This story was first published by the Indiana Daily Student.
Ellettsville and Richland Township will move forward with reorganization after a majority of voters in the two areas voted “yes” on the referendum question in Tuesday’s general election.
The race was close in the township. Reorganization only passed by 35 “yes” votes — 50.6% of voters were in favor and 49.4% were opposed — from residents who live outside Ellettsville. Inside Ellettsville, however, 59.9% of voters were in favor of reorganization while 40.1% were opposed.
Ellettsville Town Councilmember William Ellis said the gap in votes shows that town residents are pleased with Ellettsville leadership, while township residents may not be. Some township residents expressed fear over Ellettsville handling planning, taxes and zoning in rural areas where it was previously handled by the county. Ellis said town and township residents had expressed confusion in public meetings.
“It seems that the skepticism and the rumors affected the township people more because they truly believed we operate in bad faith, and that’s why we barely passed on the township,” Ellis said.
The reorganization will go into effect on Jan. 1, 2027. Richland Township government will cease to exist, consolidating into the reorganized town of Ellettsville. The part of Ellettsville within Bean Blossom Township will also become a part of the reorganized town, but the rest of Bean Blossom will not.
The reorganized town will provide services previously handled by the town and township separately, such as emergency aid, police, utility services and street maintenance.
Because reorganization passed, the fire territory Ellettsville and Richland Township adopted earlier this year, which was an agreement between the two governments to provide indefinite joint fire protection, will no longer happen. It would have otherwise gone into effect Jan. 1, 2027.
Instead, fire protection under the reorganized town will be provided by the Ellettsville Fire Department, which has a response area already including Richland Township. Ellettsville has historically provided the township, which has no fire department of its own, with fire, rescue and first response services for almost 80 years.
In the reorganized town, residents will see a rise in property tax rates as a result of expanding departments. For example, the Ellettsville Fire Department will increase its staff size of three firefighters per station to meet national standards, which suggest four firefighters per station. The town will also cover the increasing costs for road maintenance through increased Motor Vehicle Highway taxes and increased Local Roads and Street taxes.
Ellettsville and Richland Township outlined every impact the reorganization will have under the final plan of reorganization. Because the referendum passed, the two entities are bound to this plan moving forward.
Although property taxes are expected to increase by 6.9% in Richland Township, 4.1% in the portion of Ellettsville within Richland and 3.4% in the portion of Ellettsville currently within Bean Blossom Township, some may see no change because of varying tax caps.
Ellis said the next steps before January are to begin assembling a five-member Special Advisory Board, which will work with the reorganized town council to provide a citizen point of view.
The reorganized town council will consist of the five current Ellettsville Town Council members and two of the three current Richland Township Board members.
Three Richland Township Board members ran uncontested last night, but the two candidates who received the most votes will fill the two new reorganized town council seats.
According to the unofficial results, these candidates are projected to be Elaine Thomsen and Jay M. Thrasher.
As the town and township start moving forward, Ellis hopes to begin hiring additional Department of Public Works positions and police officers to get a head start on their hiring process, which he said takes about six months.
“ Honestly, I’m glad it’s over,” Ellis said. “Pass or fail, I think I would’ve said that.”
Ava Campbell is a student reporter with the Indiana Newsroom, a learning lab designed to give IU students practical experience in community journalism and provide news coverage to areas where reliable local news is limited or nonexistent. It is funded by a grant from the Community Foundation of Bloomington & Monroe County and is housed at The Media School.
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