Sumpter planners affirm slaughterhouse recommendation

During a 47-minute special meeting on Aug. 21, the Sumpter Township Planning Commission voted unanimously to return its recommendation on the proposed slaughterhouse to the township board of trustees with lots of detailed information.
At its July 12 regular meeting, the planning commission voted unanimously to send a recommendation for approval of special land use for the slaughterhouse to the township board with stipulations, but did not specify the details. The board sent it back to the commission asking for details.
The slaughterhouse operation is proposed for 50425 Bemis Road, the former site of the Pet Resort.
Commission chairman Jane Stalmack said three items should be in the material sent to the board: that hard-surface parking is required, the site plan needs to be corrected to meet the ordinance, and the developer should meet with the planner on details.
Commissioner Matt Oddy, who did not attend the July meeting and did not participate in that evening’s discussion on the project, had recommendations on what should be in the information for the board. And, so did township attorney Rob Young, who seldom attends planning commission meetings but was at the board table sitting with the commission at the special meeting.
Chris Atkin, planning consultant from Carlisle Wortman, went through items listed in the minutes of that meeting, including the height of the fence is six foot around the east side of the building and the parking layout is taken care of and the delivery layout is taken care of.
He said 20 animals at max can be at the site and the commission may want to add something else as a stipulation.
Commissioner Tim Rush said he would like to add daily removal of waste.
Commissioner Oddy said he would like to read through all the stipulations on page 6, so Chairman Stalmack went through the details again.
Oddy insisted the dumpster should be dumped daily and the height of the fence should be 6 feet, enclosing the stockyard area.
Consultant Atkin said the dumpster should be dumped daily, if necessary.
After more discussion on details, Rush made a motion, seconded by Commissioner Richard Pokerwinski to send the recommendation back to the township board with the reports and minutes of July 12 meeting and minutes of that night’s meeting.
In other business, consultant Atkin said the wireless communication tower approved by the township for special land use at 20060 Haggerty Road needs a one-year extension because no work has been done and the approval will expire.
He said the developers met a road block. Wayne County is making them put in a detention pond. He said the other cell tower approved at Lohr and Harris roads also will need a pond.
Commissioner Rush said it is in the best interest of the community to help the developer get this done. He said cell towers have backup power that can stay on for days and even weeks in an emergency situation.
He made the motion to grant the one-year extension and Commissioner Oddy seconded the motion, that was passed unanimously by the commission.
Then the meeting was opened to public comment by the crowd of people who came to hear about the slaughterhouse, with commission Chairwoman Stalmack announcing speakers had to keep their comments to three-minutes each.
Denise Adkins said she was concerned because people didn’t know about this slaughterhouse in their neighborhood and consultant Atkin said those 300′ away from the project were informed and it was printed twice in the paper.
“You live one mile away,” consultant Atkin scolded her. “You live next to an Industrial district and you knew that. You had a say in public comments when the zoning ordinance was approved.”
Adkins said someone finally came to look at her house, which is for sale. She asked what she should say if the buyer asks what that smell is.
“I know, I can sue the township,” she said. “Nobody wants it in their back yards. You can’t tell me it won’t smell,” she said, adding she will be calling the FDA when it does.
“It’s terrible the way you slid this in,” she continued.
Attorney Young joined in the scolding tone, saying the statute existed for decades and you have to hold a public hearing with everyone within 300 feet getting notified. You have to publish it in the newspaper one time and it was published twice.
“Nobody did anything but to follow the law,” Young said, adding this is a permitted use with conditional-use approval. The township held the public hearing and the public had a right to be there with those in opposition making comments. Special conditions were put in motion.
“We don’t say we don’t like you, so you have to leave,” Young continued. “Nobody did anything underhanded…”
A man in the audience said the commission could have denied approval and Young replied, “Then I end up in court.”
Alfred Dingley of Lohr Road asked about the purchase of the property and consultant Atkin said it was purchased in January for a different intent.
The man asked who okayed the purchase and it was approved without thinking about it. “Can you guarantee odor control?”
Commissioner James Clark said there are horses in the man’s area and, “I can smell the horses.”
“Are you going to control the odor or not?” Dingley asked.
Young said the ordinance officer will determine offensive odors and the township will enforce the ordinance.
Commissioner Mary Sherwood noted people have said this is in “our back yard,” but it’s in her front yard, one mile away.
“I came to the meeting fully prepared to vote no because it affected me,” Sherwood said of the previous meeting. “He [the owner] convinced me this is going to be a small operation and he will follow the law and not become a nuisance operation … and we can work to stop it if it does.”
Commissioner Oddy said the township does not get involved in the purchase of private land.
The second speaker to sign up to talk was Norm DeBuck who operates a sod farm near the proposed slaughterhouse. He said he did receive notice because he is within the 300 feet. He said he had odor concerns and the daily emptying of the container addresses that. He said at the last meeting he talked about how large animals trampling on his turf fields would cause a lot of damage.
He said it is good to know that in the event they don’t operate a good business the township will act.
Young said the township could move to revoke special-use approval and would seek an injunctive order from circuit court to shut them down.
Former Commissioner Jay Bardell said he raises horses, cows, and chickens and for four to five months of the season there is smell. He said he uses a lot of lime which deadens the odors — almost.
He said he raises 100 chicken at a time and setting the maximum number of 20 at a time at the slaughterhouse is not a good number. He said he takes his animals to Blissfield, 40 miles away, for slaughter.
“Most of us eat meat and animals have to be slaughtered,” Bardell said. “I’m 100% for the slaughterhouse.”
A man who said he lives in the second occupied house away from the slaughterhouse said the first he heard of it was by reading Denise Adkins’ letter in the Independent the previous week.
Roy Martin, who said he lives across Rawsonville Road in Augusta Woods, said there are 350 people there who would smell this if they get an east wind.
“I notified the manager to get ahold of the owner,” he said.
Young said if the township makes a determination smell emanates from there, it will act. He said the residents of Rawsonville Woods have the right to call and complain about that.
Richard Croft of Sully Drive said there is no smell to a horse farm. He said he just got his house appraised and he didn’t want it to go down in value because of talk of a horse farm.
“You shouldn’t bring up horse farms,” Croft said. “I don’t smell Denise’s horses.”
Bardell said he lets his horses crap in the field and he doesn’t clean it up.
DeBuck said the State of Michigan has a Right to Farm Act. Agriculture has some smells, he said, and there has to be a certain level of tolerance.
“If we bring something new in … you can’t be too sensitive,” DeBuck said.
Bardell said people see dead deer and raccoons in the road and they smell.
“This man has got a chance,” he said. “We gotta wait and see how he handles his business. A little bit of change isn’t going to hurt us.”