No. 36
NEWS YOU CAN USE, NEWS YOU CAN TRUST
75¢
September 1 - 7, 2011
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
The Wayne Friends, People
Helping People, project needs
volunteers to help spruce up
the home of a senior or handi-
capped resident.
See page 5.
The City of Romulus has
hired Carol Maise, a
Northville resident who has
experience working with
Romulus on planning issues,
as the part-time city planner.
See page 3.
Protestors marched and
carried signs outside the Main
Street campaign offices of
Thaddeus McCotter for
President last week, protesting
the lack of jobs.
See page 2.
Administrators in the
Northville school district have
now followed the lead of the
teachers' union and accepted a
4 percent pay cut for the next
two years.
See page 2.
The Detroit Institute of Arts
will be erected framed copies
of masterpiece artworks at
locations clustered within
walking distance in downtown
Belleville thismonth.
See page 3.
Vol. 126, No. 36
Vol. 64, No. 36
Vol. 64, No. 36
Vol. 11, No. 36
Vol. 11, No. 36
Vol. 126, No. 36
Vol. 64, No. 36
Vol. 64, No. 36
Several Michigan hospitals,
school districts and
Community Health Centers
are attempting to enroll eligi-
ble children in the state low-
cost and free health insurance
program.
See page 5.
For home delivery of The Eagle call 734-467-1900.
Westland will host a 9/11
Memorial Service at 11 a.m.,
Sunday, Sept. 11. The service
will be at St. Matthew
Lutheran Church and School
in the city.
See page 5.
The Smithsonian Institution has
designated the Yankee Air
Museum in Belleville as an affili-
ate of the renowned institution.
“This is an accomplishment of
major significance,” said
Chairman of the Yankee Air
Museum Board of Directors Ray
Hunter.
“One of the components of our
mission is to tell the story of the
huge Willow Run bomber plant
and how this area became an arse-
nal of democracy. This is where
major corporations and civilian
men and women worked to defend
freedom during World War II,” he
said.
Hunter explained that while the
public has already seen the open-
ing of the new buildings in the past
year, museum volunteers have also
focused their efforts on strengthen-
ing the management and organiza-
tional structure of the group. The
comprehensive application sub-
mitted to the Smithsonianwas only
submitted after detailed review, he
said. This included many through
analyses of the history, finances
and collections policies of the
museum.
“This confirms the course we've
taken and verifies our institutional
stature,” Hunter said. “Yankee has
contributed much to preserving
the history of aviation and we are
being recognized.”
The Smithsonian affiliation
comes with significant responsibil-
ities in developing plans for the
care, preservation and safety of
borrowed objects. There are also
reporting requirements with
which themuseummust comply.
“I amvery enthused bywhat the
Smithsonian affiliation means in
terms of staff development, said
Randy Hotton, executive director
of the Yankee Air Museum. “There
are strict guidelines to which the
Yankee Air Museum must adhere
to maintain this status. Our staff
will continue to grow as consum-
mate museum professionals under
this relationship.”
Hotton said the expectations of
the Smithsonian under the agree-
ment are stringent and that the
Washington, D.C. facility offers pro-
fessional expertise and technical
support to assist the Yankee Air
Museumin all aspects necessary to
assure the mutual success of the
affiliation. He added that the
museum intends to take full advan-
tage of the professional develop-
ment opportunities, including the
Smithsonian affiliations annual
conference, visiting professional
programs and internships.
“For many of us who have been
with Yankee since the early years,
this is truly a watershed moment,”
said Bob Hynes, life member and
chairman of the public relations
committee for the museum. “We
won't be looking back, only for-
ward, as this recognition and affili-
ation lays an entirely new founda-
tion upon which the Yankee Air
Museumwill continue to build.”
Supervisor Phil LaJoy is
currently accepting letters of
interest and resumes from
Canton Township residents
who wish to serve on the
CantonBoard of Trustees.
See page 4.
A man with nearly two decades
of law enforcement experience
with some of the highest profile
cases in the state has a message for
residents throughout the area:
Whether you know it or not, crime
affects you.
