Read our lips ? no new taxes.
For the most part, that was the message from Oxford and Addison voters in the Aug. 5 primary election.
Voters in both townships rejected a number of requests for new or increased property taxes.
The $20 million bond proposal to build a community recreation center in Oxford’s Stony Lake Township Park was thumped hard at the ballot box. It went down 2,432 to 1,544.
The proposed five-year, 0.05-mill operating tax for the center was also turned down by a wide margin. It failed 2,417 to 1,531.
Joining the community center in the losers? circle was the Oxford Public Library. Its request for a 10-year, 0.4518-mill tax increase was rejected 2,213 to 1,743.
This is the second time Oxford voters have failed a community center proposal. The last time was back in 1998 when it went down 1,384 to 997.
A request to increase the Addison Township Public Library’s tax by 0.25 mill for 10 years failed. It went down 585 to 517.
Voters gave mixed results to the North Oakland Transportation Authority (NOTA), which requested a five-year, 0.25-mill tax to make up for federal and state revenue it’s going to lose beginning next year.
The NOTA millage passed 2,132 to 1,830 in Oxford and 2,712 to 2,637 in Orion. However, the millage failed in Addison with 557 voting against it and 531 voting for it.
Requests to renew police and fire millages in Addison were overwhelmingly approved.
The police tax passed 806-312, while the fire tax was approved 873-250.
State Representative Brad Jacobsen, of Oxford, won his Republican primary race against challenger John Reilly, of Oakland Township. Jacobsen beat him 5,552 to 4,367.
There was no record-breaking voter-turnout in either Oxford or Addison townships.
In Oxford, of the 14,368 registered voters, a total of 3,778 (or 26.29 percent) participated in the primary election.
Over in Addison, a total of 1,145 (or 23.03 percent) of the township’s 4,971 registered voters cast a ballot.