VBT Board votes 5-1 to OK AutoZone pact that Wayne County requires

After delaying the approval of a storm water system maintenance agreement with AutoZone for more than eight months, the Van Buren Township Board of Trustees approved the agreement on a 5-1 vote, with Trustee Jeff Jahr voting no.
The agreement now will be sent on to Wayne County, as required.
Trustee Jahr has spoken at several meetings about how he objects to Wayne County granting the permits and inspecting the storm water systems for new businesses and then requiring the township to agree to see that the system is maintained and repaired.
Patrick Sloan of McKenna Associates is handling important business in the township’s planning and development office since former Director Jack Knowles resigned and the Deputy Director Darrell Fecho is out on an extended sick leave.
Sloan told the board that AutoZone has a Certificate of Occupancy and has been in operation since last August.
He said the township has received numerous requests from AutoZone since then to process their storm water agreement because Wayne County will not release AutoZone’s $30,000 cash bond until a signed agreement is received by them from the township.
To ensure that the property owner takes responsibility for long-term maintenance of the site’s storm water drainage system, VBT historically required a Storm Water maintenance and Repair Agreement with the property owner, Sloan said.
He said additional agreements will be coming forward with other approved site plans for township businesses.
Board members raised questions at the work/study session the day before this meeting, which were answered by township attorney Patrick McCauley. Also, the supervisor’s executive assistant Lianne Clair prepared a 10-page report on the history, showing that the township has been approving water system maintenance and repair agreements for nearly 30 years.
The AutoZone item was originally on the Oct. 21 board agenda. Clerk Leon Wright’s motion to approve it got no second and so no action was taken. Jahr’s concerns regarding the township’s potential obligation to maintain and repair the storm water system encouraged the board to consider a law suit against the county with or without other municipalities joining in.
Wayne County is the only county in the state that has this requirement and the VBT attorney had advised that the county had no legal standing to do so.
It was stated that it is unclear if the county will punish AutoZone for the township’s action.
Since then, attorney McCauley revised the agreement and resolution to provide more protections for VBT and the board reviewed and discussed the revised documents at its Nov. 17 work/study meeting and its Dec. 2 regular meeting.
At the June 16 meeting, Jahr did not comment on the action and just voted no.
In other business at the 25-minute June 16 meeting, the board:
• Approved the $500,000 Pump Station Replacement Project at Harbour Pointe and the not-to-exceed $38,700 contract with engineers Wade Trim for engineering services for the project. The project will be paid through the Sewer Capital Outlay Account. Another project was planned this year, but the money was transferred to this project. The current pump station has an elevator and the new one in a new location will not have an elevator;
• Approved the new rate schedule for Wade Trim engineers;
• Approved a revised Freedom of Information Policy to comply with new state law which goes into effect July 1;
• Approved a resolution to transfer $20,000 in remaining 2013 Community Development Block Grant Housing Rehabilitation funds by creating a new project, “Demolition.” Sloan said they are contacting property owners who need to demolish buildings, but they expect the township to have to do two demolitions;
• Approved the first reading of an amendment to the township zoning ordinance to rezone a parcel from C-1 (General Business) to R-1B (Single Family Residential). The property is on the north side of Tyler Road across from Meijer. It was conditionally rezoned for a medical clinic in 2007, but the applicant did not proceed and so the zoning should have reverted to the original zoning. But, the resolution and notice of adoption in the newspaper had no conditions, so it stayed C-1;
• Approved appointing Loretta Speaks to the Water & Sewer Commission with a term to expire May 31, 2016 to fill the unexpired term of longtime member Robert Cook, who resigned because he is moving from the community. Supervisor Linda Combs said Cook served longer than anyone on any commission. Speaks had served on the Water & Sewer Commission in the past and is a former township employee;
• Heard Supervisor Combs say that the township needs applicants for appointments to its commissions and committees; and
• Was advised the fireworks are scheduled for June 27 with a rain date of June 28.
Country Walk
Memo of Understanding
At the June 15 work/study session the VBT Board of Trustees discussed the proposed Country Walk Memorandum of Understanding, prepared after long negotiations. The item will be on the July 7 regular board meeting agenda for approval.