VBT considers sale of five acres to parcel’s next-door neighbor

By Rosemary K. Otzman
Independent Editor
Doug Kovach of 6854 Morton Taylor Road wants to buy the 5.03 acres of trashed property next door at 6920 Morton Taylor so he can clean it up.
He said at the back of the property, on the west side of Morton Taylor just north of Ecorse, there is an abandoned camper that teens use for drinking and bonfires.
Kovach said there is random trash and fencing.
“It’s kind of a trashed property,” he said, adding there is an enormous amount of ticks and he and his family, his dogs, and his horses have all gotten ticks, he attributes to the high grass. There also are lots of mosquitoes.
And, it’s owned by Van Buren Township, acquired through the tax foreclosure process in 2001. The township received a deed to the property from the Michigan Department of Natural Resources in 2003.
Arthur Mullen, Director of Planning and Economic Development, said the property was originally intended to be a park for the township, but its long, narrow shape is not conducive to a park.
He said the current Master Plan does not include this parcel as either Parks or Open Space. Mullen reported that over the years the township has had no money for the maintenance of the property and the adjoining property owner to the north has complained of people trespassing, including hunting on the property.
The neighbor, Kovach, offered to purchase and improve the property.
Mullen asked for approval of up to $2,500 to spend on an appraisal and title work. He said he’s sure there are problems with the title.
Upon sale, the township will have to reimburse the various taxing jurisdictions based upon their percentage of the property’s tax bill, but VBT may recoup its costs associated with the sale, he said.
At its workshop session on Aug. 5, the VBT board discussed how to sell the property and whether it should put up for sale to anyone.
The first step is finding out how much it is worth and clearing the title and at the Aug. 6 regular meeting they voted to do that. It will come back to the board for action once it is ready to be sold.