The Allen County commissioners signed off on a bridge-funding deal with the county’s smaller cities and towns Friday but continued to debate another alternative.
The pact calls for doubling the local wheel tax and surtax on vehicle license plates next year. All cities and towns in the county would be able to keep about 35 percent of the new revenue generated from the increase for use on road projects through 2017.
The county has pledged to use the rest to repair and maintain 321 bridges that are less than 200 feet long.
The commissioners signed agreements with New Haven, Woodburn, Grabill, Huntertown, Leo-Cedarville, Monroeville and Zanesville. The agreement now goes to those respective city and town councils for approval.
The commissioners approved a similar pact with Fort Wayne last week. The County Council, however, has the final say on whether to increase the wheel tax and surtax.
During debate on the agreement, Commissioner Bill Brown pushed for the county to reinstate a cumulative bridge fund, which previously sent property taxes toward repairing the shorter spans.
The commissioners eliminated the tax rate for the bridge fund in 2002 to free up property tax dollars to pay for the new jail and the Allen County Juvenile Center. The remaining $10,000 was spent from the fund last year to repair potholes on bridges.
Brown said putting money into the bridge fund would allow the county to save for future needs.
Commissioner Nelson Peters suggested the board discuss the ramifications of raising the tax with the County Council, which controls the county’s purse strings.
“I don’t know that the funding is available,” Peters said.
Recreating the bridge tax is a lengthy process and would affect how much tax revenue is available for the county’s main operating fund, a capital expense fund, the health fund and the reassessment fund, Auditor Lisa Blosser said.
2010 census
In other business, the commissioners agreed to create a marketing committee to promote the 2010 census. The committee will encourage residents to fill out census forms when they arrive next March.
Similar committees will be formed in cities and towns across the area, said Mike Holly, a local U.S. Census Bureau representative.
