Yes, the requirements vary greatly by state. Here are a couple
examples...
Ohio requires that the area be bigger than four square miles where as
in Indiana you have to be "reasonably compact and contiguous".
In South Carolina you can't be closer than five miles to another
township and in Ohio you can't surround an existing municipal
corporation.
They also very greatly in the detail and restrictions surrounding the
petition for incorporation. Indian tends to be pretty flexible while
South Carolina has more requirements and even lists a number of
different exceptions to those requirements.
Here is a page that goes over the requirements of incorporation in
Ohio. Evidently it's from a community that's actually going through
the process of petition for township incorporation. The first link
are the requirements to create a township and the second link is their
main page with other pages concerning township incorporation that I
think you will find interesting:
http://ull.chemistry.uakron.edu/cbjt/reports/Incorp/requirements.html
http://ull.chemistry.uakron.edu/cbjt/reports/Incorp/
Utah state code concerning township incorporation:
http://www.le.state.ut.us/~code/TITLE10/htm/10_02004.htm
Indiana state code concerning township incorporation:
http://www.in.gov/legislative/ic/code/title36/ar5/ch1.html
South Carolina state code concering township incorporation:
http://www.lpitr.state.sc.us/code/t05c001.htm
Google search strategy:
"township requirements incorporation" (without quotes)
://www.google.com/search?q=township+requirements+incorporation
Thanks and I hope this helps!
xemion-ga |
Clarification of Answer by
xemion-ga
on
31 May 2002 08:56 PDT
I'm sorry, I may have misunderstood your question. When I searched
for incorporation the searches came up with results for incorporating
a township into a city. Are you looking for information regarding the
actual creation of a "township"? If so, I will reresearch my answer
and get the appropiate links. Thanks.
xemion-ga
|
Request for Answer Clarification by
cyclopatra-ga
on
31 May 2002 12:46 PDT
Hi,
yes, I was looking for what it takes to create a new township, and
also some of the benefits of being a township rather than simply a
bunch of people living in one place :P
Thanks,
Cyclopatra
|
Clarification of Answer by
xemion-ga
on
01 Jun 2002 10:22 PDT
Ok, thank you for the clarification. I will research your question
further and post another answer. Thank you!
xemion-ga
|
Clarification of Answer by
xemion-ga
on
02 Jun 2002 21:25 PDT
Ok, I've done some further research. mwalcoff-ga was correct. Most
townships were formed many many years ago. My county in Indiana is
already completely made up of townships.
Are you certain that you do not already live in a township? Could you
be more specific as to where you live? What state/county? I won't
ask you for an address, but possible a nearby street intersection
might help. Thank you!
xemion-ga
|
Request for Answer Clarification by
cyclopatra-ga
on
04 Jun 2002 15:23 PDT
Hi,
OK, I'll try to explain...I'm considering forming (or attempting to
form) a new community somewhere in the US (this is not a commune or a
religious cult) for the purposes of...let's call it a sociopolitical
experiment. I'm trying to find out how difficult it is to incorporate
this community as a township, and what the advantages/disadvantages of
doing so are.
Thanks,
Cyclopatra
|
Clarification of Answer by
xemion-ga
on
04 Jun 2002 16:02 PDT
Ok, this sounds like a very interested experiement. However, a
"township" is an area of land recognized by the state or county as a
"township". You can't really incorporate your community into a
township unless you have an area of land on which to do so. Does that
make sense?
Most townships were formed a long time ago and I'm not sure you can
really form any new ones. I don't think you can really form a new
"township". What exactly do you want me to find?
xemion-ga
|
Request for Answer Clarification by
cyclopatra-ga
on
05 Jun 2002 14:42 PDT
Yes, I realize that I need land first, and I intend to have some :P
before beginning the experiment. Actually we're looking at probably
purchasing quite a large package of land to develop our community on.
Maybe I'm just unclear on what a township is, but I had thought it was
the smallest unit of local government that could be formed (and
recognized, at any rate). I guess this has turned out to be a more
complex question than I thought, and I apologize for that, but I
really appreciate your help :)
|
Clarification of Answer by
xemion-ga
on
05 Jun 2002 14:55 PDT
Here are some definitions of a township provided by Dictionary.com
(http://www.dictionary.com/search?q=township):
" - A subdivision of a county in most northeast and Midwest U.S.
states, having the status of a unit of local government with varying
governmental powers.
- A public land surveying unit of 36 sections or 36 square miles.
Note: In the United States, many of the States are divided into
townships of five, six, seven, or perhaps ten miles square, and the
inhabitants of such townships are invested with certain powers for
regulating their own affairs, such as repairing roads and providing
for the poor. The township is subordinate to the county. "
As your researcher (since I answered the question no one else can
really help you now and get paid for it), I want to do my best to help
you out. What type of recognition do you want as a government? Do
you understand what I'm asking? Since a "township" won't really work
for you, maybe I can find out what will. Thanks!
xmeion-ga
|
