By Amy Joles (Contact / Staff Bio)
November 7, 2009 - 08:49 a.m. EST

CARO — After Tuesday’s vote, the Village of Caro is no more. It’s the City of Caro.

Voters in portions of Almer and Indianfields townships overwhelmingly approved a city charter, 437-176, making Caro a home-rule city.

“We took the charter down to Lansing today (Thursday) to formally file it with the Office of the Great Seal,” said Mayor Tom Striffler. “That has to be done and now we are officially a city.”

The Tuscola County Board of Canvassers confirmed election results Wednesday afternoon. By law, results from Tuesday’s vote were not required to be submitted to the county until Wednesday.

With the approved charter, parts of Almer and Indianfields townships are now governed by the City of Caro only. Previously, the village included portions of each township.

Residents began pushing for the change to cityhood in 2002, calling it a “more streamlined form of government.”

“First of all, I think of the monetary benefit,” said Allen Jones, a member of the city charter commission. “People that lived in the township and village will not pay township taxes any more.”

Jones says the answer to why Caro is better off as a city is simple.

“It’s just the right thing to do,” he said. “It just makes sense to have one form of government, not two.”

The 9-member charter commission was established in November 2008 to write a charter that would govern city operations. The charter dictates a variety of issues - including the requirement that city leaders must present some tax increases, such as city income tax, to voters.

Millage rates are also capped by the charter at 20 mills. The village levied 16 mills and Striffler said that should remain the same.

“There is nobody on this city council that wants to raise taxes,” said Striffler. “We didn’t do it as a village council and I don’t foresee doing it as a city council.”

Instead, the council will have more freedom to disperse those millage dollars. Previously, the village levied four millages (totalling 16 mills) - refuse, promotion, street and general fund. All of those millages will now go into one general fund for disbursement by the council.

“In my mind, there is more flexibility,” said Striffler. “It’s a double- edged sword because it will require us to be very disciplined about where the money goes.”

And if the electorate does not agree, they can say so.

“People will have the chance to vote council members out every two years if they are not doing the job the way they want,” said Striffler. “With the way the council is set up, the council members know they’d better do their job, or they lose it.”

After getting the charter’s wording approved by the state earlier this year, a ‘yes’ from the electorate was the final step to cityhood.

Also, at the same time the charter was approved, voters elected a city council on Tuesday’s ballot. Council members will officially be sworn in by City Clerk Karen Snider Monday, Nov. 9 at 7 p.m. A city council meeting will follow at 7:30 p.m.

Some continuity was kept in leadership, with Striffler simply making the move from village president to city mayor. He received 507 votes and ran unopposed.

Former village council members were also voted to serve on the city council, including Joe Greene (420), Mike Henry (436) and Rick Lipan (435), who all earned four- year seats. Former village council members Amanda Langmaid (364) and Richard Pouliot (398) garnered two-year seats, along with Charlotte Kish (393). Kish served on the village council during a previous term.

Village trustee Bernie Nelson did not seek a city council seat.

Amy Joles is the editor of the Tuscola County Advertiser. She can be reached at joles@tcadvertiser.com.