No. 03
NEWS YOU CAN USE, NEWS YOU CAN TRUST
75¢
Jan. 21 – 27, 2016
w w w . a s s o c i a t e d n e w s p a p e r s . n e t
Wayne officials got both
good and bad news about the
city financial reports from
the city auditors at Plante
Moran during a meeting ear-
lier thismonth.
See page 4.
Construction on the
bridge on Eight Mile Road
just east of Novi Road in
Northville has been sus-
pended by Wayne County
until warmerweather.
See page 5.
Voters in the Van Buren
Public Schools District will
see the renewal of an 18-mill
non-Homestead tax on the
ballotMay 3.
See page 2.
Vol. 131, No. 03
Vol. 69, No. 03
Vol. 69, No. 03
Vol. 16, No. 03
Applications are now
being accepted for the sec-
ond Romulus Citizens'
Academy, a first-hand look at
police and fire operations
whichwill start onFeb. 2.
See page 3.
Vol. 131, No. 03
Vol. 69, No. 03
Vol. 69, No. 03
For home delivery of The Eagle call 734-467-1900.
The Jefferson Barns com-
munity Vitality Center has
beennamed as thewinner of
the 2015 Audrey Nelson
Community Development
Achievement Award.
See page 4.
Canton Township Clerk
Terry Bennett told the mem-
bers of the township board of
her "difficult" decision not to
seek
re-election
in
November last week.
See page 5.
Vol. 16, No. 24
Two Inkster men have
been arrested and charged
in the death of well-known
musician Anthony Tolson on
ChristmasEve inDetroit.
See page 2.
A
proposal
from
Plymouth Township Trustee
Mike Kelly to abolish the
Local
Compensation
Commissionmet with discus-
sionbut no action last week.
See page 3.
Romulus Mayor LeRoy
Burcroff has been selected as the
secretary of the Conference of
Western Wayne (CWW), an associ-
ation of 18 chief elected local offi-
cials in the largest county in the
state.
Burcroff is now a member of
the CWW 2016 Executive
Committee which also includes
Chairman Mayor William Wild
(Westland), Vice-Chairman Mayor
Jack O'Reilly (Dearborn),
Treasurer Supervisor Robert Nix
II (Northville Township) and
Chair Emeritus Supervisor
Tracey Schultz Kobylarz (Redford
Township). The new executive
committee took their oaths of
office before the Honorable
Judge Christopher D. Dingell Jan.
8 inNorthvilleTownship.
“Serving on this committee is a
great opportunity for Romulus to
share and learn some of the best
practices from our neighboring
communities,” saidBurcroff.
The CWW is a bi-partisan
group that works collectively to
discuss mutual issues, share
information and generally
improve the quality of life for the
nearly 700,000 residents who live
in the 340 square mile region and
make up the most populated area
in Wayne County, bordered by
Washtenaw County to the west,
Oakland County to the north, the
City of Detroit to the east, and
MonroeCounty to the south.
Members of the CWW include
the cities of Belleville, Dearborn,
Dearborn Heights, Garden City,
Inkster, Livonia, Northville,
Plymouth, Romulus, Wayne and
Westland, and the townships of
Canton, Huron, Northville,
Plymouth, Redford, Sumpter and
VanBuren.
Despite the diversity of size,
economic development and pop-
ulation density, these communi-
ties have been working together -
working regionally - to enhance
this area of Wayne County for
over 35 years, a spokesperson
said.
The conference is the access
point for funneling information to
local units from county, state and
federal agencies. In this capacity,
the CWW will monitor state and
federal legislation for its impact
on local government. In addition,
the CWW works as a liaison
between local government and
many service organizations by
representing its members on vari-
ous committees and boards, she
added.
Township
loses court
land case
LeRoy Burcroff
His new fans include Lady
GaGa and Jay Leno, along
with the myriad art collectors
across the country who have
his work hanging on their
walls.
