VBT board votes to abandon part of drain that doesn’t exist

At its Dec. 2 regular meeting, the Van Buren Township Board of Trustees voted to authorize a petition to abandon a portion of the Wallace Drain behind Costco that doesn’t exist.
Municipal services director Ron Akers said the former county drain on Costco property no longer physically exists. The board is asked to clean up the records by abandoning that part of the drain.
Supervisor Kevin McNamara said this is an example of bureaucracy at work.
“We have to abandon a drain that doesn’t exist,” he said.
In a written memo, director Akers explained that Costco is in the plan review process at Wayne County for the western expansion of their warehouse building on Belleville Road. The county requires that Costco obtain a Drain Abandonment Resolution from the township in order to abandon a portion of the Wallace Drain which is on the property on which they are expanding. According to the county, there is a portion of the county drain on the property that no longer physically exists and is not serving the public utility function.
In other business at the 10-minute meeting, the board:
• Unanimously approved a METRO Act Telecommunications Permit for Ezee Fiber Texas, LLC to use the Wayne County roads public right of way to install around 577,000 feet of underground and aerial fiber optic cable in all the residential and business parts of the township. The township should see an increase in annual payment made by the state to the township for telecommunication fees, Akers said;
• Unanimously approved the execution of Wayne County annual permits to allow work along county roadways, including sanitary sewer and water main inspection and maintenance; dust pallative, calcium and salt applications; sidewalk repair and replacement; and street sweeping;
• Unanimously approved the 2026 township holiday schedule (13 holidays) and the 2026 meetings of the township board. The regular meetings of Tuesday, Aug. 4, and Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026, are canceled due to elections;
• Unanimously approved the second reading and adoption of the Third Amendment to the Development and Tax Increment Finance Plan for the township Downtown Development Authority. The DDA was started in 1990 and will run to 2038. It was last amended in 2009; and
• Unanimously approved a resolution to opt out for 2026 of the state required 80/20 employee health care provision of 80% paid by the township and 20% by the employee, in order to keep going with the township’s current program. Supervisor McNamara said the township is doing better for its employees. He said this annual opt-out requirement started 20 years ago. He said they have to have 90% of the board approve the opt-out to do more for the employees than the required 80/20. The township is using the EHIM model based on employee usage.
Clerk Leon Wright was absent and excused from the meeting.