Benton Harbor City Commissioners have voted to borrow more than $1 million to help stabilize the city’s finances over the next 24 months.
At a meeting this week, commissioners approved City Manager Alex Little’s request to issue “notes in anticipation of revenue sharing” for the following fiscal year, enabling them to borrow $1,024,000 from a private lender with state help.
Commissioner Ethel Clark-Griffin called the move “some crazy work” and “unbelievable.” She wondered how it became necessary for the city to borrow just to operate.
“If I recall correctly, over $1 million in income taxes in the last few months come in,” Clerk-Griffin said. “We’ve had over $300,000 in marijuana revenues come in. We have money coming from the water bill. We have money coming from permits and violations. We have money coming from property taxes. We have money coming from city income taxes and more. I don’t understand why, if we’re transferring all this money and then all this money’s coming in, why do we need a loan?”
Little previously explained that large expenses, including water plant work and legal fees, have hit the city at a time when once-in-a-generation federal allocations have dried up. All this has put Benton Harbor in a tough spot, making it difficult to cover operating expenses.
Commissioner Juanita Henry said she doesn’t trust the state, but doesn’t see many other options.
“I’m voting yes because we’re in a dire place and I don’t want to see what happened to us in 2010 when the state came in,” Henry said.
Little said the state will automatically deduct loan repayments from the city’s revenue sharing disbursements until the loan is paid off. Commissioners approved the move with Emma Kinnard and Clark-Griffin voting no.
