Although the Van Buren Township Downtown Development Authority has been told in the past a proposed roundabout for the Ecorse/Belleville Road intersection might not be feasible in the eyes of the county, now it is under consideration.
At Monday’s meeting of the VBT DDA, Executive Director Susan Ireland reported that a county official agreed recently that a roundabout just might fit in that location.
“There’s money to be spent and I’ll get it spent,” Ken Kucel said, according to Ireland. He referred to the federal funds earmarked for that intersection.
Ireland said Kucel, who is director of the Engineering Department at Wayne County DPS, said if the roundabout option was approved, there would need to be public education.
Ireland said when people talk about roundabouts, they have in mind the confusing Green Oak Township roundabout.
“People are used to Michigan lefts,” Ireland said.
She told the DDA that Wayne County is being open-minded and, “We’ll wait and see what happens.”
Earlier this year the DDA assigned Wade Trim engineers to do preliminary drawings and cost comparison of a roundabout and a Michigan left for that intersection, which needs improvement. At the March 22 DDA meeting, Wade Trim presented its study on the intersection to the DDA, which voted to send it on to the county engineers, with a small alteration.
Ireland said she talked to Kucel on April 22 and told him she wanted to make sure this project stays on the top of their pile because she is aware of their employee shortage.
“He has assured me that it would not be put aside since there are federal dollars available and an entity that was willing to partner,” Ireland wrote in a memo to the DDA.
Wade Trim was due to contact Wayne County this week for further follow up.
In other business at Monday’s meeting, the DDA:
* Reelected its same officers for another year: Chairman Jere Dolph, Vice Chairman Kurt Atchinson, and Secretary Sophie Zoller;
* Approved temporarily changing the meeting dates for 2010 to the fourth Tuesday of each month at 5:30 p.m., to accommodate the schedules of the planning consultant and engineering consultant;
* Approved having McKenna Associates planning consultants advertise for a part-time media professional to help the DDA with the placement of ads in various publications, with a cost for the search not to exceed $750. The person the DDA will hire could be an intern, freelance media planner, or retired professional who is looking for a small project; and
* Reviewed and discussed the extensive loose-leaf community profile package being compiled by McKenna that will be available for VBT staff to give to prospective businesses seeking information on the township. Dolph suggested the new high school be added to the list;
* Heard DDA member Ron Blank report that he has a conference call set the next day with John Davis of Ford Land to discuss the property across from the township hall. In the past, that acreage was offered to the township, but then the offer dropped;
* Heard DDA member Suliman note that the scrub trees on the east side of the Belleville Bridge need to be cut back, as it was done on the west side of the bridge. The west side scrub trees are getting to the point they need to be cut back again, Suliman said; and
* Discussed the status of the DNR property north of the bridge and whether it would be legally available for a library site, as some have suggested. If it is in a trust, the development rights may have been removed, Blank said.
Monday’s DDA meeting was held in the training room of Fire Station #2 on Belleville Road. The members gave themselves a hand for the fine building they built with DDA funds.