American Golf Corporation. Casper man-
ages all aspects of the business including
property and financial management, mar-
keting, staffing, training and clubhouse
operations. When the contract was
approved, township officials approved
$150,000 to improve theHilltop facility and
attract more business. Since 2011, the
course has continued to operate at loss
under the Billy Casper management
agreement, with the exception of the 2015
report which claims the course “broke
even” with the $500,000 subsidy from the
general fund.
Billy Casper's Regional Director Nick
Bednar said, “I don't think it's a secret that
golf courses post-recession have strug-
gled.”
Many disillusioned golfers, some of
whom posted comments about the Hilltop
course on golf websites say tee-times are
often over-booked.
“By far the worst course I've ever been
to. I hate any golf course that packs people
in for more money,” said one disgruntled
player in a post. “The course layout was
atrocious, too hilly, tree roots on the cart
paths everywhere,” said another.
Trustee Bob Doroshewitz said he felt
there were, “Too many holes on too little
land.”
Many residents who voiced their con-
cerns said they objected to the townships'
rampant investments for recreation and
think the golf course is an unnecessary
and poor business investment; none how-
ever said they would want the land devel-
oped with homes, condominiums or busi-
nesses, if the golf course were to be elimi-
nated.
Bednar said the company goal for 2016
is to increase sales growth with the num-
ber of rounds, citing that if they can get
28,066 rounds it would produce revenue of
$642,000, facilitating another break-even
point.
Doroshewitz told Bednar, “Rounds may
go up but revenue doesn't necessarily go
up,” and told the sales teamhe was “pretty
disappointed” with their performance,
complaining that sales and status reports
have been absent for years and phone calls
are not returned. Further discussion indi-
cated that Billy Casper LLC had been
sending the reports to Township Treasurer
Ron Edwards and later to Parks Director
Mike Mitchell and neither had shared the
informationwith the trustees.
Trustee Chuck Curmi wanted to know
what was on Billy Casper's list of improve-
ments. Bednar said the improvements
would include maintenance to the cart-
paths or building newcart paths.
Supervisor Shannon Price said that in
the review of the golf course operations,
officials are also looking into the feasibili-
ty of building a new banquet/bar-restau-
rant facility, “like the one located at Idyl
Wyld Golf Course on Five Mile Road in
Livonia.”
“This is something Ron (Edwards) has
always wanted, in fact at one time he
thought about raising the roof on the club-
house,” Price said later.
Price said the most desirable area for a
new facility would be in the triangle, a sec-
tion bordered by Beck Road to the west,
Powell Road (service drive) to the north
andAnnArbor Trail to the south.
Hilltop is exempt from property tax as
the land is public. If Hilltop were taxable
the added tax burden to the operation
could be as much as $40,000 annually
according to people familiar with land
assessments.
In contrast, just four miles from Hilltop
and still within township borders is The
Inn at St. John, located at Five Mile and
Sheldon Road. That facility pays more
than $400,000 annually in real estate tax.
“We'd have a third party developer
who'd pay for it…build it and run it,” Price
said of the proposed new banquet facility,
although he did not identify any interested
developer.
Township trustees are expected to vote
on the contract with Billy Casper next
week during the regularmeeting.
A
SSOCIATED
N
EWSPAPERS OF
M
ICHIGAN
P
AGE
4
February 11, 2016
P
LYMOUTH
Golf course contract considered by trustees
FROM PAGE 1
MINUTES OF REGULAR ROMULUS CITY COUNCIL MEETING
January 25, 2016
Romulus City Hall Council Chambers, 11111 Wayne Rd. Romulus, MI 48174
The meeting was called to order at 7:30 p.m. by Mayor Pro Tem, John Barden.
Pledge of Allegiance
Roll Call
Present:
Kathleen Abdo, John Barden, Linda Choate, Harry Crout, Sylvia Makowski, Celeste Roscoe, William
Wadsworth.
Administrative Officials in Attendance:
LeRoy D. Burcroff, Mayor
Ellen L. Craig-Bragg, City Clerk
Stacy Paige, City Treasurer
1.
