VBT OKs engineering variances for Sheetz, Tractor Supply

The Van Buren Township Board of Trustees unanimously approved variances to the township’s engineerings standards for both the Sheetz gas station and Tractor Supply projects.
Clerk Leon Wright was the only board member absent.
At the board’s April 15 regular meeting, Ron Akers, director of municipal services, explained that the Van Buren Township standards were last updated in 2014 and will be upgraded soon to comply with Wayne County stormwater standards.
He recommended the board approve the variances.
Treasurer Sharry Budd said she hopes the drainage work Sheetz is doing on their property at the corner of Haggerty and Ecorse will help alleviate the flooding at that corner. A representative of Sheetz said they are working with Wayne County on that and Sheetz plans two detention ponds. The water will drain from the ponds into the county drain.
He said they expect to break ground in the fall and it will take six months to build.
Tractor Supply hopes to break ground in May and be done in 30 weeks.
In other business at the April 15 meeting, the board:
• Heard Trustee Kevin Martin read a board proclamation naming April 28 as Workers Memorial Day, with State Rep. Reggie Miller accepting the framed proclamation on behalf of the AFLCIO, who could not attend, and the state of Michigan;
• Heard 34th District Court Judge Lisa Martin invite everyone to the fourth-annual open house at the court on May 1, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.;
• Heard Deputy Supervisor Dan Selman announce the March 30 death of 94-year-old James Pollard, one of the township’s longtime pickleball players;
• Learned that Allison Greff, Van Buren Township Firefighter and member of the Western Wayne County Urban Search and Rescue Team, was awarded a Meritorious Service Award for her part in the rescue of a construction worker trapped in a collapsed trench;
• Was invited to the Van Buren Park cleanup from 10 a.m. to noon on Saturday, May 3. Also, on May 3, everyone was invited to the Van Buren Little League opening day ceremony at Beck ball field;
• Heard Director of Public Services Larry Luckett ask people to help get the roadways clean. Supervisor Kevin McNamara said, “We never paid to get the roads clean before”;
• Approved the appointment of Trustee Will Frazier as board liaison to the Water and Sewer Commission;
• Approved the purchase of two F-150 pick-up trucks from Atchinson Ford at a cost of $47,000 each, totaling $94,000 to be paid from the Water Capital Outlay account. They are replacing 2010 and 2011 trucks which will probably go to auction;
• Approved the purchase of eight new ICP-2 precinct tabulators and seven updated ADA-accessible voting machines at a cost of $74,319, which includes $1,000 buyback for each of the old machines being turned in. The clerk’s office said in 2017, the township acquired 12 ICP-1 tabulators from Dominion Voting Systems. After eight years of use, the technology has become slow and outdated. The updated machines process ballots more quickly, making them better suited to meet the demands of the seven large precincts currently being created;
• Approved the personal service agreement for Gary Dosey to fill a vacancy as the new Network Systems Administrator in Information Technology. Human resources director Nicole Sumpter said Dosey has more than 20 years of experience in a public school system and comes highly recommended;
• Approved the first reading of a zoning ordinance amendment to add provisions for commercial, office, and industrial planned unit developments. The second reading and final approval will be at the next meeting;
• Approved the first reading of a zoning ordinance amendment to rezone 12 properties near Van Born and Haggerty roads to M-1, Light Industrial at the request of Ashley Capital Crossroads. The second reading and final approval will be at the next meeting;
• Approved the American Fireworks Company as the contractor for the VBT Fireworks Show for $25,000. The company also did the fireworks displays in 2023 and 2024. This year the fireworks will be on June 28 at Beck Ball Fields, with a rain date of June 29;
• Approved selection of low-bidder PEA Group for an improvement design plan for the front section of Van Buren Park at a cost of $29,500, plus reimbursable expenses. McNamara said this is fully funded by a Wayne County grant. He said they are going to see if they can get more grant money to bring the project to a higher level;
• Approved low-bidder Pioneer Landscaping and Lawn Maintenance as the contractor for landscaping maintenance services at a cost of $131,700;
• Approved Pioneer Landscaping and Lawn Maintenance as the contractor for lawn mowing services at a cost of $447,300;
• Approved awarding a contract to Premier Group Associates, LC for $179,801.10 the lowest of eight bids for the Tyler Road Sidewalk Gap project. Bids were opened publicly at 10:30 that morning and reviewed by engineers and recommenders contacted. McNamara said Wayne County awarded federal grant money of $300,000 which has to be spent by October, so it has been put on the fast track for completion. He said the sidewalk project was ready to go, so the grant could be used. The project is filling in sidewalk gaps along Tyler Road and now more can be done such as repairing sidewalks, replace some by Parkwood, and other options;
• Approved the second reading and adoption of an ordinance to amend the zoning ordinance to rezone the property at 10401 Belleville Rd., from RM, Multiple Family to C-1 General Business. The property owner wishes to build a car wash, but this board action was only to rezone it to C-1 in line with the master plan;
• Heard Rick Williams of the 44000 block of Tyler Road demand the township stop building which he says is backing up the McClaughrey county drain. He said he has begged the township to take care of the water. He said it is not a 100-year flood, it’s every year. He said the drain works well to his house but when it goes under Tyler Road it is blocked and so the water backs up. McNamara invited him to his office after the meeting to show him on a map where it is blocked. Also, Williams said he hasn’t let the township change his water meter and he is being billed a $72 fee on an estimated reading and he objects to the reading being estimated. “Let us change out the water meter,” McNamara said; and
• Heard Director Akers give an update on the county drains. He said three drains have petitions for cleaning. He said in the past the county could only pay $5,000 a mile for maintenance and that has been lifted to $10,000, which should help. “We’re actively going after the county for drain cleaning,” McNamara said. “But we can’t move the county.”
Developing the ‘Ford Property’
A 26-minute work study session was held at 5 p.m. before the regular meeting on April 15 to discuss the Downtown Development Authority and township putting out a request for qualifications for a consultant on the development of the 181 acres the township owns referred to as the Ford Property.
Absent from the work-study session were Clerk Leon Wright and Trustee Donald Boynton.
A committee will consider the applicants and recommend two of those for final interviews with the township board.
Supervisor McNamara said he would like to add on the airport’s property of 10 acres that adjoins the township property, as well as the 25 acres owned by the University of Michigan along Beck Road.
“The bigger the pie, the better,” McNamara said.
“I’m always for adding more parks and housing is a big priority,” said Trustee Bryon Kelley.
Treasurer Sharry Budd said seniors don’t want trailers.
“We got a grant to look at housing,” said Director Akers. He said they could be looking at grants and public/private partnerships.
“Van Buren is never going to have a downtown, but we could have things there like a town,” said Trustee Martin.
Akers said they will get citizen input on what people want there.
“A look into the future,” Martin said. “With things condusive to their lifestyle.”
McNamara pointed to a proposed plan on the meeting room screen, noting the consultant can propose a plan like that one. Martin said, “Or a better plan, with ideas they didn’t have.”
McNamara said they have to find the right person.
Applicants have a May 29 deadline for proposals. Finalist interviews will be June 9-11.
McNamara said the U of M wants $100,000 an acre for its land. He said if it’s considered a park, it could be a lot cheaper.
The planning commission is holding an open house from 6 to 8 p.m. on Wednesday, April 30, to get public input on proposed developments through the housing grant study. The Ford property is one of the proposed developments.