No. 24
NEWS YOU CAN USE, NEWS YOU CAN TRUST
75¢
June 14 – 20, 2018
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
City Council have chosen
Kevin Dowd to fill the
remaining 5 months of the
council term of Jeremiah
Webster.
See page 5.
A Clinton Township resi-
dent is facing charges as a
result of a bomb threat that
closed Haggerty Road and
evacuated businesses in
Northville last week.
See page 2.
Vol. 133, No. 24
Vol. 71, No. 24
Vol. 71, No. 24
Vol. 18, No. 24
The Romulus Arts
Council is seeking talented
performers and artists for
the annual Romulus
Downtown Development
AuthorityPumpkinFestival.
See page 3.
Vol. 133, No. 24
Vol. 71, No. 24
Vol. 71, No. 24
For home delivery of The Eagle call 734-467-1900.
Westland Rotary Club
members have ensured that
the future of some graduat-
ing seniors will be a little
brighter with the awarding
of annual club scholarships.
See page 5.
The
Michigan
Shakespeare Festival (MSF)
will mount three very differ-
ent productions this season
at the Village Theatre in
Canton Township beginning
in July.
See page 2.
Vol. 18, No. 16
Recently, members of
Inkster Citizens Who Care
hosted an unveiling of pho-
tos of the many history-mak-
ing centenarians of the com-
munity at city hall.
See page 4.
City of Plymouth Police
Ofc. David Edwards was
named as Officer of the Year
in a recent ceremony at
Plymouth City Hall which
honored 10 officers.
See page 4.
An eclectic mix of vintage
aircraft and classic automo-
biles will debut on the tar-
mac at historic Willow Run
Airport, beginning at 10 a.m.
Sunday, June 24.
See page 3.
Nancy Eggenberger, a mem-
ber of the Canton Library
Board of Directors, and Melissa
McLaughlin, former Canton
Township treasurer, have
teamed up to promote an
upcoming ballot issue.
The pair are co-chairing the
private Fix Canton Roads
Committee andhave joined sev-
eral other civic leaders to help
solve the ongoing complaints
about road maintenance in the
township. The complaints and
requests for repairs, along with
safety issues, have been fre-
quent topics at meetings of the
Canton Township Board of
Trustees and other community
gatherings.
Township trustees have OK'd
a 1.45 Canton Road Millage for
the Tuesday, Aug. 7 primary
election ballot, and have hosted
public forums to inform voters
about the need for the funding.
The millage rate is assessed
based on each $1,000 of State
Equalized Value of property,
usually half the market value of
the home.
“If we do what we've always
done, we will get what we've
always got! I want to change
course and help improve
Canton's roads,” McLaughlin
said in a prepared release.
“I support this millage for
two reasons: I'll save money by
not having to repair my car
from pothole damage, and it
will improve the safety of the
roads in Canton,” added
Eggenberger, a former
Plymouth-Canton school board
member,
The co-chairs emphasize
Canton millage money will be
used locally. The website
has addi-
tional information about the
road millage and public meet-
ings.
The Fix Canton Roads
Committee prepared release
noted the intersections at
Haggerty and Lilley “rank in
the top 10 in numbers of acci-
dents in the state. This proposal
will help position Ford Road to
be added to the MDOT
(Michigan Department of
Transportation) 5-year Plan for
boulevard funding.”
If approved, the revenue dis-
tribution plan calls for main
roads under Wayne County con-
trol to get 55 percent, or about
$3 million; subdivision streets
30 percent, or about $1.6million
(a “co-pay” by the homeowners
association will be required);
and state roads of Ford Road
andMichigan Avenue getting 15
percent, or about $800,000.
Canton Township trustees
have publicly acknowledged
poor road conditions, and their
own frustrations.
“We all know people who
have spent time and money
repairing tires, rims and sus-
pension. We also know people
who live on crumbling subdivi-
sion roadswith little help in get-
ting them repaired. This affects
not only our property values,
but those of the entire commu-
nity,” the committee co-chairs
summedup in the statement.
I want to change course
and help improve Canton's roads.
”
Committee promotes Canton road tax
DTE Energy engineers and
senior staff members are again
planning a public meeting to
address criticism and public
outcry regarding continued
power outages in the City of
Plymouth during the past year.
The meeting is planned for 4-7
p.m. tomorrow, June 15, at the
PlymouthCultural Center.