Moved by
Choate,
seconded by
Makowski
to accept the agenda as presented.
Motion Carried Unanimously
.
16-114 2A.
Moved by
Wadsworth
, seconded by
Abdo
to approve the minutes of the regular meeting of the
Romulus City Council held on January 11, 2016.
Motion Carried Unanimously
.
16-115 2B.
Moved by Abdo, seconded by Makowski to approve the minutes from the Special Council Meeting
held on Monday January 11, 2016 at 7:00 p.m. Study Session, Restated City of Romulus Employee Pension
Ordinance.
Motion Carried Unanimously
3A. Petitioner:
Petitioner, Charles Miller addressed the council with his concerns regarding homes in Romulus that have lead
pipes and testing of the water that comes out of the tap in homes. He also commented on the Flint Water Crisis.
Mr. Miller shared with council information regarding water filters and test kits. Mr. Miller asked the Mayor if he
could make available a pamphlet with general information for residents regarding lead testing and water filters.
*Keith Boc, DPW Assistant, S-1 Certified, reported that the testing in Romulus which was done at the tap has
had good results. The testing results are published in the annual water report.
4. Chairperson’s Report:
Mr. Barden commented on the Martin Luther King Jr. Day Celebration. *Councilman Crout requested a
Memorial Resolution for Willie Watson. Mayor Burcroff, and Council members, Crout, Barden and Wadsworth
shared their memories of Willie Watson.
16-116 4(a).
Moved by
Crout,
seconded by
Makowski
to adopt a memorial resolution for the family of Willie
Watson.
Motion Carried Unanimously
4.
Moved by
Roscoe,
seconded by
Makowsk
i to accept the Chairperson’s Report.
Motion Carried
Unanimously
.
5. Mayor’s Report:
Mayor Burcroff asked Council to adopt a resolution to recognize February as Black History Month for the City
of Romulus. Dennis Davidson announced community events for the City of Romulus for February and March.
16-117 5(a)
Moved by
Makowski
, seconded by
Roscoe
to adopt a resolution recognizing February as Black
History Month.
Motion Carried Unanimously
.
16-118 5A1
. Moved by
Makowski,
supported by
Roscoe,
to award Bid ITB 15/16-06 for the acquisition of a
13.9/14 yard tandem axle dump truck for the City of Romulus Department of Public Works to Wolverine
Freightliner-Westside, Inc. in the amount of $133,043.00 for the purchase of the base vehicle as specified in the
bid documents ($127,766) along with both Options #1 ($1,237-DC Box vibrator) and #2 ($4,040 - Heated body
kit installed).
Motion Carried Unanimously
6A
.
Clerk’s Report
16-119 6A1.
Moved by
Wadsworth
, seconded by
Crout
, to approve second reading, final adoption of the
Restated City of Romulus Employee Pension Ordinance. This Ordinance was introduced at the Council meeting
of January 11, 2016.
Motion Carried Unanimously
16-120 6A2.
Moved by
Makowski,
seconded by
Roscoe,
to approve second reading, final adoption of Budget
Amendment 15/16-14. This budget amendment was introduced at the Council meeting of January 11, 2016.
FUND/DEPT.
CURRENT
AMENDED
ACCOUNT NO. ACCOUNT NAME
BUDGET AMENDMENT BUDGET
General Fund Revenue
01-336-679.000 Fire Dept. Cost Recovery 30,000 10,000 40,000
Expense
101-336-818.000 Fire Dept. Contractual Services 5,000 10,000
15,000
To increase the cost recovery contractual cost with offsetting revenues. - Note: This has no effect on the General
Fund’s fund balance
Motion Carried Unanimously
.
6B. Treasurer’s Report:
16-121 6B1.
Moved by
Makowski,
seconded by
Abdo,
to approve the City of Romulus Investment Policy.
