The Hillsdale County Board of Commissioners voted against a 17 percent increase in the County Park Board’s 2015 budget last week. At its Jan. 13 meeting, the comissioners denied the park board’s request for a $5,000 increase that would have raised its total budget to $30,000.
“We have had some financial hits this year at the county level that have hurt us,” Commissioner Ruth Brown said, explaining the decision to deny the increase. “We are $88,000 in the red right now that we’re having to take out of our fund balance, so it’s not really prudent to give somebody more.”
According to Brown, the county was originally $450,000 over the budget. Only when the county financial department asked all the county departments to cut their spending, did they manage to lower the deficit to $88,000.
“It’s hard to go back and look those people in the eye, after we just asked everybody to cut everything, and turn around and give somebody $5,000 more out of the fund balance that we really don’t have,” Brown said.
Although Brown couldn’t legally reveal all of the county’s current financial struggles, she said it is largely due to funds the county owes to LifeWays Community Mental Health, a facility with offices in both Jackson and Hillsdale.
“We’re paying $80,000 a year out to LifeWays every single year for the next 10 years,” she said. “So there’s $80,000 right there when we’re $88,000 in the red.”
She said Lifeways claims the county did not fund them properly in the 1990s and is now requiring the county to catch up on payments.
“The other piece of the puzzle is that the park board didn’t support [park director Ted Jansen],” she said. “They didn’t come to our meetings. He was basically up there asking for this himself.”
Board of Commissioners Vice Chairperson Andy Welden said that while the park board’s budget was not increased, at least it wasn’t reduced.
“There were several other departments where we actually lowered the budget,” he said. “We did not lower the park budget.”
He explained the decision had nothing to do with the value the commissioners believe the park board gives to Hillsdale County.
“We have a lot of respect for the park system, and I think they do a lot of good to the community,” he said.
Brown agreed.
“Last year we were doing good, and we actually took money out of our fund balance and gave it to the park board,” she said.