VBT, Belleville to work together to apply for grant for sidewalk

“Yes, we are one community,” said Van Buren Township Planning Commission chairman Brian Cullin at the end of the hour-long tri-community planning commission meeting on Jan. 29.
“We are three different municipalities, but one community,” he stressed.
Members of the three planning commissions met at the Belleville Area District Library Cozadd Room to compare notes and see how they can cooperate.
Cullin pointed out the land along Sumpter Road was “a jigsaw puzzle.”
VBT commissioner Bernie Grant, who is an architect, asked if the planning consultants for the city and township talk to each other. He said there are two master plans and the companies could work together to make sure the boundaries are coordinated.
Problems along Sumpter Road were discussed because of Davenport Brothers plan to build housing on land that was located in Belleville and extended into Van Buren Township. Davenport eventually pulled back to build the project just in the city. He is still working on plans to resubmit to the city.
Belleville planning vice-chairman Julie Kissel, who also is a city council member, said she was concerned about the safety of the students walking to and from the city along Sumpter Road to Owen Intermediate School because there is not a good sidewalk there.
The city and township officials discussed the possibility of getting together to seek a grant for a sidewalk, since the area involved goes in and out of township and city sites. A preliminary subcommittee was set up to address the plan and VBT Municipal Services Director Ron Akers said he would try to come up with some kind of framework.
The next meeting of the tri-community planning commissions was set for 5 p.m., Wednesday, July 30, at the library.
VBT Treasurer Sharry Budd, who is liaison to the township planning commission, said since a secretary is taking notes, she would like to have a copy of the minutes for the next joint meeting, so members can be reminded of what was discussed.
Akers said renewable energy siting was being addressed by the state legislature and Belleville representatives said they haad no room for solar farms in the city. Akers said he would share what information he had on that with Sumpter, which had been dealing with a solar ordinance.
Belleville commissioner John Juriga said the lakefronts are washing into Belleville Lake and something needs to be done about that. He also said addresses for lakeside homes should be posted facing the lake for emergency crews to find the addresses from the water.
VBT commissioner Medina Atchinson said that is required in the township’s lakeside ordinance.
Assistant city manager Steve Jones said the city doesn’t have such an ordinance, but it might be a good idea to have one for redundancy.
Director Akers said there are vendors who make the signs with the addresses and the street names on them.
Alvis Brigis, the newest member of the Belleville Planning Commission, wanted to make sure everyone knew about a new $1.2 billion AI project on Textile and Rawsonville roads, just over the county line in Washtenaw County.
He said there will be 200 high-paying jobs at the super-computing facility. It is on the river because it needs water and it needs power and so a “mini-nuke” is being considered, referring to a small nuclear plant.
Brigis said the Los Alamos facility was announced in December and is expected to be completed in 2029 or 2030. He said the empty storefronts in downtown Belleville could be filled with high-tech businesses working with the new facility just down the road.
Merrie Coburn, director of the VBT Downtown Development Authority, said that drones for delivering materials have been tested in this area.
Brigis said this area is rural and so the drones will be coming and the city needs to be ready with drone zoning appealing to five, ten, or twenty little companies.
“This will be a big difference to us,” he said of the Los Alamos facility.
At the meeting, the complete VBT planning commission attended, four members of the Belleville commission, and only one from Sumpter – the commission chairperson Jane Stalmack.
Other VBT people present included supervisor Kevin McNamara, trustees Kevin Martin and Don Boynton, and officials from the building and planning commission and Director of Public Services Larry Luckett.