Motion Carried Unanimously
7. Public Comment
Resident, Jan Lemmon commented on the water crisis in Flint Michigan and announced the Euchre Tournament
Fundraiser which will benefit the Romulus Cemetery
. *
Resident, Virginia Williams commented on the Flint
Water Crisis and thanked everyone who made a donation to purchase water for Flint residents and added that any-
one interested in donating may contact her at 734-673-8396.
*
Resident, Ed Buczkowski thanked the Fire depart-
ment for their prompt response to his call.
8. Unfinished Business
Councilman Wadsworth mentioned that residents were pleased with the clean-up of debris from a house that had
burned down a year ago on Middlebelt and Pennsylvania.
*
Councilman Wadsworth met with about 10 residents
that live near the flea market located on Middlebelt Road concerning a big barn located on the property that is in
poor condition and about to come down. 60% of the roof is gone; children has been seen playing on top of the
roof. The residents provided Mr. Wadsworth with pictures of the building. Mr. Wadsworth gave pictures to the
Mayor and asked if the Ordinance department could go and investigate.
*
Councilman Wadsworth commented
about a house located on Taft Street that is deplorable condition; it has a blue tarp on the roof; no one lives in the
house; it is a negative eye-sore for the residents that live nearby. Mr. Wadsworth asked the Mayor to send
Building department to investigate. *Councilwoman Abdo mentioned that her students are collecting money for
water. Their goal is to raise $100 and asked if anyone would like to match the $100 in order to purchase a pallet
of water.
9. New Business:
Councilwoman Makowski spoke about the various programs at the Romulus Library and thanked everyone who
participated in the Library Fundraiser.
10. Communication
16-122 11.
Moved by
Choate,
seconded by
Makowski
to pay Warrant 16-02 in the amount of
$2,784,631.04.
Motion Carried Unanimously
.
12.
Moved by
Makowski,
seconded by
Wadsworth
to adjourn the regular meeting of the Romulus City Council.
Motion Carried Unanimously
.
I, Ellen L. Craig-Bragg, Clerk for the City of Romulus, Michigan do hereby certify the foregoing to be a true
copy of the minutes of the regular meeting of the Romulus City Council held on January 25, 2016.
Publish: February 11, 2016
RM021116-0012 2.5 x 11.508
CHARTER TOWNSHIP OF CANTON
INVITATION TO BID
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN
that the Charter Township of Canton, 1150 Canton Center S, Canton Michigan will accept
sealed Bids for the construction of the Canton Water Storage Implementation at the office of the Clerk until 3:00 pm local time
on March 10, 2016 at which time the Bids received will be publicly opened and read for the following:
CANTON WATER STORAGE IMPLEMENTATION
The proposed project includes the following major elements:
• Installation of new 2.5 million gallon (MG) pre-cast concrete ground storage tank,
• Installation of new 18 million gallon per day (MGD) booster station,
• Modifications to the control valves at the metered feeds known as CA-03, CA-04, and Ford and Morton Taylor PRV Vault
with the Detroit Water & Sewerage Department (DWSD),
• Installation of SCADA remote monitoring elements at the metered feeds known as CA-03, CA-04, and CA-07, and
• Modifications to Plymouth Christian Fellowship Church site to facilitate access to new booster station and ground stor-
age facility, remove/replace the existing parking, stormwater management system replacement, and various additional site
improvements.
The Issuing Office for the Bidding Documents is the office of the ENGINEER, Orchard, Hiltz, & McCliment, Inc. (d.b.a. OHM
Advisors), 34000 Plymouth Rd., Livonia, MI 48150.
Bidding Documents may be examined at the following locations after February 12, 2016 at 1:00 pm:
• The office of the ENGINEER
• Dodge Data & Analytics,
• The Construction Association of Michigan (CAM),
• CMD Group,
• Charter Township of Canton - Public Works
Bidding Documents may be obtained after February 12, 2016 at 1:00 pm at the office of the ENGINEER upon payment of forty
dollars ($40.00) non-refundable deposit. An additional, non-refundable charge of fifteen dollars ($15.00) will be required for
mailing Bidding Documents. Neither Owner nor Engineer will be responsible for full or partial sets of Bidding Documents,
including Addenda if any, obtained from sources other than the Issuing Office. Bidders should direct correspondence to the
ENGINEER.
