VBT Board approves settlements for 2 law suits, OKs paving plan

After an hour in closed-door session discussing another law suit on Oct. 15 the Van Buren Township Board of Trustees came into public session and unanimously approved its attorney’s recommendation in the case of Paul Bevins, et al. v. Charter Township of Van Buren.
The township’s attorney on this case is Ethan Vinson and it was announced this is the final recommendation in the case, meaning it is now settled.
This case, #13-14497, started in Wayne County Circuit Court and then was sent on to Judge Arthur J. Tarnow at U.S. District Court in Detroit.
The second law suit voted on at the Oct. 15 special meeting was that of Anthony Karver v. Van Buren Township, et al., #14-007522-CZ.
The township’s attorney on this case is Carlito Young. The board voted unanimously to approve the attorney’s recommendation on the case.
This is the case the board met in closed-door session for an hour discussing with Young before coming into public session to approve Young’s recommendation.
No information was given publicly by the board on the recommendation, but it is presumed to be a settlement offer.
In other business at the Oct. 15 meeting, the board voted unanimously to award the contract for paving repairs in the Walden Woods subdivision to Fiore Enterprises in the amount of $214,646.80 and also approved a 10% contingency as recommended by the township engineer.
The board had postponed action on this project at its Oct. 13 meeting, wanting to have the Wayne County Commission formally approve the intergovernmental agreement that pays for 80% of the Walden Woods project, as well as 80% for the Dewitt, Jeannette, Venetian road resurfacing project.
VBT Director of Planning and Economic Development Ron Akers attended the meeting of the County Commission earlier that day and reported that the commission unanimously approved the agreement. He said the commission’s attorney told him the township will have a signed, executed contract within a week.
Trustees Reggie Miller and Jeff Jahr said they were uncomfortable with not having the signed agreement in hand first. But when they learned that if Terreverde, the contractor for the Dewitt, Jeannette, Venetian project, doesn’t start work the next day, Oct. 16, it will have to put the project off until spring, they decided to move it along.
The Dewitt, Jeannette, Venetian project is asphalt and if they delay any longer there won’t be time to do the work before the asphalt companies close for the winter, Akers said.
The Walden Woods project is concrete so there is more leeway.
About a half dozen people from Walden Woods were on hand for the vote on their project.
“Thank you for voting to get our road repaired,” said Karen Spirl, vice president of the Walden Woods Homeowners Association, after the vote.
She said in February, James Jozwiak saw a story in the Independent and brought it to their attention. They’ve been following stories mentioning their subdivision ever since, she said.