Plymouth artist Tony Roko
has come a long way from the
plant floor at the Ford Motor
Co. Wayne Assembly Plant
where his career began years
ago.
Roko, 46, named the Best
Fine Artist of 2015 by readers
of Hourmagazine, has recent-
ly taken on a unique chal-
lenge with the creation of
original artwork on which the
Atwater Brewery is basing
the labels for their new series
of beers.
When executives from
Atwater were ready to intro-
duce the new beer flavors for
2016, they wanted to ensure
the brand had a unique and
instantly recognizable identi-
ty. To guarantee that the new
beers would stand out, even
before being tasted, they
decided to use a recognizable
artist, rather than an advertis-
ing agency illustrator, to cre-
ate a series of unique labels.
They sought out Roko for the
commission and he, always
looking for a challenge,
agreed to take on the massive
task. Roko, a Canton High
School graduate, is known
throughout the art world for
his unique style and use of
color andmaterials.
The beer labels were
something new for him, how-
ever.
“What started as a single
painting for one label for just
40 cases of beer five months
ago has turned into designing
26 paintings.
“What an opportunity, to
have my work seen in 26
states and three countries,”
Roko said, although he admit-
ted the job has evolved into
far more work than he first
envisioned.
“I don't think people real-
ize the amount of work or the
number of hours that goes
into each of these labels.
They begin as sketches for
full-size paintings. They aren't
just sketched and inked in,”
he noted. “Each label is an
original.”
Roko said he wanted to
match the colorful characters
of Detroit with the individual
beer flavors. His paintings, on
which the labels are based,
are all in his distinctive and
personal style. They are com-
pleted over 50 hours or more
in his basement studio and
use the commercial sensibili-
ty of Toulouse-Lautrec with a
van-Gogh-esque pallet, a cou-
ple of Roko's favorite artists.
He plans to frame each
final label painting with
unique handmade frames
made from base moldings
reclaimed from abandoned
Detroit homes, another of his
interests and one of his trade-
marks.
The three-judge panel at the
Michigan Court of Appeals has
upheld the decision of Circuit
Court Chief Judge Robert J.
Columbo ordering Plymouth
Township to return a 190-acre
parcel of land to the City of
Detroit.
The 11-page appeals deci-
sion found no legal basis or
viable argument in the briefs
presented as arguments by
attorney Mike Cox who repre-
sented the township in the court
hearing. Township attorney
Kevin Bennett was also present
at the oral arguments last week.
Plymouth
Township
obtained the land, once on the
tax rolls for more than $15 mil-
lion, in September of 2011 for
$606,150 in a Wayne County tax
foreclosure sale. The contested
property is located and Five
Mile andRidge roads, the site of
the former Detroit House of
Corrections, which closed in
1986. Plymouth Township
obtained an installment pur-
chase contract with Bank of
Ann Arbor for the purchase
which included monthly pay-
ments of $17,000.
The three-judge panel
included Presiding Judge
Michael J. Talbot, Judge Mark J.
Cavanagh and Judge Kirsten
Kelly who were unanimous in
their opinion that the township
arguments were invalid and
withoutmerit.
Attorneys for Detroit origi-
nally argued that the foreclo-
sure was improper as munici-
pally-owned land is not subject
to tax foreclosure and the city
was never properly notified of
any taxes due on the land, argu-
ments Columbo and the appel-
late panel found valid.
According to attorneys for
Detroit, the township can now
accept the decision and return
the property to the proper own-
ers or ask for a reconsideration
at the court of appeals or
attempt to take thematter to the
MichiganSupremeCourt.
City of Detroit Deputy Court
Counsel Chuck Raimi said that
he felt any further pursuit of the
matter by the township would
be “futile.”
While state lawallows for the
city as the damaged party to
seek double the assessed price
of the land as damages, Raimi
See
Land,
page 3
See
Artist,
page 6
Romulus mayor is named to conference post
Artist in residence
Leno, GaGa join ‘brewing’ legion of fans
(Photo by Lians Jadan) Tony Roko