Bid security shall be furnished in accordance with the Instructions to Bidders. Bid security in the form of a Bid Bond for a sum
no less than five percent (5%) of the amount of the Bid will be required with each Bid.
Bids shall be enclosed in sealed envelopes plainly marked with the project name and the name of the bidder.
No bid may be withdrawn for a period of ninety (90) calendar days after the scheduled closing time for receipt of the Bids. This
time period may be extended by mutual agreement of the Owner and any Bidder or Bidders. The OWNER reserves the right to
accept any or all Bids and award the contract to other than the lowest bidder, to waive any irregularities or informalities or both;
to reject any or all Bids; and in general to make the award of the Contract in any manner deemed by the OWNER, in its sole dis-
cretion, to be in the best interest of the OWNER.
A mandatory pre-bid conference will be held at 10:00 am local time on February 17, 2016 at the Charter Township of Canton
Public Works Building, 4847 Sheldon Road, Canton, MI 48188. Bidders that fail to attend will be unable to bid on the project.
TERRY G. BENNETT, CLERK
Publish 2/11/2016
EC021116-1261 2.5 x 5.847
Charter Township of Canton
Invitation To Bid
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the Charter Township of Canton, 1150 Canton Center S., Canton, Michigan will accept sealed
bids at the Office of the Clerk up to 3:00 p.m. Thursday, March 3, 2016 for the following:
CANTON SUBDIVISION ROADWAY IMPROVEMENTS: CONCRETE
Bids will be opened and publicly read aloud for the following approximate quantities of work:
Approximately 30,000 square yards of concrete pavement improvements of existing concrete subdivision roadways
including both full depth concrete pavement patching, concrete pavement reconstruction, and all related work.
Bid Documents are on file with Ms. Terry Bennett, the Township Clerk
Bid Documents may be examined at the following locations: Canton Township -2nd Floor Engineering Services, Construction
Association of Michigan, McGraw Hill Construction, Reed Construction Data, and Construction News Service of Michigan.
Bid Documents may be obtained from Northwest Consultants, Inc., 44978 Ford Road, Suite A, Canton, Michigan, 48187 for a
non-refundable payment of twenty ($20.00) dollars (if requested via mail, checks or money orders only, no cash - Payable to:
Northwest Consultants, Inc).
Each Proposal shall be accompanied by a certified check, cashier's check, money order, or bid bond in the amount of at least five
(5) percent of the amount bid, drawn payable to the Charter Township of Canton as security for the proper execution of the
Contract. Bids may not be withdrawn for the period of 60 days after date of receiving bids. All bids must be submitted in a
sealed envelope clearly marked with the Project Name, Bidder's name, address and telephone number, and the date and time of
bid opening.
The Charter Township of Canton reserves the right to accept or reject any or all bids and to waive any informality in any bids
should it consider same to be in its best interest. The Township does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin,
sex, religion, age, or disability in employment or the provision of services.
Each bidder agrees to waive any claim it has or may have against the Owner, and their respective employees, arising out
of or in connection with the administration, evaluation, or recommendations of any bid.
TERRY G. BENNETT, CLERK
Publish 2/11/2016
EC021116-1263 2.5 x 4.396
Taking charge
Regular officers of the Plymouth Noon
Rotary Club stepped aside during their
recent Friday meeting at the Community
Center when teens from the Interact Club
and National Honor Society at the
Plymouth Canton Educational Park ran
the meeting. Co-Presidents Devankar
Mukhi and Luis Orozco called the group
to order after outgoing President Hussain
Abdelhaviz acted as the greeter. The
teens led the group in the Pledge of
Allegiance and the Four Way Test.
Interact visitors also included Rachel
Pfannes, Rouxan Shi, Karla Montgomery
and Jennifer Berels and National Honor
Society members included Madeline
Leyden, Evan Claggett, Elizabeth Yager,
Kayla Ross and Regan Fleisher.
Photo by
Helen Yancy.
