VBT Public Safety Director Laurain thanks Belleville Police, Fire

Van Buren Township Public Safety Director Greg Laurain made a special appearance at the Belleville City Council meeting on Monday to thank the city’s police and fire personnel who assisted the township in fighting the Dec. 13 house fire on Denton Road.
Director Laurain presented a letter of recognition to the city and said he hoped it would make its way into the appropriate personnel files.
Laurain said the township had automatic mutual aid with another department, but at the time of the fire that department was fighting its own fire.
He said the Belleville Fire Department came for mutual aid and four Belleville police officers were first to approach the fire. Laurain said they could see the child several feet inside the front door but couldn’t go in because of the fire.
But when a VBT fire fighter arrived in full gear they pointed out the child and fire fighter John Henderson pulled her out.
“They couldn’t go in, but they brought timely resources,” Laurain said of the police officers.
He said two of the officers were going off duty when the 4 a.m. fire was reported.
“They didn’t have to come out. They could have gone home,” he said, reporting their timely appearance on the scene saved seconds in getting to the child.
Belleville Police Chief Hal Berriman said his police officers – Officer Mark Aldrich and his partner Reserve Officer Matt Raich and Officer Kendra Rose and her partner Reserve Officer Dennis Mobray – already have been given life-saving ribbons by his department.
Council members asked that the officers be honored before the council at its next meeting and Chief Berriman agreed to present them.
Then Fire Chief Brian Loranger said his department sent an engine with five people on it and, “They worked those people pretty hard.”
When asked how many fire fighters he would like to present at the next meeting to be honored, Chief Loranger said, “All of them.”
It was pointed out that a Belleville Fire Fighter found the body of the teenager who had been missing all morning.
Chief Berriman said the police departments in the tri-community are always reaching out to help each other.
Laurain said VBT police has always thought of themselves as partner with the city police.
Mayor Kerreen Conley said, “All of our communities work together, not only in time of need. We have cooperation across our borders.”
In other business on Monday, the council:
• Awarded plaques to the winners in the Holiday House Decorating Contest: Christopher and Tracee Kloian, 253 Harbour Pointe Dr.; Ronald and Donna Adkins, 461 Waterbury Dr.; The Morin Family, 77 Carmell; John and Lisa Wysocki, 185 E. Huron River Dr.; and Photography by Shannon, 309 Main St.;
• Unanimously re-elected Jack Loria to serve as mayor pro tem for another year;
• Set a public hearing for 7:30 p.m., Tuesday, Feb. 16, to hear comments on the Downtown Development Authority’s proposed Development Plan and Tax Increment Financing Plan;
• Briefly discussed the numbers presented that would replace the crumbling concrete streets in Harbour Pointe subdivision with asphalt. The cost increases 10% for concrete, said DPW Director Keith Tackett. “I don’t think most of the neighbors would be happy if you replaced concrete with blacktop,” Tackett said. City Manager Diana Kollmeyer said for the Jan. 19 council meeting she will bring back financial options for redoing all the streets in the city that need it and then they will set a public meeting in a larger room to discuss the $10 million project;
• Unanimously approved the mayor’s appointment and reappointments to boards and commissions: new appointment of Jim Fitch to Planning Commission, term to expire Dec. 31, 2018; reappointments of Bill Emerson, Tom Smith (city council representative) and Michael Hawkins to the Zoning Board of Appeals with terms to expire Dec. 31, 2018; reappointments of Mike Renaud and Michael Hawkins to the Planning Commission, with terms to expire Dec. 31, 2018; reappointment of Jim Higgerson to the DDA with term to expire Dec. 31, 2019; and reappointment of Deborah Acho to the Parks and Recreation Commission with a term to expire Dec. 31, 2019;
• Approved the meeting dates for city council for 2016, at least twice each month, mostly on Mondays, but four on Tuesdays this year when Mondays are holidays;
• Approved advertising for quotes for two police department copy machines, one upstairs and one in the chief’s office to replace the old copiers that can no longer be serviced. They will be purchased with drug forfeiture funds;
• Approved accounts payable of $208,514.21 and departmental purchases in excess of $500: to Cadillac Asphalt, $625.60 for road repair/backfill from various departments; to Elden Cylinder Testing, $980 for hydrostatic testing/fill station from Fire Department budget; to First United Methodist Church, $1,099.25 for bond reimbursement from trust budget; to Lonnie’s Auto Repair, $788.91 for vehicle repair from various departments; to Priority One Emergency, $999.95 from a donation from the Bayou for five bullet proof vests; to Wayne County Accounts Receivable, $560 for lodging in the Dickerson Facility, General Fund; and to Wise Technologies, $1,511.17 for new computer equipment and labor from the Capital Outlay budget;
• Was informed City Manager Kollmeyr would be on vacation and would not be present for the next meeting. She said the audit is complete and is being filed with the state by the end of the year. The council will be getting a report, she said;
• Heard Councilman Tom Fielder complaint about what he called a “letter” in the Independent about the fire union negotiations that have taken more than two years so far. He said one thing he resented was that it said the negotiations were slowed and hamstrung because the city manager was out of town for months on end. “She chooses to take her vacation in winter,” Fielder said, noting that is her choice. He said Kollmeyer’s name was in the paper and the “letter’ should have had the whole city council’s names in because they all are responsible. [Editor’s Note: Kollmeyer and attorney John Clark are the negotiating team for the city and if one is not available for a session, the session is cancelled. Fire fighters have five on their team and need only two to negotiate.) “We’re not done yet. It’s our fault and the union’s fault,” Fielder said;
• Learned there are two vacancies on the DDA and several other vacancies on other commissions. Residents interested may inquire at city hall;
• Heard Jeff Vernon of the Sugar Plum Candy Shoppe announce as of the first of the year he will be living in Belleville and he already is working with four to five people on a project to improve the community for the kids. He said he has a few ideas and he’ll talk to the council about them. He said he learned once the city had a skate park for kids. He said he’d like to help get more businesses downtown besides the present 12-13 insurance companies; and
• Went into executive session to discuss pending union negotiations with the announcement that the council would reconvene in open session after the closed-door session only to adjourn.