Ellettsville–Richland reorganization headed to November ballot

The proposed reorganization of Richland Township and the Town of Ellettsville will now go to voters in November, after the Richland Township board and Ellettsville town council each voted Monday night to put the question on the ballot.

The one vote of dissent came from township board member David Willibey, who said, “The majority of the people I’ve talked to are against it, so therefore I say no.”

The separate votes came after the second of two public hearings required under Indiana state law. The first hearing was held June 10, and the second took place Monday, June 22.

The proposal, if approved by voters, would dissolve Richland Township government and consolidate its functions into a reorganized Town of Ellettsville. The new municipal government would cover both the existing town limits and the unincorporated parts of Richland Township.

Under the plan, the reorganized town would have a seven-member town council, with five district seats and two at-large seats. The government would also include two primary taxing districts: an urban district, roughly corresponding to the current town boundaries; and a rural district covering the rest of Richland Township.

Supporters of the move say it’s needed in order to protect essential public services, preserve local identity, and create a more efficient and sustainable structure for future growth for the entire township. That comes against the backdrop of fiscal pressure from SEA 1 and a concern that the state legislature wants eventually to completely eliminate township government.

President of the Ellettsville Town County, Scott Oldham, exhorted voters to get their questions answered before the Nov. 3, and not to rely on mere rumors:

This is a significant vote. I would encourage everyone to ask the questions you need to find out the answers for yourself. Don’t just believe everything that’s floating around, because there’s a lot of misinformation, both pro and con, out there. This shapes this town’s future. This shapes this township’s future, so let’s all try and get it as absolutely right as we can, and not just believe a rumor of a rumor of a rumor of a rumor.

The proposal will now appear on the Nov. 3 ballot. Under state law, the proposal has to get a majority of support from voters in both the current town and the township in order for it to take effect. If it doesn’t get a majority of support from voters in each of the two geographic areas, the reorganization fails.

If voters approve the reorganization, the new unified government would take effect Jan. 1, 2027.

The Monday votes follow earlier action on May 27, when the Richland Township board and Ellettsville town council each approved a fiscal impact analysis prepared by Baker Tilly and forwarded it to the Indiana Department of Local Government Finance for review.

At that May 27 meeting, the township board vote included one dissenting vote, from Jay Thrasher. The Ellettsville town council vote also included one dissenting vote on May 27, from Dan Swafford.

But on Monday, Thrasher voted yes making clear what he was voting for: “I’m going to vote to put it on the ballot, so yes.” Dawn Durnil provided the second vote of support, which was enough to achieve a majority on the three-member township board.

On the town council’s side, Swafford did not attend Monday’s meeting. The other four town councilors voted in favor—Scott Oldham, Trevor Sager, William Ellis, and Pam Samples.

A central issue in the reorganization discussion has been how taxes and services would be distributed between the current town and the township area outside the town limits.

The fiscal plan presented by Baker Tilly projected a property tax rate of $0.7028 in the urban district and $0.2776 in the rural district, compared with current rates of $0.6160, for the Town of Ellettsville and $0.1644 for Richland Township.

Baker Tilly estimated the change would increase total tax bills by about 6.9% for properties in Richland Township, 4.1% for the part of Ellettsville currently in Richland Township, and 3.5% for the part of Ellettsville in Bean Blossom Township. For a typical Richland Township homestead between $150,000 and $300,000, the increase was estimated at about $5 to $12 per month.

Another key point has been police coverage in the rural part of the reorganized town. At the May 27 meeting, Ellettsville town council president Scott Oldham objected to a characterization that the Monroe County sheriff’s office would continue to serve as the primary law enforcement agency for the rural area.

Oldham said that because the reorganized Ellettsville would be a municipality, Ellettsville police would be the point of first contact for the entire town, including the rural district. He also said existing mutual-aid relationships would continue among Ellettsville, Bloomington, Monroe County and other agencies.

Road maintenance has raised a similar question. At the May 27 meeting, Richland Township board member Jay Thrasher asked about responsibility for plowing roads in the rural area of the reorganized town. Oldham said the town would have to take on that responsibility because the reorganized government would be one town, not a town and township.

The reorganization process began last fall. The Richland Township board approved a resolution Nov. 10, 2025, indicating a willingness to explore reorganization with Ellettsville. The Ellettsville town council followed with its own resolution Nov. 24.

A seven-member reorganization committee then worked through the winter and spring, with subcommittees examining finance, local government, public safety, planning and zoning, parks and cemeteries, streets and road maintenance, water, sewer and stormwater, and former township services.

With Monday’s votes, the decision now shifts from the township board and town council to voters on Nov. 3. The wording on the ballot, assuming it is approved by the Monroe County election board is:

Richland Township of Monroe County, Indiana and the Town of Ellettsville of Monroe County, Indiana have each adopted a Plan of Reorganization that provides for the consolidation of Richland Township into the Town of Ellettsville as a single governmental unit that will be governed and administered as a town with a seven (7) member elected Town Council. Shall Richland Township and the Town of Ellettsville reorganize as a single political subdivision?