POLAND — Township Trustee Eric Ungaro was convinced that a five-year, 0.98-mill police levy on Tuesday’s election ballot lost largely because of what many voters see as two loaded words.

“We tried our best, but when it says ‘new’ or ‘additional’ on the ballot, it’s tough,” he said.

According to unofficial results Tuesday, the levy was defeated, with 47% voting for it and 53% against.

The levy was to generate about $358,000 per year to maintain current department expenses and cost the owner of a $100,000 home $34.30 annually.

This levy would have replaced two smaller ones, each of which was enacted in 1978 and 1981.

Last year, the Ohio Department of Taxation told township officials the one approved in 1978, which was a five-year levy, was not legal because it failed to tax the village. The 45-year-old levy is to be eliminated at the end of this year.

In addition, the township, which has a population of about 15,000, had conferred with the Mahoning County Prosecutor’s Office regarding the 1981 levy, and the office advised the township to remove it.

Ungaro said Tuesday that getting the word out about the police levy was, in some respects, “an uphill battle,” in part because of efforts to inform people that it would not have meant new money. Nevertheless, he praised the job the police department continues to do.

“We feel good about where we stand and what we did,” Ungaro added.

Earlier, police Chief Greg Wilson noted that the two previous levies were enacted before the township police district was formed in the mid-1990s.

The township’s police department has 15 full-time and four part-time officers, with a $1.4 million budget, some of which is funded via the general fund.

POLAND VILLAGE

According to Tuesday’s unofficial results, a five-year, 2.5-mill additional levy for the Poland Village Police Department passed, with a tight margin of 54% in favor and 46% opposed.

At press time, however, no one could be reached for comment.

This levy would raise $169,000 per year and cost the owner of a $100,000 home $87.50 annually.

Last month, police Chief Don Lambert said the department’s general fund is covering the costs associated with running the department, which has seen a 25% increase over the last seven years. Nevertheless, that situation is unsustainable, which is why the levy is needed, he added.

The department, which has eight full-time and three part-time officers, is operating on a 1-mill levy that brings in $54,000 yearly. Without the levy, some services would be lost, he warned.

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