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No. 14
NEWS YOU CAN USE, NEWS YOU CAN TRUST
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April 5 - 11, 2012
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
Director PauletteMedvecky
said theWayne library exceed-
ed all aspects of service in the
Quality Service Audit checklist
library officials must complete
every three years.
See page 3.
Goddard Road from the
'Five Points' intersection to
Romaine Street will be resur-
faced this year, a project that
will reduce one of the main
arteries to downtown to one
lane.
See page 4.
The hip hop that took to the
stage at Central Middle School
in Plymouth last Thursday had
nothing to do with the Easter
bunny, but lots to do with sci-
entific laws of physics.
See page 5.
One hundred years after
the sinking of Titanic, Starring
"The Gallery" will host a pho-
tography exhibit commemorat-
ing the doomed luxury liner
throughApril.
See page 5.
Five suspects have been
taken into custody in the
armed robbery andhome inva-
sion reported March 22 at the
Wagon Wheel South mobile
home park.
See page 4.
Vol. 127, No. 14
Vol. 65, No. 14
Vol. 65, No. 14
Vol. 12, No. 14
Vol. 12, No. 14
Vol. 127, No. 14
Vol. 65, No. 14
Vol. 65, No. 14
Free caregiver conferences
which include free heath
screenings are planned in
Inkster and Canton Township
this month. The conferences
also offer support groups for
caregivers.
See page 3.
For home delivery of The Eagle call 734-467-1900.
The Arbor Day Foundation
has named Westland a Tree
City USA Community for its
commitment to urban forestry
for the eighth consecutive year
for the national honor.
See page 3.
The remodeling of the I-275/FordRoad inter-
change in Canton Township received some
strong political support last week. The project
addresses the top twomost dangerous stretches
of road in the state, Ford Road between Lilley
Road and Ikea Drive and Ford Road between
Haggerty Road and the south I-275 ramp,
according to state traffic statistics.
A letter expressing bi-partisan support for
the project and signed by 19 House and Senate
members is on its way to U.S. Transportation
Secretary Ray LaHood. Along with the letter is
a copy of Senate Concurrent Resolution 19
(SCR 19), sponsored by State Sen. Patrick
Colbeck (R-Canton) and recently approved by
both theHouse andSenate.
The resolution urges prioritization of the I-
275 project and asks theUnited States Congress
and U.S. Department of Transportation to
approve a federal Transportation Investment
Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) grant
to reconfigure the I-275/Ford Road interchange.
The resolution will be transmitted to federal
government officials including the President of
the Senate, the Speaker of the House, members
of the Michigan congressional delegation, and
theU.S. Department of Transportation.
In addition to his resolution, Colbeck is send-
ing a letter affirming bi-partisan, bi-cameral
support for the project to LaHood. Legislators
Patricia Novak of Canton
Township just started playing
Keno a couple of months ago,
using easy pick to choose her
numbers. Last week, she won
$250,000.
See page 5.
See
Project,
page 2
The merits of this
project go well
beyond increased safety.
”
I-275/Ford Road project gains support
Despite questions about the
bidding procedure, the Plymouth
Township Board of Trustees
awarded a contract to DeMattia
Corp. for work on the Five Mile
Roadwater tower booster.
The award came at a special
meeting Monday afternoon,
attended by a sparse crowd of resi-
dents. Ken Garner, a long-time res-
ident, asked the board members
and Supervisor Richard Reaume
about the criteria used to select
DeMattia.
"They have been the lowest
(bidder) on projects and the high-
est quality," Reaume responded.
Garner's question was prompt-
ed by comments from Township
Clerk Joe Bridgman who voiced
concerns about the lack of bids for
the project. Bridgman cited sec-
tions of the township charter
(Section 5A) which, he said,
required at least three bids for the
work.
Bridgman said he was not in
favor of the resolution awarding
the contract as it was outside the
charter guidelines. The charter
limits no-bid contracts to less than
$40,000 annually and the contract
awarded listed DeMattia as the
construction management compa-
ny at an estimated annual budget
of $22,500. The total project cost
was estimated at $491,835, includ-
ing excavation fees.