Last week DTE employees
removed two temporary gener-
ators and activated two new
transformers installed at the
Farmer Street substation that
controls the voltage for 4,000
city residents. Work at the
approximately 70-year-old facil-
ity has been ongoing since an
explosion and fire destroyed
the transformers last August.
The rebuilding and repair work
is said to be near completion.
In a letter addressed to city
officials, DTE Regional
Manager Barbara J. Rykwalder
said they “recognized the frus-
tration they have caused resi-
dents and businesses,” and the
dependability for electric serv-
ice in the Plymouth community
has been “beneath their high
standard.”
“We want you to know DTE
Energy is taking action to fix
the problem,” Rykwalder said
inher letter.
She made no mention of the
ongoing power outage prob-
lems Plymouth Township that
reportedly originate from the
DTE Powell Road Substation,
according to people, familiar
with thematter.
Last Saturday, township resi-
dents lost power for three and
one-half hours when an insula-
tor failure caused a high-power
line to burn and fall to ground-
damaging grass and a DTE
pole.
Last October DTE officials
hosted an open house for all
area residents at the Hilton
Garden Inn. In a similar invita-
Last Saturday, township residents lost power
for three and one-half hours...
”
Canton Liberty Fest will cel-
ebrate its 27th anniversarywith
three action-packed fun-filled
days beginning today and con-
tinuing through Saturday, June
16 inHeritage Park, adjacent to
the Canton Administration
Building, located at 1150 S.
CantonCenterRoad.
This year, event will take
place on from 1-11 p.m. today,
June 14 and Friday, June 15
and from 10 a.m. until 11 p.m.
on Saturday, June 16. Major
sponsors for this annual com-
munity event, include:
American 1 Credit Union;
Atchinson Ford; Community
Financial Credit Union; The
Goddard School of Early
Childhood Development;
Sysco;
Todd
Wenzel
Automotive; Twisted Rooster
andTheVillageDentist.
The Taste of Liberty Fest
and the Beer and Wine Garden
will again be located near the
Amphitheater. The Taste of
Liberty Fest, sponsored by
Twisted Rooster, will include
participating area restaurants
offering specialties to compete
for bragging rights in a taste
contest presided over by
Canton Supervisor Pat
Williams. Participants include;
All American Fare; Chop Stick
House; Cold Stone Creamery;
Krispy's Fish&Chicken; Wacky
Waffles and more. Stop by the
Taste of Liberty Fest for signa-
ture menu items from these
restaurants from 4-10 p.m. on
Thursday and noon-10 p.m. on
Friday and Saturday. On Friday
and Saturday from 4 - 11 p.m., a
variety of food trucks will be
parked near the Amphitheater;
the tentative line-up includes:
Cosa Sabrosa, Nu Deli
Sandwiches, Chicken Coupe
Chicken & Waffles, Naughty
Boy's Rolled Ice Cream, Kabob
Kart and others. The Canton
Firefighters' #2289 Charity
Foundation will host “Box
Festivals fill area this weekend
Canton Library Festival begins
Belleville Strawberry Festival starts
Power failures prompt public forum
Don Howard
Staff Writer
Forty-two years ago, the
Belleville area strawberry
growers decided to get
together with their friends at
St. Anthony's Church to cele-
brate another season.
That community gathering
has grown into the Belleville
National Strawberry Festival,
an event that celebrates the
harvest of the sweet fruit and
the essence of the Belleville
area community. That small
gathering of local farmers
more than four decades ago
has grown into a celebration
that spans five venues in the
community, Main Street, St
Anthony Church, Belleville
Presbyterian Church, Trinity
Church, andVictoryPark.
The event begins with a
parade down Main Street at
11 a.m. Saturday which will
include the reigning
Strawberry Queen among the
floats anddisplays.
Main Street features
crafters, carnival midway,
vendors and a children's
area. Starting at 3:30
Saturday at Third Street and
Main, the Fire Truck Pumper
Pull Challenge will take
place. Main Street also fea-
tures a large gathering of
juried crafters sponsored by
the Belleville Central
BusinessDistrict.
Trinity Church features all
things strawberry including
pies, breads, jam and much
more.
They also feature their
famous Sloppy Joe lunches
Saturday andSunday.
St. Anthony's features
bingo, ethnic Polish food and
traditional chicken dinners,
live musical entertainment
and a beer tent, helicopter
rides and many more attrac-
tions. There is also a carnival
on the church grounds spon-
sored by the Belleville
Chamber of Commerce.
See
Strawberry,
page 6
See
Liberty,
page 6
See
Forum,
page 2
