General information

Welcome !

Welcome to the Village of Constantine web page. Use this site to learn about the Village, read past Village minutes and explore our links. And please, don’t stop at our web page. Come and visit our community.

Constantine boasts being the World Seed Corn Capital. The greater area produces over 10% of the Seed Corn in the United States. Another 10% of the nation’s Seed Corn production is in the surrounding counties. Additionally, the Village has many assets we are proud to share with you. The St. Joseph River is a hotspot for recreational fishing, boating, swimming and canoeing, and is host to several boat races along with being the center of other festivals throughout the County. Other recreational opportunities exist in our five parks that are located throughout the Village. Our National Historical Downtown District is home to businesses that specialize in a unique variety of products and services.

Our industrial base helps provide over 500 jobs to the greater Constantine area. The Industrial Park and other businesses are serviced by the CSX railroad along with modern highway system.

We are strategically located less than one hour from Interstate 94 and less than fifteen minutes from Interstate 80/90. U.S. 131 runs through the village. We are two and half hours from Chicago and within one hour of South Bend and Elkhart, Indiana and Kalamazoo, Michigan and within easy driving distance to Lake Michigan. Regularly scheduled air and train service is less than an hour away.

Feel free to visit. We will make you feel at home and ensure that you have a pleasant stay. As you walk our tree-lined streets, neighbors wave and say hello. Visit our unique businesses, participate in area events and see for yourself how Constantine is a place to operate a business, settle your family and grow. Stop by our Village office, give us a call or drop us a line. We look forward to seeing you.

The village of Constantine, Michigan is located in southwest St. Joseph County midway between Detroit and Chicago and five miles north of the Indiana border.

Having been originally settled in 1828 the village takes pride in its historic downtown district and a number of well preserved historic homes on the state or national registry within the village.

The St. Joseph River runs through the center of the village. Just east of US-131 the river is dammed and an electric generation plant is operated by the American Electric Power Company. Another stream, the Fawn River, emanates from Klinger Lake and enters the St. Joseph River just below the dam.

Together with the two neighboring townships the village maintains a volunteer fire department that carries one of the best insurance classifications given to volunteer departments. They also provide ambulance and rescue squad service.

Another major asset of the village is the public school system which is highly regarded for both its academic and atheletic accomplishments. The school system consists of two elementary sites a middle school and a high school.

Our industrial base helps provide over 500 jobs to the greater Constantine area. The Industrial Park and other businesses are serviced by the CSX railroad along with modern highway system.

Organizational Structure of the Village

The Village of Constantine is a General Law Village (GLV) operating under Public Act 3 of 1895 as amended. The Village operates under a Council/Manager form of government. The seven member Council consists of six trustees and an elected Village President. There is an elected Village Clerk and Village Treasurer. The Manager is responsible to the Village Council for all daily operations including implementing Council policies; responding to customer inquiries; preparing, monitoring and implementing the Village budget; and representing the Village to other divisions of government.

The Downtown Development Authority and Cool Cities Committees and other Village committees are dedicated to the enhancement of community activities that contribute to a better quality of life for residents and visitors alike. The Planning Commission is dedicated to further development of Constantine in a controlled progressive manner. The Parks and Recreation Committee helps to finance recreational activities for all ages and works to improve area recreational opportunities. The Village Council concentrates on issues and their impact not only in the immediate, but the long-range future as well. All organizations within the Village are invited to participate in a yearly strategic planning process to help set goals and objectives for the community.

The Village has full time police and public works departments. Through contractual or intergovernmental agreements, the Village provides ambulance and fire services and participates in county-level organizations such as the St. Joseph County Economic Development Corporation and the Domestic Assault Shelter Coalition. The Village participates with the school and area townships in parks and recreation planning and implementation including writing and adopting a five-year recreation plan. The Village is part of the Constantine Township Library district, which provides library services to the Village and surrounding townships. Constantine Township is responsible for tax assessments, administering local elections, and the care of the cemeteries within the Village limits.

Management Executive Summary

Constantine is located in southwestern Lower Michigan in St. Joseph County. The population of 2,095 people includes a demographic mixture representative of the State of Michigan. The Village government offers full services including police protection, water and sewer systems, and administrative functions. Additionally the Village has cooperative efforts for fire service and limited parks and recreation activities.

