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No. 33
NEWS YOU CAN USE, NEWS YOU CAN TRUST
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August 14 – 20, 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
Wayne voters will not be
asked to approve a millage
hike to bail out the budget
deficit in the city after all but
not all residents feel the
decisionwas the right one.
See page 4.
Planning is under way for
the 17th Annual Pumpkin
Festival which will begin
with the Parade of Lights
Sept. 19 and continue in
Historical Park Sept. 20 and
21.
See page 3.
Five students received
scholarships from WSDP
Radio, the student-run sta-
tion of the Plymouth-Canton
Community Schools, this
year.
See page 5.
A day of cars, food, drinks,
music and fun is on tap in
downtown Northville as the
2nd Annual Food Truck
Festival returns from 11 a.m.
until 11 p.m. on Saturday,
Aug. 23.
See page 5.
Donald Daniel Juchartz,
85, a 50-year resident of
Belleville died Aug. 11. Mr.
Juchartz was known as the
Garden Doctor on radio and
television for more than 60
years and was an active
Belleville Rotary Club mem-
ber.
See page 2.
Vol. 129, No. 33
Vol. 67, No. 33
Vol. 67, No. 33
Vol. 14, No. 33
Vol. 129, No. 33
Vol. 67, No. 33
Vol. 67, No. 33
For home delivery of The Eagle call 734-467-1900.
State Senator Glenn S.
Anderson (D-Westland) offi-
cially introduced legislation
this week to restore
Michigan's pre-2011 fire-
works regulations.
See page 3.
Entries are now being
accepted for the 22nd
Annual Canton Fine Arts
Exhibition which will take
place at The Village Theater
at CherryHill.
See page 2.
Vol. 14, No. 33
Inkster is selling city-
owned residential properties
in several areas through a
sealed bid auction. Bids will
be accepted at the office of
the city clerk until 4 p.m.
Sept. 8.
See page 4.
At least one township resi-
dent is questioning the word of
Township Treasurer Ron
Edwards whom she claims
failed to place a promised mill-
age to fund fire department
equipment on the ballot last
week.
Sandy Groth of Plymouth
Concerned Citizens, a grass-
roots community activist group,
said township officials need to
get their priorities in order and
ensure the safety of residents.
Groth said there has not been a
major fire department equip-
ment purchase since 2000,
despite promises from officials
to replace the worn and outdat-
ed fire engines and ambulances.
She sent out an urgent message
last week to hundreds of home-
owners and subdivision repre-
sentatives asking for them to
immediately contact the town-
ship officials and trustees and
“demand they place the issue
on the ballot.”
Citing a statement made by
Edwards during a monthly
board meeting last November
assuring residents a fire millage
questionwould be on the Aug. 5,
2014 ballot, Groth said officials
not only missed the deadline to
submit ballot wording to the
county clerk for certification,
but also missed the deadline for
the upcoming November elec-
tionballot.
“Edwards spelled out that he
was specifically looking for a
one-year millage to cover these
costs.” Groth, a former deputy
township clerk, said. Edwards,
however, denied any suchprom-
ise. In an emailed response to
Sybil Hunter, a resident who fol-
lowed Groth's suggestion and
contacted township officials last
Thursday to ask about the issue,
Edwards claimed there was
some discussion about amillage
but no board action.
“At the Nov. 13th board of
trustees meeting there was dis-
cussion about a one-year mill-
age to buy fire equipment. The
millage was to last one year. It
was never approved by the
board. There was no talk of pro-
posing an additional fire service
millage to the best of my knowl-
edge,” Edwards wrote in an
emailed response to Hunter's
question.
A review of the videotape
recordings of the meeting
reveal Edwards telling Trustee
There will soon be a new
mayor in the City of Wayne, but
the name on the mayor's office
door in Westland City Hall will
remain the same.
At the end of election night
last Tuesday, the unofficial
results from theAugust primary
showed that Westland Mayor
Bill Wild was unsuccessful in
his attempt to gain the demo-
cratic nomination for Wayne
County Executive, while Wayne
Mayor Al Haidous won a spot
on the Wayne County
Commission.
Wild, who has served as
Westland mayor for seven
years, lost out to former Wayne
County Sheriff Warren Evans.
