Van Buren Township residents may soon see speed limits decrease on gravel roads following a resolution passed by the Board of Trustees at their Aug. 18 regular meeting.
This resolution requests a decrease of the speed limits on currently unmarked gravel roads from the default 55 mph to 45 mph. Following its adoption, the township will forward the official request to the Wayne County Public Services Department for approval.
The board previously approved a request for 40 mph, but a change at that threshold would require traffic studies to be done at a cost of $30,000 per road. The modification to 45 mph does not require those studies.
If the county agrees to the change, they will prepare a traffic control order and partner with the township to implement the signage.
If approved by Wayne County, the following roads will be affected:
- Morton Taylor Road between the North I-94 Service Drive and Van Born Road
- Hull Road between Hoeft and Martinsville
- Martinsville Road between Bemis and E. Huron River Drive
- Beck Road between the North I-94 Service Drive and Tyler Road
- Beck Road between Ecorse Road and Michigan Avenue
- Martz Road between Rawsonville and Elwell
- Elwell Road between Bemis and Lauren
- Riggs Road between Martinsville and Haggerty
- Fret Road between Martinsville and Renton
- Bak Road between Bemis and Hull
- Hoeft Road between Martz and Bog
- Bog Road between Monroe Court and Hoeft
- Lohr Road between Bemis and Martz
In other business at the 41-minute meeting, the board:
- Approved a $499,941.13 bid for Inner City Contracting LLC to perform installation of a water main for Belleville Road South of I-94 Service Drive, which will create loops increasing chlorine residuals and improving water quality;
- Approved Sanitary Sewer Advanced Underground Inspection to perform CCTV inspections of sewer lines for three years (years 5-7) in the amount of $240,583.40 to verify conditions and identify needed repairs;
- Granted special land use to Ashley Capital Crossroads North Building 10, located south of Van Born and west of Haggerty, intended to serve as a medical supply distribution hub;
- Approved the first reading of ordinance 08-18-26 to amend the maximum height standards for the Belleville Road Overlay District (BROD) allowing hospitals, senior homes and hotels a maximum height of 55 feet.
- Heard and approved a walk-on motion from Director of Community Services Elizbeth Renaud to accept jurisdiction and maintenance responsibility for Section I the Iron Belle Trail;
- Approved a grant agreement from the Michigan Economic Development Corporation regarding a $50,000 grant for Master Plan updates;
- Heard Supervisor McNamara read a resident letter thanking the board and township for recent water treatments on Belleville Lake;
- Received an update that Quirk Park will be adding two new pavilions in response to a comment from resident Christy Pagel concerning the park’s conditions and specifically citing lack of shade since the removal of the larger pavilion;
- Reminded residents of the Haggerty subdivision that work to upgrade ADA curb ramps will be starting within the next two weeks with expected completion in October and that crews will be working from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday-Friday and 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, adding that residents should mark areas (such as sprinkler lines) that could be damaged.
The meeting was adjourned at 6:41 p.m. Clerk Leon Wright was absent and excused.