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Kirbi Fagan of Plymouth obvi-
ously made the right choice in her
career.
Fagan, 23, only left Plymouth to
attend the Kendall College of Art
andDesign in GrandRapids where
she obtained her bachelor's degree
in illustration last spring. After
graduation, she continued to study
at the Illustration Master Class and
attended a mentorship program
with SmART School. Since then,
she's put her talent as an illustrator
to work and has recently been hon-
ored by no less than three separate
professional groups.
She will be among the authors
and illustrators honored during the
30th Annual L. Ron Hubbard
Achievement Awards next month,
was recently chosen as a runner up
for the Rising Star award by the
Muddy Colors Artists group and
will featured as one of the Debut
Illustrators
by
Children's
MarketBook later this year.
Fagan was a familiar figure at
the Plymouth Community Arts
Council while in elementary and
middle school where she per-
formed in theater classes. It was
while she was attending Canton
High School that she realized illus-
tration was the career path she
wanted to pursue. From there, she
knewher real goal was illustrations
for publishing and she's been work-
ing from her home studio to fulfill
her dream.
She's also returned to the
Plymouth Community Arts Council
as an instructor, something she said
she really enjoys.
“I've been doing a program
there, Drawn to the Night, with live
model drawing for kids. I'm not
about copying pictures as a way to
teach,”Fagan said.
“I really believe live model
drawing is the way to improve, and
most kids never have a chance to
do that. Eachmonth I come upwith
a theme, I've done the 40s and
medieval. I design a set with props,
sometimeswehavemusic.
“It's rare children have an
opportunity to draw from live mod-
els,” she said. Fagan praised the
Plymouth Community Arts Council
who she said were solidly behind
her efforts to offer unique opportu-
nities to young artists.
Fagan said she is also inspired
by history and spends time digging
through thrift or antique stores.
She said the objects she finds con-
tain stories and mysteries that
invoke imagery.
Fagan is currently working on
two young adult novel covers which
will be published later this year,
which she said is her dreamcareer.
“I'm working toward larger pub-
lishers,” she said. “These are self-
published authors and working
with themis great.”
“I'm really excited about getting
more experience in creative work,”
she said.
Fagan said she feels honored to
be among the Illustrators of the
Future. “I'm in it with my whole
heart,” she said of her art career.
The highlight of the Illustrators
of the Future award will be the
announcement of the two grand
prize winners who will each
receive $5,000. Quarterly winners
also receive cash prizes from$1,000
to $500.Throughout the 30-year his-
tory of the contest, more than 650
writers and illustrators have been
recognized as winners. The Writers
of the Future writing contest
(www.writersofthefuture.com) was
initiated by L. Ron Hubbard in
1983 for aspiring writers. The com-
panion Illustrators of the Future
Contest was created in 1988.
A
SSOCIATED
N
EWSPAPERS OF
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ICHIGAN
P
AGE
5
March 20, 2014
N
ORTHVILLE
- P
LYMOUTH
Drawing the line
Local artist honored among illustrators of the year for 2014
Kirbi Fagan
year as he entered only two or the four nec-
essary competitions.
He said he really doesn't expect to com-
pete again, despitehis pleasure at thehonor.
“I hope to find a way for the ladies who
work for me to compete. They are both more
talented designers than I and deserve the
opportunity to show off their abilities,” West
said.
Maybe so, but he could always surprise
everyone againnext year.
form with the “2014 Personal Property
Statement” unlikePlymouthTownship, which
withheld the owner affidavits from the mail-
ings.
Township Trustee Chuck Curmi spoke at a
Feb. 13 board meeting regarding the new
exemption after recently returning from a
MichiganTownships Association seminar cov-
ering the new tax regulations. He suggested
that the affidavits should have been mailed
with the assessment information to business-
es.
Reaume said at the February meeting that
he felt it was unnecessary to include the
owner affidavits with the personal property
statements and described the state guidelines
as “a suggestion” and “unclear.” The tax
assessments had already beenmailedwithout
the affidavits at that time, according to an
informed source.
Township Supervisor Richard Reaume
said that he was “confident we are within the
law” in omitting the affidavits and said that
the law “is not as clear at it should have been”
regarding the responsibility of the township to
provide the affidavits. He also said that the
township would “try to be as liberal as possi-
ble with the rules” for businesses that missed
the exemption.
Of the 11 bills Snyder signed last year
affecting the taxation of personal property,
most don't take effect until 2015. This single
new personal property exemption of up to
$80,000 became effective Dec. 31, 2013 for the
2014 tax year. Under the new law, eligible per-
sonal property is exempt from taxation pro-
vided it meets certain criteria. Several of the
new exemptions and other business tax
changeswill face a statewide vote inAugust.
While there is a possibility the exemption
might not be approvedby voters in theAugust,
2014 election, or be repealed, the state provid-
ed guidelines and calendar dates for munici-
palities to notify resident taxpayers who
might benefit fromthe exemptions this year.
Plymouth Township business owners who
did not receive the required affidavit or did
not meet the Feb. 10 deadline for filing that
required form could pay an unjustified tax,
according toCurmi.
“I want small business to receive their
rightful exemptions. I want tomake sure busi-
ness people are not leaving money on the
table,” he said.
Curmi said he suspected thousands of
small businesses in Plymouth might be affect-
ed.
“There are many home-based businesses
in the township,” he said.
Failing to file the required affidavit could
result in a complete forfeiture of the tax
exemption. The invalid taxes collected on
personal property would go directly into the
general fund of the township and not be
shared by other taxing entities, a unique facet
of personal property tax.
For instance, if a business owner having
personal property with a true cash value of
$60,000 failed to file the required Affidavit of
Owner of Eligible Personal Property the
township assessor would place $30,000 (50
percent of the total) on the tax roll and the
business would receive an invoice for approx-
imately $1,400.
According to information posted on the
State of Michigan website, taxpayers who
failed to file the affidavit by Feb. 10 could file
an appeal with the March Board of Review to
claim their exemption. However, March 15
was the last scheduled Plymouth Township
Board of Reviewmeeting.
Taxes
FROM PAGE 1
Surprise
FROM PAGE 1
Building proposal heard by council
Northville city officials took no action
regarding a proposed 30,000 to 40,000-
square-foot, four-story building on the south
side of Cady Street, just east of Center.
A development group including associate
real estate broker Andrew Daily architects
Dave Mielock and Greg Presley and Realtor
Patti Mullen approached members of the
city council earlier this month to explore the
possibility of obtaining a city-owned lot on
Cady adjacent to property they purchased.
The development plan they proposed
includes a mixed use building with commer-
cial use on the first floor and six to eight con-
dominiumunits on theupper floors.
The group is exploring the possibility of
trading or purchasing the city property and
said the current plan they are developing is
not feasible without the adjacent city land.
The area is currently zoned Central
Business District and allows buildings up to
four stories.
In a letter to the city council members,
Daily said, "We believe our project will be a
precedent setting development for Cady
Street andwould like toworkwith theCity of
Northville to develop the best possible proj-
ect for theCity ofNorthville."
Mayor Chris Johnson said the city would
need to do due diligence in choosing the best
proposal for the area. He said the proposal
set a tone for the area but that the council
needed to look at other ideas and plans for
the area in an effort to choose themost bene-
ficial for the entire community.
City councilmembers took no action.