have also been fielding questions from residents who heard about the possible merger. Most have been in favor of it once they learned about the cost savings, said Annette Barr, Union Township trustee.
Next steps in the process include a public information session on the merger in spring 2021. The trustees chose this time frame to give themselves an opportunity to put together a presentation on the merger and prepare their 2020 annual reports to share up-to-date data with residents in their case for the merger, Wales said.
Because state law does not allow townships to begin a merger during an election year, the resolutions cannot be introduced until 2022, as township offices will be on the ballot in 2021, Wales said.
To merge, each township board must pass identical resolutions on the merger and hold public meetings about it in a sequence set by state law that will take place over the course of several months.
Upon passage by all township boards, the merger would take effect Jan. 1 of the following calendar year.
Rationale for merger
Trustees expect residents of Union and Needham Township would pay roughly the same amount for more services under the merger.
Exact calculations have not been completed, but taxpayers are not expected to see a significant tax increase because the three townships have similar tax rates, Barr said.
To determine a new joint rate, the tax rate of each township would be averaged out, with residents of each township paying the same rate and all funds being routed to a single budget covering services for all three townships, Wales said.
The merger would save an estimated $30,000 by eliminating payroll and other expenses needed to run the Union and Needham trustee offices, said Rita Lory, Needham Township trustee. Trustees say reducing these duplicate expenses will free up that much more money to better aid township residents.
“Redundant expenses drive me nuts. You are spending more to operate the township on payroll and other expenses than township assistance that is a problem,” Wales said.
Needham and Union trustees say the merger will give their residents access to more services that they don’t have the budget to offer.
All three townships offer assistance for utility payments, mortgage or rent payments, burials and health care costs to those who meet eligibility criteria. Wales’ office also offers an in-office food and clothes pantry, and help with transitional housing.
“It is not (just) the financial part of it; it is the resources. Lydia has so many things in place to benefit residents that we just can’t offer,” Barr said.
The merger would also help simplify the process for residents. Many Needham and Union township residents have Franklin addresses, so they assume they reside in Franklin Township and call Wales’ office for help, only to be rerouted to the correct office which may not be able to help, trustees said.
Centralizing services at Franklin’s office will give Needham and Union township residents a new ability to seek help in-person. Currently, neither trustee has a public office space and neither keep set office hours. Only Franklin Township does.
In contrast, the merger will give residents in-person access to services four days a week at the Franklin Township office. Franklin Township owns the Circle Drive building with no outstanding debt, according to township records.
Though the merger would have a significant impact on township services, it is not expected to change other township services such cemetery maintenance and fire protection.
Current protection agreements with the Franklin and Bargersville Community fire departments would remain in effect, and the Needham Community Volunteer Fire Department would continue to operate as is, Wales said.
