Editorial: VBT DDA moves on rights of way for Belleville Road

At Tuesday’s meeting of the Van Buren Township Downtown Development Authority a motion was passed unanimously to move forward with a $262,000 plan to work on getting 29 rights of way on Belleville Road between Tyler and Ecorse roads.
This would allow 27 feet right of way on each side of Belleville Road, making way for a five-lane highway.
Paul Sanders of Commonwealth Land, who will be doing the acquisitions for the DDA, said he understands VBT DDA wants to use the right of way as “matching funds” when the county widens Belleville Road.
Sanders was at Tuesday’s DDA meeting and he said since there is no “project” at the moment, they will have to go for simple acquisitions. They will begin trying to acquire rights of way at once.
With condemnation, you have to have “necessity” and whoever loses a court case has to pay all the costs, said DDA Director Susan Ireland.
She said it is worth going out and trying simple acquisitions. One parcel, however, has a house in the right of way.
She said the other rights of ways the DDA gained for sidewalks have not been deeded over to Wayne County and she wants the DDA to keep them until it’s “beneficial” to turn them over.
“If we get everything taken care of, we could be at the front of the line,” Ireland said of Wayne County Road plans.