Dan Schutzel, president of the St. Joseph County Council, told the Board of Commissioners on June 17 that the council approved a parks bond to finance the Anderson Road Park in Granger and that the county will not raise property taxes to pay for it.

Schutzel said a highway bond is coming off the county’s books this year and that the council is replacing it with a smaller parks bond that will fund the park and address deferred maintenance. He credited the county’s financial adviser, Steve Dalton, and attorney Catherine Fanello for help structuring the financing and thanked county commissioners for their support.

“We have a highway bond that's coming off of our books this year, which is part of our bond portfolio. We're replacing that with a smaller parks bond ... so we are not raising anyone's property taxes to do this,” Schutzel said during public comment. He also acknowledged park board president Larry Catanzarite, park director Steve Slauson, other parks board members and local supporters who advocated for the project.

Schutzel said the park project advances a long-held plan for land the county has owned for about 25 years, and he thanked Commissioners Hazen and Morton for their support. Several members of the public who also spoke in favor of the bond described the park’s anticipated benefits for North County and nearby trail repairs.

The commissioners did not take a formal vote on the park bond at the June 17 meeting; Schutzel’s remarks were part of the public comment period. The County Council’s approval noted by Schutzel was made earlier by the council, not the Board of Commissioners.