Evans garnered 68,421 votes, or
about 44 percent of the total, to
Wild's 40,436, according to the
unofficial results from the
WayneCountyClerk's office.
“I'm at peace,” Wild told his
supporters shortly before mid-
night last Tuesday. “I feel really
good about my decision to jump
into this race. We've done an
incredible amount of good
things in the City of Westland
and I feel we have so many
more things we can do, but I
really thought I could help
WayneCounty.”
Commissioner
Kevin
McNamara, who also sought the
nomination for Wayne County
Executive, garnered 10,503
votes, or about 7 percent. More
than 9,200 people voted for
incumbent Bob Ficano, about 6
percent of ballots cast.
“We can be proud of what
we've done,” McNamara, a
Belleville resident, said in an
email to his supporters. “We
brought to the attention of the
public and the leaders across
this county that the best path to
rebuilding Wayne County is get-
ting the 43 communities to buy
into the plan - a plan to rebuild
WayneCounty.”
He said he would continue
to work through the end of his
term to finish some of the proj-
ects currently on the county
commission's table.
“We will put the campaign-
ing in the past and work togeth-
er toward a better future for our
43 communities,” he wrote. “I
will not give up on a vision to
make Wayne County work for
the people. I will continue to
serve as commissioner until the
end of this year and onto the
next phase.”
With his victory, Haidous is
virtually assured of taking that
seat on the county commission.
He earned 3,497 votes, or about
44 percent of the total. Jeremy
Cady, his closest rival in the
race, finished with 3,109, or
about 39 percent of the vote.
The city council will soon dis-
cuss a successionplan.
Wild said he, too, would con-
tinue his work to improve
Westland.
“The Lord is going to put me
where he needs me,” he said.
“If He wants me to continue to
do good things in Westland,
that'swhere I'll be.”
”
Edwards spelled out that he
was specifically looking for
a one-year millage to cover these costs.
Lack of fire millage vote questioned
A rare glimpse into five of
the most interesting homes in
Northville will be offered dur-
ing a tour sponsored by the
American Association of
UniversityWomennextmonth.
The annual home tour, a
fundraiser for the group, will
take place from 10 a.m. until 4
p.m. Sept. 20. Whether visitors
are touring the featured 1800s
Victorian, the 1990s lakeside
condo, or any of the other
homes, guests set their own
pace while hearing the history
of the dwellings from stationed
docents. This year, ticket hold-
ers also get exclusive access to a
bonus garden party from 2-5
p.m. at Starring “The Gallery”
at 118 W. Main St. in Northville
on tour day. Free refreshments
will be provided by Edwards'
Café and ticket holders will
receive a 10 percent discount
on all purchases.
Homes for tour are an origi-
nal mid-1800s Victorian, a
newly-constructed Victorian
style, a 1980s renovated two-
story, the Pheasant Hills home
of a well-known custom builder,
and a Blue Heron Pointe con-
dominium on the water. More
than 30 local businesses help
sponsor the event.
Now in its 19th consecutive
year, the home tour is themajor
fund-raising event of the
Northville-Novi branch of the
American Association of
University Women. Funds sup-
port educational scholarships
and community events to pro-
mote achievement in local girls
and women. Nationally, the
organization promotes equity,
education and development for
women around theworld.
Tickets are $20 and can be
purchased
online
at
www.aauwnn.org or at the fol-
lowing businesses:
• Starring “The Gallery,” 118 W.
MainSt., Northville
• Gardenviews, 117 E. Main St.,
Northville
• Pear-Aphernalia, 184 E. Main
St., Northville
• Meadowbrook Art Center,
41200TenMileRoad, Novi
• Calico Corners, 25875 Novi
Road., Novi
• Northville Chamber of
Commerce, 195 S. Main St.,
Northville
For more information, con-
tact Home Tour Chair Jane
Hecker, (734) 276-6160.
Open house
Annual tour spans century
of home design in community
This home on McDonald Drive is one of the five selected for the
home tour this year.
See
Millage,
page 5
Don Howard
Staff Writer
Voters send mixed messages to local leaders
Kevin McNamara
Al Haidous
Bill Wild