Michele Podzikowski and Cael Tanner assist a voter at the Ferndale Area District Library Nov. 5.
By: Mike Koury | Woodward Talk | Published November 6, 2024
FERNDALE — Ferndale’s proposal to restore its Headlee operating millage has been denied by voters.
On the ballot for the Nov. 5 election in Ferndale were two proposals, including one that would reset the city’s general operating millage back to 20 mills.
This proposal was rejected by Ferndale voters. Of the 11,655 total votes cast, 6,289 people voted no, which represented 53.96%. The number of voters who chose yes was 5,366, or 46.04% of the total vote, according to Oakland County Elections.
The Headlee override is set to expire on Dec. 31, 2025. As of now, the operating millage for 2025 will be 11.4144 mills. With the 2015 10-year Headlee override millage of 4.2808 mills, the 2025 combined general operating millage will be 15.6952 mills.
Paired with the Headlee proposal was a charter amendment to dedicate 4 of the 20 mills of the millage for public safety and recreation purposes.
From 11,708 total voters, 7,189 people chose to pass the amendment and 4,519 chose no. However, because it only would go into effect if the Headlee override was approved, the charter amendment becomes redundant.