SPARTA, Mich. — The village of Sparta completed a survey confirming its boundaries, while a petition drive begins to collect signatures as part of the process of becoming a city.
WATCH: Sparta maps out its path to cityhood
Village President Jim Lower said the newly surveyed boundary is unchanged from the village’s existing borders. “There's no difference between this and what the current village borders are.”
Lower said completing the boundary survey is required under state law. “It's required by state law to do that, and then, like, even though everyone knows the village boundaries as they currently exist, putting them into this specific format is what the process requires.”
The next step is gathering signatures from registered voters who live in the village. Lower said organizers need 175 signatures.
“Then those signatures get turned in to the state of Michigan; they will evaluate them and then ultimately schedule a hearing and go through all of our application, and there'll be an opportunity for residents to provide comment both pro and con on it.”
Cityhood Committee Chairperson Robert Carlstrom said the change is overdue. “It’s pretty exciting”
Carlstrom said becoming a city would reduce the number of local governments serving residents. “As a part of the village, we are in the village and the township, and going down to one piece of local government is going to be huge for our community.”
Carlstrom and Lower said reducing bureaucracy would make handling village issues more efficient and lower residents’ property taxes.
“There's been a lot of misinformation about that. It, it, I guarantee they will go down the property taxes.”
Carlstrom also said cityhood would increase accountability.
“For me, it's a simple choice of, you know, it saves money. We have one form of government, and ultimately, it will make elected officials more accountable to the people in the city."
Several steps remain before Sparta can become a city, including writing and approving a new charter and holding an election on cityhood.
“When you list the current situation and the changes that cityhood makes. It really is a no-brainer,” said Carlstrom.
“I think it's worth doing not because it's easy, but because it's hard,” said Lower.
Village residents who want to sign the petition may do so at Village Hall. Petition circulators will also be going door to door.
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