Bridgman also questioned the
scheduling of the special meeting
Monday whichwas only posted, he
said, last Friday.
Resident John Kuznn, a retired
engineer, also had questions for
the board. He asked why such a
huge project was necessary so
soon after the construction of the
water tower.
"Was there no future planning?"
he asked.
Officials have said in the past
that the water tower operation
was unsatisfactory. Built to hold
one million gallons, the tank has
not been filled to capacity.
Reportedly, the tank will hold only
250,000 gallons of water before
draining to that level. The Detroit
Water and Sewerage Department,
which has raised water rates in
Plymouth by 18 percent, has been
requiring repairs to the tower and
the township has already spent
about $96,000 on replacement
valves.
The repairs allegedly will help
the township avoid the proposed
rate increase and penalties from
Detroit if the work on the tower is
begunby June.
As the construction manage-
ment company, DeMattiawill over-
see all the construction and
repairs, including the selection of
subcontractors and bid specifica-
tions. DeMattia was the construc-
tion company selected to build the
township hall, the DPW building,
the 35th District Court, the police
station and a fire station.
Water tower contract awarded to DeMattia
Medical miracle
Legislators win fight for
local family practice funding
Officials from Oakwood
Healthcare joined several mem-
bers of Congress on Friday to
celebrate a decision that will
save the family medicine resi-
dency program at Annapolis
Hospital in
Wayne and
help reduce an
ant icipated
shortage of
physicians in
the future.
The deci-
sion
also
means that
there will be
a d d i t i o n a l
p h y s i c i a n s
available to
serve the com-
munity, which includes themed-
ically underserved areas in and
around the cities of Wayne,
Inkster,Westland andRomulus.
“We are extremely grateful to
Congressman John Dingell and
all the members of our congres-
sional delegation for their hard
work, leadership and effective
advocacy in saving this vital pro-
gram,” said Brian Connolly,
president and CEO, Oakwood
Healthcare. “This is not only a
win for Oakwood, it's a win for
the entire state of Michigan and
the outcome shows what can
happen when a community
unites.”
In 2004, with guidance from
the Centers for Medicare and
Medicaid Services (CMS),
Oakwood closed its familymedi-
cine program at Oakwood
Hospital & Medical Center in
Dearborn and opened a new,
improved program at Oakwood
Annapolis Hospital because
there was a greater need in that
community, saidConnolly.
After three years of success-
ful compliance audits, however,
the
CMS
abruptly disal-
lowed the pro-
gram, canceling
funding and
taking back
millions of dol-
lars that had
already been
dispersed to
Oakwood. As a
r e s u l t ,
Oakwood took
its case to what
is known as the
Provider Reimbursement
Review Board (PRRB) - a body
created by Congress to serve as
independent reviewers and
decision-makers when there's a
payment disputewithCMS.
“All the facts were in our
favor and, in January, the PRRB
agreed and recommended fund-
ing be restored to our program,”
saidConnolly.
“Unfortunately, rulings by the
PRRB are advisory in nature
and can be disregarded by CMS
staff,” Connolly added.
“Congressman Dingell led an
effort in the U.S. House of
Representatives and Senator
Stabenow led an effort in the
Senate to convince CMS and the
U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services to let the rul-
ing stand. It worked. This was
truly a bi-partisan effort to save
a high quality primary care pro-
gram in our community and we
couldn't have done it without
them.”
Dingell applauded the CMS
decision to reinstate the funding
for the family medicine pro-
Congressman John Dingell, top photo, left, and Oakwood Healthcare
CEO Brian Connolly, speak to the audience last week at Annapolis
Hospital. Also on hand was Congressman John Conyers, bottom
photo, second from left, who also supported the Oakwood program
reinstatement.
See
Hospital,
page 2
This is not only a win
for Oakwood, it's a win
for the entire state
of Michigan and the
outcome shows what
can happen when
a community unites.
”