The Village is a General Law Village. The Manager oversees daily operations and implements Council policy. The authority for the Village Manager is within a Village Ordinance. An elected Clerk and Treasurer provide constitutional duties as defined in the State Constitution and PA 3 as amended.

The Village Manager leads a full time operation management team consisting of the Bookkeeper, Administrative Assistant, Police Chief and Foreman of the Public Works. The department heads then work with their staffs in receiving further input into Village operations. Additionally the Village has under contract a City Attorney, various consultants and contractual arrangements with various companies. Several committees and boards also participate in managing the Village. They include the Downtown Development Authority, Planning Commission, Cool Cities and Zoning Board of Appeals.

The budget process is conducted in several steps with the entire Village team being involved. All departments submit budgets to the Village Manager by the middle of January. The Village Manager then compiles all the budgets, makes adjustments to bring the budget into balance than has the departments review the total budget for final comments. The budget is then submitted to the Village Council for review. In March a public hearing is held to gather public input into the process. The final budget adoption is late February or early March.

With this coming fiscal year department supervisors will monitor their respective budgets. The Village Manager will be reviewing the budget on a monthly basis with reports from the Bookkeeper. Since the Council adopts an Activity Budget, the Council will take action on only transfers between funds and between departments within the General Fund. However, the Council will receive periodic financial status reports from the Village Manager.

The Village annually continues the process of strategic planning. The first ‘goals and objective session’ was held on January 26, 2002 with assistance from Michigan State University Extension Service. The 2003, 2004 and 2005 sessions were held with a wide range of citizens and community leaders participating.

The estimated taxable value of the Village for 2005-2006 is estimated at $53,810,000.

Management Executive Summary Continuation

The total Village Budget, after intergovernmental transfers, will amount to about $2,000,000.

The Village has just completed the process of modifying the recently built sewer pipeline to Three Rivers. This project has in some cases, brought into various budgets one-time expenditures, which will not be included in subsequent budgets. There is legal action being taken by the Village against the original engineering firm.

For the fiscal year 2001-2002, the Auditor recommended, and the Council subsequently approved extending the end of the fiscal year from February 28 to March 31. The change brought the Village accounting into line with other governmental entities with which financial partnerships exist, tax quarters, and easing the audit during tax season. This 13-month fiscal year created expenditures over budgeted amount for the 2001-2002 fiscal year. In comparing year to year it is best the reviewer keeps in mind that the 2001-2002 comparables will be skewed.

Few structural changes were incorporated into the budget for 2005-2006. The millage for the Water Debt Retirement Fund is recommended to be kept to 1.0 mill. Additionally, the 1997 Sewer Debt Retirement Fund is recommended to be lowered from 2.3 to 1.85 mills. The 2001 Debt Retirement is requested to be moved from 1.5 to 2.0 mills. This is a one-time adjustment to put the budget in line with the bond payment being made prior to April 1 of the fiscal year. The General Fund millage is recommended to continue at 10.5 mills.

The Village is challenged, as all other communities in the State of Michigan are, with the decreasing State Revenue Sharing Statutory distribution. Even though the State has not adopted the budget beginning in October there are indications the State Revenue Sharing will be held harmless. However, until the State budget process is completed some reduction should be anticipated therefore 95% of anticipated State Revenue Sharing income.

The Equipment Rental fund balance continues to grow while drawing revenue from other budgets creating an unequal balance between revenues and needed expenditures. The history of Equipment Rental fund balance growing faster than demand is common in small communities as the rental rates are State driven with expenses locally driven.

With the Village in contract negotiations with the Police and DPW labor units, the final labor contracts and costs were not fully known at budget time. Therefore some adjustments may be needed upon completion of contract negotiations.

Management Executive Summary Continuation

The Village uses the budget process to establish priorities for the coming year. Therefore priorities may change depending upon public requests, Council modification of policies, and changing external variables. Yet the Council recognizes that from time to time the budget will be adjusted to meet changing needs and priorities.

Overall the 2005-2006 spending plan is conservative while holding close to maintenance of existing services.