“Just because drugs are being
sold in Inkster or illegal guns are
on the street elsewhere, people
tend to think crime doesn't touch
themor their lives.
“Crime crosses borders and
these illegal activities affect every-
body,” noted Det. First Lt. Darryl
Hill of theMichiganStatePolice.
Since being named the com-
mander of the Western Wayne
Criminal Investigations Task Force
in April, Hill has instituted a new
anonymous tip line for citizens to
call to report suspicious instances
or crimes. The task force deals pri-
marily with narcotics, auto-theft
fraud, money laundering and
firearms violations.
“We're not here to replace
HEAT (Help End Auto Theft), the
auto theft team is a part of this,”
Hill said. “We also have an ATF
(Alcohol, Firearms, Tobacco and
Explosives) agent workingwithus.”
Currently, officers participating
on the task force are from Detroit,
Inkster, Northville Township,
Plymouth Township, Canton
Township, Redford Township and
theMichiganStatePolice.
“We just want to let people know
we are here and available. The citi-
zens need to know what we are
doing,” Hill said. He stressed that
tips can be anonymous or callers
can give their names.
In the cases of drug sales, Hill
said, if the information leads to a
large seizure or arrests, there is a
means in place to compensate the
tipster for the information.
“We're just need to get the word
out that there is a task force here,”
he said.
Hill explained that often indi-
viduals don't actually know if a
crime is being committed but have
suspicions that something simply
doesn't seemright.
“Many people don't even know
what money laundering is, but they
know something isn't right,” he
said. “We can investigate the situa-
tion.”
The task force serves all the
communities in the surrounding
area and investigators take calls
seriously.
Hill, who spend seven years run-
ning a narcotics investigative team
in Detroit and five before then
leading the special investigative
unit of high profile investigations,
said that crime in the area is seri-
ous and that investigators need
help fromthe public.
“This was a lateral move for
me,” he said of his new job respon-
sibilities. I thought let's get out
there and let the public knowwe're
here.”
“Everybody is affected by crime
in some level,” he said. “We serve
the entire area so we're urging the
public touse the tip line.”
To contact the Western Wayne
Criminal Investigations Tip Line,
call (855) 529-9924.
Jennifer Mann, the leader of
Citizens Action Group of
Plymouth, said that she and the
members of the group will not
“give up” and plan to continue to
gather signatures on a petition
requesting a 1-mill ballot question
to fund the Plymouth Township
FireDepartment.
Last week, during a contentious
meeting, petitions submitted to
the members of the board of
trustees and township administra-
tors were rejected by the board.
Instances of unclear property
ownership, similar handwriting in
spousal signatures and failure of
petitioners to sign each document
were cited, alongwith a 1951 town-
ship ordinance regarding petition,
millage and assessment language.
“We're disappointed,” Mann
said following the meeting. “But
we will continue to get signatures
and go for theFeb. 28, 2012 ballot.”
Mann explained that when the
parcels of land in question were
removed from the valid signa-
tures, the group was 1.2 percent
short of the required percentage
of property owners' signatures
required to place the issue on the
ballot.
“We can wait until the sale of
the land at Seven Mile back to the
township is finalized, whichwould
exempt it, and then we have the
percentage we need or we can
continue. We're going to continue,”
she said.
Her efforts and those of mem-
bers of the group members are
being applauded by several town-
ship residents, among them Don
Howard, a 35-year resident, who
has had serious heart surgery and
depends on the current Advanced
Life Support system to come to his
aid should he experience an
emergency incident.
Howard has done extensive
research into the current fire
department staffing and structure
and said he finds the current
See
Petition,
page 2
We serve the entire area
so we're urging the
public to use the tip line.
”
Task force offers new crime tipline in area
Yankee Air Museum is Smithsonian affiliate
Fire millage petition drives will continue in Plymouth
The Yankee Air Force Museum in
Belleville houses some rare aircraft
flown during World War II. The
museum attracts a large crowd of
spectators annual ly, usual ly
wowed by the exhibits.