By DEBRA HAIGHT
BCR Correspondent
ST. JOSEPH, MI – Last week’s Berrien County Board of Commissioners meeting featured everything from tributes to slain conservative leader Charlie Kirk to reports on foreclosures in the county and broadband work as well as a call for state leaders to work together on a new state budget.
The county board meeting began with a moment of silence for Kirk who was assassinated at an event in Utah on Sept. 10. Commissioner Chokwe Pitchford later gave a tribute to Kirk during his commissioner comments.
Pitchford, a Democrat representing the Benton Harbor area, said he wanted to publicly denounce Kirk’s assassination. “There is no reason to equivocate; we should not be murdering people because of their political ideologies and affiliations,” he said.
“I want to tell each and every one of you to do whatever you can to keep yourselves safe, that goes for all of us in the public eye,” he added as he addressed his fellow commissioners. “I don’t think these random acts of violence, as terrible as they are, will stop. They have become commonplace in America, and I wish that wasn’t the case.”
“This is a really tough time, especially having a son myself and to watch a father lose his life,” he said. “I hope this will bring us together as people and make people across the political aisles understand that this is not worth dying for. We can have conversations and vehemently disagree but at the end of the day I know I’m looking at a human being across from me that has a family.”
In updates and reports, Commissioners an update on foreclosures in the county from County Treasurer Shelly Weich. Weich reported on both the final numbers for 2023 foreclosures as required by state law and her ongoing efforts to help people keep their properties.
Weich said the 2023 year saw 110 properties foreclosed on for back taxes owed, 86 of which were sold at auction for $1.5 million with the county getting $748,000 of that. Of the remaining 24 properties, four were sold to the Berrien County Land Bank, one was purchased by the city of Niles and 19 were purchased by the city of Benton Harbor.
The county has been using an online auction service since the pandemic and county officials reported that the final online auction for this year will be Oct. 31. So far this year, 85 properties have sold and 22 properties–mainly vacant lots–are still available.
Commissioners asked Weich about the general foreclosure process and she noted that while she works with property owners to help them keep their properties, her hands are tied when all the avenues for help are exhausted no matter how large or small the tax bill might be.
“We can have as many as 400 or more properties that go to a judicial hearing each February,” she said. “Technically they have until March 31 to redeem their property in a given year. I try to give them ample opportunity to meet with me and set up a payment plan, but by statute I do have to foreclose unfortunately if nothing works out.”
She pointed out that the foreclosure process is three years long from the time a property first goes delinquent on taxes. She said that the county sends out certified and first class letters to people, go to their homes, and do 40-year title searches to come up with people who possibly might have an interest in a property.
Weich reported that her outreach to different parts of the county has expanded this year. While she has gone out to communities around the county from January through March in past years, she is going out this fall to meet people in two south county communities.
People can find the complete schedule on the county treasurer’s page on the county website, but she has scheduled dates when she will be at the Niles Township Hall and the Niles City Hall. She will be at the Niles Township Hall Oct. 1, 29, Nov. 26 and Dec. 17. She will be at the iNiles City Hall Sept. 17, Oct. 15, Nov. 12 and Dec. 3.
County Commissioner Teri Freehling reported on broadband efforts in the county. She said that Midwest Energy & Communications has about 75 percent of their projects done, with 381 miles of fiber laid out of a total of 500 miles.
MEC received a $25.25 million state grant in 2023 to bring broadband service to rural areas of Berrien, Cass and Van Buren Counties. In Berrien County, the MEC has invested $15.5 million, the county has put up $3.22 million toward the project and local municipalities another $2.9 million.
Freehling said the county is still waiting to hear about other grant possibilities to do more broadband work.
Commissioner Dave Vollrath reported on a recent Michigan Association of Counties conference he attended. He said MAC officials are urging the 800 or so county commissioners around the state to contact their state legislators about the current budget impasse. MAC is concerned that many county services will be cut in the new budget.
“Nobody is doing anything in Lansing, only eight bills have passed this year,” he said. “Normally there are 300 bills, nobody is doing anything … MAC is stressing the need for people to call their legislators, they have to take care of business, they can’t just sit there and do nothing.”