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SSOCIATED
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EWSPAPERS OF
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ICHIGAN
P
AGE
4
February 27, 2014
N
ORTHVILLE
- P
LYMOUTH
Northville Township officials
have excellent, and long, memo-
ries.
They proved that during their
regular meeting last Thursday
when Livonia City Clerk Terry
Marecki appeared at the meeting
to ask for their endorsement of her
candidacy for the Wayne County
Commission 9thDistrict seat.
The 9th District includes the
City of Northville, Northville
Township and theCity of Livonia.
Trustee Fred Shadko asked
Marecki, “After being passionately
behind an annexationmove to take
our land, do really think you could
represent our constituents fairly?”
Shadko was referring to the
effort in 2008 by the City of Livonia
to annex 414 acres of Northville
Township property. The effort fol-
lowed a protracted battle with a
developer who had purchased the
land at Haggerty and Seven Mile
Road, once the site of the
NorthvillePsychiatricHospital.
In 2006 when agreement could
not be reached between the town-
ship and the developers.
Bloomfield Hills based Real Estate
Interests Group (REIS) andLivonia
Schostak Bros filed a lawsuit
againstNorthvilleTownship.
A year later, REIS installed
mobile homes on the property and
the township reluctantly approved
occupancy permits for the stated
purpose of having “guards” live on
the site. These “residents” then
filed legal paperwork to have the
property annexed toLivonia.
Marecki told Shadko and the
other trustees that she was only fol-
lowing the wishes of her city coun-
cil members at the time of the
attempted annexation. She said
she understands the attempt may
have left a fewhard feelings.
“I don't see any problem with
that,”Marecki toldShadko.
The board members did not
offer Marecki any formal support
or respond to her request for their
endorsement.
Republicans Marecki and
Livonia City Councilwoman Laura
Toy will vie for the seat currently
held by Laura Cox who is hoping to
win the seat being vacated by State
Rep. JohnWalsh.
nation not to participate in the project.
Township Clerk Nancy Conzelman also
voiced strong objections to the PARC plan.
The board members also banned any par-
ticipation in any joint authority with the
City of Plymouth by a 4-3 vote at that meet-
ing. Such an authority is crucial to the fund-
ing necessary for the PARC project, accord-
ing to organizers. The Plymouth Township
ban is effective until the end of the current
terms of elected office in 2016.
The application for state fundingwas not
due until Feb. 1, 2014, but was filed Jan. 2,
“2013,” a date the state has called “a typo-
graphical error.” The application states,
“Plymouth Arts Recreation Complex-a col-
laboration of the city, township and school
district to repurpose a middle school into a
community arts and recreation facility.”
The application lists the start date of the
PARC project as October of 2013 and proj-
ects a 2015 completion date. Following the
November notification of non-participation,
some boardmembers were admonished for
using their official elected titles on informa-
tional materials about the PARC project,
according to one township trustee.
The application also cites savings
achieved by eliminating the “Township
Parks and Recreation Director.” Records
show there was no parks and recreation
director in the township in 2013.
Township records indicate that the
board of trustees approved a budget line
item of $100,000 in December to create a
newrecreationdepartment.
The application states that the Plymouth
Community Fire Department provides
shared services to the City of Plymouth and
Plymouth Township when in fact that joint
service agreement has not been in effect for
more than two years. The City of Plymouth
application for the same program does not
include anymention of these shared servic-
es. In addition, the township application
states that the township is “Reviewing and
analyzing the option for a three-community
local joint fire department including the
City of Plymouth, the City of Northville and
Plymouth Township” citing a $400,000 esti-
mated annual savings and estimating an
implementation of January, 2015. The ban
on joint authority agreements with the City
of Plymouth approved Jan. 14 would pre-
vent such an arrangement. The application
for the same state funding from the City of
Plymouth makes no mention of any such
combined fire department.
According to the Department of
Treasury documents, “Any local unit that
falsifies certification documents shall for-
feit any future economic vitality incentive
programpayments and shall repay the state
all economic vitality incentive programpay-
ments it has received.”
That apparently will not be the case in
Plymouth, however, as a state spokesperson
said that he was unsure if the penalties
would be imposed if the errors were cor-
rected before the actual checkswere sent to
themunicipality.
The application containing the misinfor-
mation was signed by Chief Administrative
Officer Plymouth Township Supervisor
Richard Reaume. The township received
$10,584 fromthe programin 2013, according
to township records.
available after Board of Review is completed
the end ofMarch.
Township police and fire projected budget
expenditures are $1.2 million in excess of
anticipated revenue for 2014.
Northville Township Manager Chip Snider
said the ballot initiative will be in November
2014 and that the ballot language will be pub-
lishedbyMay 28.
Snider said the board reviewed the budget
forecast in 2010 to continue to provide public
service at the same level and agreed to use
monies in reserve and adjust the millage
amounts without asking voters for a tax
increase.
“In 2010 voters approved a renewal…we
didn't want to burden the taxpayers in a reces-
sion.”
Snider and Township Supervisor Robert
Nix said the 1.2550 tax increase, if approved,
will be dedicated and can only be used for
public safety.
Public Safety Director John Werth said,
“We've done everything we could do” referring
to cost savings within the police and fire
departments and changes he implemented to
maintain the same level of service without lay-
offs. If the millage is not approved, Werth said
he would have to “re-evaluate the service (lev-
els).”
Werth said furlough days in the department
have been implemented to help cut costs,
mileage has been extended on vehicles before
replacement, outsourcing of professional
training has beenminimized and the township
has cooperated in buying apparatus with other
communities to cut costs.
“Our volumes are up, our population is up,
our runs are up, and our costs are up.” Werth
said. Township records indicate that in 2007,
the department had 15, 815 runs while in 2013,
that total had increased to 16,190. Werth said
that the department has been down by as
many as seven officers at some times during
the past three years. He said that on an aver-
age, each officer will handle about 550 com-
plaints.
Northville Township fire and police servic-
es are staffed with full-time paid professional
police officers and firefighters certified by the
state.
Township officials said their goal is tomain-
tain the current high public safety service
Northville residents expect.
“We just want to maintain status quo,”
Snider said, referring to the current service
and staffing levels.
The board members did not offer Marecki
any formal support or respond
to her request for their endorsement.
”
Livonia clerk requests Northville endorsement
Millage
FROM PAGE 1
Grant
FROM PAGE 1
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