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A
SSOCIATED
N
EWSPAPERS OF
M
ICHIGAN
P
AGE
5
January 12, 2012
B
ELLEVILLE
- C
ANTON
- R
OMULUS
The Romulus City Council is
looking for seven community-
minded individuals to look
through and suggest any possible
changes to the most important
document in the city.
The city is convening a charter
review commission to study the
city charter and see if it needs to
be updated or changed, accord-
ing to City Clerk Ellen Craig
Bragg.
“We want people who are real-
ly committed to serving on this
commission. You have to go
through, page by page, each chap-
ter to review it,” she said.
The city is accepting applica-
tions for interested residents
until Jan. 31, according to Bragg.
Those interested should send a
letter of interest to city hall, stat-
ing why they desire to serve on
the seven-member panel, along
with why they think they would
be a good choice.
Mayor AlanLambert willmake
the appointments, but the council
will have to approve them.
The Charter Commission will
set up their own meeting sched-
ule and elect their own officers
and then go through the docu-
ment. They'll determine if any
language needs to be changed or
updated-or if no changes should
be made-and then present a final
report to the councilmembers.
“The council will have an
opportunity to see if they like the
proposed revisions or they don't,”
saidLambert.
The city will also host public
hearings on any proposed
changes, as well. Any changes to
the city charter have to be
approvedby a vote of the people.
“I think it's important that the
community looks at it and the
council looks at it,” said Lambert.
“The public has to be involved.”
Craig Bragg said it was impor-
tant to review the document care-
fully, and to follow the charter
reviewprocess fully.
“We're going to follow these
steps very, very carefully,” she
said. “We're going to take our time
with this. We're not going to rush
through this process.”
Councilman John Barden said
there was no need to rush the
review, either.
“We've waited 42 years or
more; we can make sure we do
this thoroughly and take our time
anddo it right,” saidBarden.
I think it's important that the
community looks at it
and the council looks at it.
The public has to be involved.
”
Charter review committee needs volunteers
Gospel legends on display
New water billing to begin
Museum seeks Civil War items
A special exhibition, Lest We Forget:
Legends of Detroit Gospel, will be on dis-
play at the Village Theater at Cherry Hill
throughFeb. 24.
During the 1980s, Detroit became
known as the "Gospel Music Capital of the
World," but Detroit has long been an inte-
gral part of gospel music development.
Various popular musical styles have been
influenced by the sound of gospel soloists,
groups and choirs and today Detroit is a
nationally recognized gospel powerhouse,
known formass choirs and talented direc-
tors, award-winning recording artists,
composers and arrangers.
The exhibition, which celebrates the
vast history of Gospel music in Detroit,
also honors four major contributors:
Mattie Moss Clark, The Rev. C. L.
Franklin, the Rev. Charles H. Nicks, Jr.,
and Minister Thomas A. Whitfield. Each
of these honorees helped shapedDetroit's
image as a major center for gospel music.
This exhibition is a first effort by the
Gospel Performing Arts Center, which has
as its goal the development of a facility
that will perpetuate, celebrate and edu-
cate the community about gospelmusic.
The exhibit, presented by the
Michigan State University Museum
Traveling Exhibition Service, is currently
on display at the Gallery@VT, located at
50400 Cherry Hill Road in Canton. The
exhibition consists of freestanding photo-
graphic interpretive banners as well as a
freestanding music station that allows vis-
itors to sample a variety of gospel classics
performed by several Detroit Gospel leg-
ends.
This special exhibit will be on display
from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. Monday - Friday,
as well as during public performances at
the theater and also by appointment. The
Gallery@VT is closed onholidays.
The Village Theater at Cherry Hill is
located at 50400 Cherry Hill Road. For
more information, call (734) 394-5300 or
visit cantonvillagetheater.org.
Belleville residents will take a step into
the future nextmonth.
According to Keith Boc, director of the
city Public Service Department, the final
installation of new high-tech water meters
that electronically transmit readings for
billing, will be completednextmonth.
When the installation is complete,
Belleville residents will begin to receive
water bills monthly, bi-monthly and quar-
terly while the new system is phased in.
When the installation is completely opera-
tional, water bills will be sent to all resi-
dents on a monthly basis, with no need for
a meter reader to visit any homes, Boc
said.
The newmeters operate on transmitters
which have already been installed on the
outside of more than three-quarters of the
homes in the city. There are some meters,
however, that may require installation
insidehomes
Boc said that after February, he expects
that all water billings in the city will be on
amonthly basis. He said that letters will be
sent to every household this month
explaining the new system and the change
inprocedures.
The Belleville Area Museum is seeking
loans or donations of Civil War Era items
including letters, documents, objects/artifacts,
clothing and pictures for an upcoming 2012
exhibit, according toDirectorKatieDallos.
The displaywill honor BellevilleAreaCivil
War veterans, portray the life of families on
the home front, and examine the area's role in
the Underground Railroad. Those willing to
loan items of interest for the display can con-
tact Dallos at (734) 697-1944 or email at kdal-
los@provide.net.
As part of the 2012 Civil War
Sesquicentennial CommemorationSeries, the
museum will feature a lecture given by
Michigan historians, Al and Dave Eicher, on
April 21, as well as a genealogical workshop
by JanaSloanBroglin on June 21.