Extra $973 Proposed for Macomb Subdivision to Keep Up Sidewalks, Roads

Residents in Woodberry Estates may soon have an extra charge on their tax bills.

The Macomb Township Board of Trustees is set to decide the details of a newly-established special assessment district (SAD) for the complex on Dec. 26. 

A special assessment district is a term used to designate a unique charge the township can assess against real estate parcels for certain public projects. In the case of Woodberry Estates, the SAD will be used to repair and repave streets and crosswalks. 

A public hearing took place Nov. 28 during the regular Board of Trustees meeting and, at that time, no residents from Woodberry Estates expressed their concern about the project.

According to the Woodberry Estates Condominium Association website, 57 percent of the residents signed a SAD petition of interest. Also posted on the association’s website was the estimated cost of the project: $295,802, or $973 per home. 

During the Dec. 26 public hearing, the board will decide how many years the SAD will exist and will place the SAD on the tax rolls for the 304 properties that will benefit from the project. 

A 2,400 square-foot home inside Woodberry Estates is currently listed at $249,900.

Construction work should begin on the project sometime in the spring or summer of 2013. The Macomb County Department of Roads will repair the streets and sidewalks and also handle all future maintenance, per the terms of the SAD.

Editor's Note: While charges levied on a special assessment district are often done so via a resident's tax bill, the charge itself is not a tax.