'This is our view and reality'

In last week’s Photo News. United Monroe and others gave their view on the Village of Monroe. We see the village a little different. If you look around you can see change, these are a fraction of the changes.
What you can physically see:
• The gazebo, lighting of trees
• The revised intersection at millpond Parkway was part of the revitalization plan.
• Formation of a Village Court and added a prosecutor to cut down on Police overtime and make the process more effective.
• Roads are no longer oil and chipped (oil and stone thrown on roads), we black top them now
• Formation of a Department of Public Works, making the highway department and water department more efficient
• Install solar panels
• Formation of a Chamber of Commerce
• The carnival and other events
• Village taking over roads that were once county roads and making them Village roads allowing us to setup weight, speed limits and school zones. Also, to prevent Commercial traffic from other Communities going through the Village.
We as a board originally voted to return the jet because the agreement with the U.S. Air Force was to keep the Jet in good condition and it was not. The cost to the tax payer would have been too much.
The community approached us to upgrade it. A partnership was formed to upgrade the jet with the Masons, community and the village. The village provided the use of its vendors for heavy equipment needed and used tax monies to offset the shortfall needed.
What you can’t physically see:
• The grants we received to keep cost down. (In Mayor Purcell’s letter there was a typo; it is $2.6 million in grants.)
• Infrastructure; water mains have been replaced and corrected. There is still a long way to go.
• Technology upgrade to the water plant making it more efficient requiring less manpower and overtime.
• Comprehensive plan and Zoning updates to bring order to development of the Village of Monroe. This plan was completed with public input. A plan for the people by the people.
Sales tax is revenue is up by 12 percent, mortgage revenue by 14 percent a year over the last 8 years. The Village tax rate has been 3.3 percent over the last eight years. Still maintaining a high quality of life for village residents.
• Intersection at Stage and Lake Street in the planning phases paid for by a grant
Myth: “We wanted to fill in the Mill ponds.”
There were three proposals given to the community from the consulting company, which was one of them. We wanted to fill in the edges to increase recreational area and narrow the water feed to increase the water flow. The section adjacent to the dam is only one-to-two feet deep.
In the end the community decided what was to be done.
Look at the Village minutes of 12-15-2015 for more information.
This is our view and reality.
Mayor Jim Purcell and Trustee Wayne Chan