Page 1 - The Eagle 06 12 14

No. 24

NEWS YOU CAN USE, NEWS YOU CAN TRUST

75¢

June 12 – 18, 2014

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

Members of the Wayne

Westland Community Schools

Board of Education unani-

mously chose Cindy Schofield

of Wayne to fill the unexpired

termof JohnGoci.

See page 4.

The varsity girls' basketball

team performed better than

any team in the history of

Romulus High School this

year winning state, district and

regional championships.

See page 2.

Members of the Plymouth

City Commission have

approved a balanced budget

and decided not to impose an

additional tax collection fee on

residents.

See page 5.

Registration is now under

way for one of the most popu-

lar Independence Day cele-

brations in the area.

See page 5.

The man who lost his life in

the apartment fire at the

Bellridge Apartments in Van

Buren Township has been

identified as JamirDavis, 20.

See page 2.

Vol. 129, No. 24

Vol. 67, No. 24

Vol. 14, No. 24

Vol. 129, No. 24

Vol. 67, No. 24

For home delivery of The Eagle call 734-467-1900.

Members of the Westland

City Council last week

approved the first-ever, three-

year balanced budget for the

city.

See page 4.

Police Lt. Robert Smedley

is set to retire at the end of the

month with 23 years of service

to theCanton community.

See page 3.

Vol. 14, No. 24

McDonald's restaurant

owner Jon Campbell part-

nered with Inkster Family

Literacy Movement to present

a family reading event last

week.

See page 4.

2 new area retail

outlets proposed

Circus joins line-up

at Canton Liberty Fest

The retail marketplace in west-

ernWayne County could be signifi-

cantly different in 2016, if two pro-

posed projects announced last

week come to fruition.

Two separate development

companies have indicated their

intention to construct large retail

outlet malls within minutes of

each other-one off I-94 inRomulus

and another on an undeveloped

portion of land at the southeastern

corner of Ford Road and I-275 in

Canton Township. Both touted the

region for its proximity to major

freeways, the airport and a dearth

of such shopping options.

“The center's location in this

market is ideal,” said Douglass

Karp, executive vice president of

New England Development, in a

press release. New England

Development plans to create a

375,000-square-foot mall, tentative-

ly called Outlets of Michigan,

across I-94 from Detroit Metro

Airport.

“Outlets of Michigan will be

located on the major highway

between Chicago and Detroit,

directly opposite Detroit Metro

Airport, and is the closest outlet

center in Michigan to the

Canadianborder,” saidKarp.

He said the outlet mall would

feature about 75 of some of the

best brand names in retail. It

would be an open-air center with

shaded pedestrian concourses and

architecture inspired by the

unique character of Detroit and

Southeast Michigan. Opening is

planned for 2016.

In Canton, Baltimore-based

Paragon Outlet Partners is sched-

uled to break ground next spring,

according to its website. The

375,000-square-foot mall will offer

more than 100 stores and is also

slated to open in spring 2016.

Paragon Outlet Partners devel-

ops retail outlet malls across the

country and currently has sites in

development in Minnesota, New

York, Massachusetts and

Baltimore.

New England Development's

collection of centers includes the

recently opened Palm Beach

Outlets in West Palm Beach,

Florida; Asheville Outlets in

Asheville, North Carolina; and

Outlets at Little Rock in Little

Rock, Arkansas - opening in 2015

and Des Moines Outlets in

Altoona, Iowa.

Romulus Mayor Leroy Burcroff

said the demographics favor a

regional outlet mall. Wayne

County is the 18th most populous

county in the United States. More

than 3.5 million people live within

30 miles andmore than 1.7 million

people live within a 30-minute

drive fromthe proposed site.

“The Outlets of Michigan is a

great example of growth and posi-

tive change that is coming to the

City of Romulus,” Burcroff said. “A

325,000-square-foot high-end out-

let mall is just what our region

needs and we are pleased that

New England Development has

chosen Romulus for the develop-

ment.

“Businesses that locate in our

community often take advantage

of Romulus' reputation as a trans-

portation hub, including access to

both I-94 and I-275,” he added.

“The Outlets of Michigan will be a

destination for people who live

nearby, those that pass through the

city and shoppers fromupwards of

an hour away. We're excited about

the impact this facilitywill have on

our community and our region. We

look forward to working with New

England Development in the

months and years ahead.”

A professional circus, a full

lineup of carnival rides, games

and special attractions will be part

of Liberty Fest which returns to

Heritage Park in Canton Township

this weekend, June 12 - 14. Canton

Leisure Services will once again

host this three-day action-packed

festival in Heritage Park, located

adjacent to the Canton

Administration Building, west of

Canton Center Road between

Cherry Hill Road and Summit

Parkway.

The festival will be open from 1

-11 p.m. June 12 and 13 and from

10:30 a.m. through 11 p.m. on

Saturday, June 14. Major sponsors

of the annual community event

include: Atchinson Ford;

Community Financial Credit

Union; The Goddard School of

Early Childhood Development;

Red Holman Buick GMC; Sysco;

Twisted Rooster; The Village

Dentist; andComcast Xfinity.

The police department has

issued an emergency traffic order

closing Canton Center road

between Cherry Hill and Palmer

from 10:30 a.m. until 11:30 p.m. on

Saturday. Summit Parkway will

also be closed from Canton Center

Road to Glengarry Boulevard from

8 until 11:30 p.m. onSaturday.

The Liberty Fest Run will close

southbound Canton Center at

Palmer, northbound Canton

Center at Rouge River bridge, east

and westbound Summit Parkway,

southbound Sheldon at Woodmont

east and northbound Sheldon

south of Rouge River bridge from

8-11 a.m. Saturday.

The summer debut of the free

Thursday Night Concert Series at

the Canton Live! Stage will take

place from 7:30 - 10:30 p.m. as The

Dan Rafferty Band performs.

Also on Thursday from 7:30-9 p.m.,

celebrate another year of Zumba®

in Canton with a special “Zumba

Party inPink” at theHeritage Park

Amphitheater. Participants are

asked to show their support for

Breast Cancer Awareness and

Research and make a 'move' to

helpmake a difference. Admission

to the event is a $5minimumdona-

tion to the Susan G. Komen

Foundation.

Throughout Liberty Fest, the

CantonRotary Clubwill be hosting

an Adult Beverage Tent, which is