Grafton Twp. dispute over $611,000 goes on

Grafton Township Supervisor Linda Moore says a majority of trustees this week rejected a request to pay back the township road district the $611,000 it paid to purchase the township building.

Board members, however, tell a different version of the discussion that took place at Thursday’s township board meeting.

Moore said trustees voted 3-2 to approve the township’s bills list with the exclusion of the $611,000 payment.

“It has been on the warrant list for a long time and I have asked to approve it,” Moore said. “But they will not.”

The township sold the Vine Street hall that houses several township offices to the road district in anticipation of a move to a new Lake in the Hills facility. But voters rejected the proposed $3.5 million building in last April’s election, essentially reversing the sale of the town hall to the road district.

“What needs to happen is the town fund needs to repay the road district the principal and interest of the loan that it took out to purchase the property,” Moore said. “It would be in the best interest of the township to unwind that transaction as soon as possible.”

But trustees said they do not object to paying back the $611,000 to the road district. Rather, trustees said they would prefer an intergovernmental agreement between the two entities outlining a payment schedule.

“We are trying to work out a payment plan so the township doesn’t need to take out a loan to repay the principal and interest to the road district,” Trustee Barb Murphy said. “If we paid it all back at once, we would need a loan at a higher interest rate than the road district is paying. We’re not rejecting paying the road district back, but we’re trying not to bankrupt the township as well.”