A
SSOCIATED
N
EWSPAPERS OF
M
ICHIGAN
P
AGE
2
April 26, 2018
W
AYNE
- W
ESTLAND
Wayne agrees to sell building for microbrewery
Wayne officials have agreed to
sell the Wayne Activities and
Banquet Center for $165,000.
Members of the city council
approved the sale of the city-
owned building located atWayne
Road and Sims Street, just north
of Michigan Avenue during their
regular meeting last week. The
buyer, Mark Paladino, said he is
planning to open a microbrew-
ery and restaurant in the 6,250
square-foot building before the
end of this year. Paladino said he
is hoping to include a beer gar-
den outside the planned micro-
brewery with night lighting in
trees. The site is adjacent to
Goudy Park and next to Wayne
CityHall.
Paladino is the owner of
Lower Huron Chemical and
Supply, a long-time Wayne busi-
ness. He said that the interior of
the Wayne Activities and
Banquet Center will undergo a
complete redesign and renova-
tion while the exterior will
remain intact with fewmodifica-
tions. He did not have an esti-
mate of the proposed financial
investment in the newbusiness.
Mayor Susan Rowe strongly
supported the sale, which was
rejected by a split vote of the
members of the city council in
2016 when Paladino had offered
$150,000. Paladino had suggested
using the site as a rental hall for
weddings and other large occa-
sions at that time.
Rowe said that the new
microbrewery would attract
local residents, millennials and
visitors to the city. She said it
would be a “great anchor spot in
our city.”
The sale has not yet closed
but Paladino and Rowe both
indicated that they expected no
obstacles to the finalization of
the purchase. Following the for-
mal sale, Paladino will be
required to present site plans to
the planning commission in the
city for approval and be subject
to the usual construction
requirements.
The city has not used the
building for several years. It for-
merly served as the Wayne
Senior Center. It had been par-
tially leased until December
when the tenant moved out, leav-
ing the building vacant.
Ishwar Laxminarayan will
serve as the new director of the
Westland library, beginning work
on June 11. Members of the
Library Board of Trustees of the
William P. Faust Public Library of
Westland unanimously approved
his hiring at their April 18 meet-
ing.
“We believe we have the right
gentleman that can lead this
library,” said board President
James Higgins at the meeting. “It's
been a long road but eventful. We
had a lot of very good candidates.”
Laxminarayan served as direc-
tor of the Jackson District Library
for 10 years and has more than 25
years of library experience. He
holds a master of librarianship
degree from Emory University in
Georgia.
“I amdelighted at this opportu-
nity to work with a great staff and
dedicated trustees to provide the
highest quality library services to
the Westland Community,”
Laxminarayan said in a prepared
press release.
Higgins praised the library
staff at the April 18 meeting,
including Sherri West, administra-
tive manager who was interim
director, for their contributions to
the hiring. He noted their findings
in interviews alignedwith those of
the board of trustees.
“I really appreciate the trans-
parency. You guys did a great job
with your questions. I really think
everybody's on the right track
here,” said Lynne Hagmann, sec-
retary of the Friends of the
Library
Hagmann noted issues with the
previous library director who
stopped working directly with the
Friends and sent West to Friends
meetings as her representative.
Community members and
Westland government leaders had
also raised concerns about the for-
mer director.
The Friends group supports
the library in areas including pro-
gramming and fundraising.
Several library staffers were also
at the April 18 meeting, with one
noting willingness to move for-
ward on library union negotia-
tions.
A community gathering will be
scheduled at the library on
Central City Parkway north of
Ford Road to introduce the new
director to the community. The
hiring follows a nationwide
search and April 11 finalist inter-
views.
Julie Brown
Special Writer
Ishwar Laxminarayan
New library director named in Westland
Fond farewell
Marsha Bianconi, who served on the Westland Tax Increment Finance Authority in Westland since 1993 retired earlier
this month. Her service was commended with a plaque honoring her 25 years of meritorious service to the City of
Westland presented to her by Mayor William R. Wild. “It has been a wonderful experience serving on the TIFA Board
for 25 years,” commented Bianconi. “I think the two biggest accomplishments of the TIFA are the new library and the
new city hall and I was lucky enough to serve during both of those projects. It has also been a pleasure working on
and off with Mayor Wild throughout the years.” “Marsha Bianconi has been passionately engaged in the betterment of
the community for more than a quarter of a century,” commented Wild. “She has accomplished a great deal during
her time on the TIFA board and we look forward to continuing the progress she helped pioneer for all of these years.”
