Township board approves electronic payments

By RICHARD JENKINS

[email protected]

Ironwood Township — Township residents will once again be able to pay certain township bills automatically, after the board of trustees passed a resolution accepting electronic payments Monday.

The electronic payments will be able to used for sewer and water payments, according to information presented at the meeting, as well as garbage payments.

The township previously offered this service, but eliminated it last fall.

Township residents have been inquiring about it, according to township officials, since its elimination.

“When we dropped this, we had a lot of concerns expressed (particularly from) older residents who found this very convenient,” Supervisor Steve Boyd said. “I think it’s a good thing we put it back.”

“I get many, many calls,” Treasurer Maria Graser said in agreement.

While offering the service will cost $35-a-month and 14 cents per payment, although the township is planning to absorb that cost.

“(The automatic withdrawals) will be a free service to them,” Graser said.

In other action:

—The board authorized Boyd to spend up to $5,000 for water leak detection services, if the payment is needed prior to the next meeting. The township is planning on piggybacking onto work the city of Ironwood is doing, with the same company as it will already be in the area.

The township is losing several thousand dollars a month from water leaks, according to information given at the meeting.

—The board agreed to deny a resident’s request to waive the special assessment owed for garbage services. The special assessment is applied to all properties that are primary residences and inhabitable, according to Boyd. He said the resident was requesting the waiver as she was told by a past township official the payment was necessary as she was considering selling her house. The board agreed they needed to be consistent and apply the fee to everyone and therefor had to deny the request.

—The board also agreed to discuss designating the Payment in Lieu of Taxes money for a special purpose at an upcoming meeting. It receives the money from the county for county forest land in the township.