No. 36
NEWS YOU CAN USE, NEWS YOU CAN TRUST
75¢
September 6 – 12, 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
The City of Wayne 2018
FRIENDS (People Helping
People) group is still looking
for volunteers for this
Saturday, Sept. 8.
See page 2.
When Northville voters
cast their ballot in the Nov. 6
election, they'll be asked to
decide on a 10-year Street
Improvement Bond.
See page 4.
Vol. 133, No. 36
Vol. 71, No. 36
Vol. 71, No. 36
Vol. 18, No. 36
Romulus police have
made one arrest and are
seeking two other suspects in
the recent theft of dozens of
iPads from Halecreek
Elementary School.
See page 5.
Vol. 133, No. 36
Vol. 71, No. 36
Vol. 71, No. 36
For home delivery of The Eagle call 734-467-1900.
The future of the former
Westland City Hall site and
the entire Ford Road corri-
dor in the city is under con-
sideration by the Downtown
Development Authority
(DDA).
See page 2.
Growth Works Inc., which
offers substance abuse and
juvenile delinquency pre-
vention regionally, and
Canton township have
approved an ongoing lease
agreement.
See page 3.
Vol. 18, No. 16
Wayne County Prosecutor
Kym Worthy has charged
Brian Keith Garner, Jr., 29 of
Inkster, in connection with
the hit-and-run that killed a
Taylorman.
See page 5.
A longstanding dispute
between the City of
Plymouth and Plymouth
Township was finally
resolved last week with a
$1.1millionpayment.
See page 4.
The Belleville Commun-
ity Chorus is seeking new
members as rehearsals
begin for thewinter concert.
See page 3.
In a surprise move last week, a
circuit court judge ordered the
name of onemayoral candidate in
Wayne removed from the Nov. 6
ballot.
Judge Robert J. Colombo, Jr.
agreed with the oral arguments of
attorney Scott R. Ruark who rep-
resented Sanders' opponent in the
mayoral race, John Rhaesa, a cur-
rent city councilman. Wayne polit-
ical activist Robert W. Boertje was
also named as a plaintiff in the
action.
The two plaintiffs, Rhaesa and
Boertje, claimed that past-due
campaign filing fees and fines
totaling about $4,000 were still
owed toWayne County by Sanders
and his campaign for a city coun-
cil seat three years ago. The com-
plaint about the unpaid fees was
first taken to Wayne County Clerk
Cathy M. Garrett by Boertje.
Garrett declined to remove
Sanders' name from the ballot on
the basis of the unpaid fees. She
responded to Boertje's complaint
explaining that removing Sanders'
name was “beyond the scope of
the authority” of her office.
Ruark, on behalf of Boertje
and Rhaesa, then filed for an
emergency motion for a prelimi-
nary injunction and order to show
cause in circuit court last week.
After oral arguments, Columbo
ordered Garrett to “immediately
remove Christopher J. Sanders
from the ballot as a candidate for
Mayor in the City of Wayne,
Michigan, in the November 2018
general election for the reasons
stated in open court on the
record.”
Sanders was not present at the
hearing Aug. 28 which was filed
against Wayne County and Garrett
in her capacity as Wayne County
Clerk. She was represented by
Janet Anderson-Davis and Kevin
P. Kavanagh, corporation counsel
for the county.
Rhaesa said he was pleased
with the court ruling.
“This may be the first time
someone has been recalled and
kicked off a ballot in the same
year, we couldn't have asked for a
better ruling,” Rhaesa said. “My
number one focus is to move the
city forward and get back to work
”
See
Ballot,
page 2
If the man behind the suc-
cess of the Fall Festival has
one facet of the event he
wants to improve, it's parking.
“I just want people to know
that parking and a shuttle are
available. If people would use
the shuttle, it would improve
the event for everyone,”
noted Eric Joy who has been
at the helm of the festival for
several years and who has
been involved with the event
for decades.
The free parking is avail-
able at Praise Baptist Church
at 45000 North Territorial
Road, about a quarter mile
west of Sheldon Road. From
there, a shuttle service will
bring people right into the
center of the festival. The
shuttle operates all weekend
during festival hours, Joy
said. “This way, people don't
start the day frustrated about
trying to find a parking
place.”
“This is the best way to
enjoy the event and all the
activities,” Joy said, and he is
obviously a man who would,
considering his long involve-
ment with the event.
He is very pleased, he said,
with the way the festival is
operating and the success the
civic groups are experiencing
with their participation.
“I say this every year and
every year, I mean it. The suc-
cess of the Fall Festival is a
success for the entire commu-
nity. This is an event that is
for and about the community,
that's why all these volunteers
work so hard for so many
hours. It is so they can give
back, and they really do.”
Joy, and his family, are no
strangers to community
involvement. His parents,
Timothy and Penny, are long-
time active Noon Rotary Club
members along with several
other civic groups and are
well-known for their commu-
nity efforts. Eric Joy, too, has
been a long-time Rotary Club
member, and like his dad,
served as president of the
club.
“The Rotary Club started
this event with a small chick-
en barbeque more than 60
years ago and it has retained
that spirit of cooperation for
six decades. I think that is
reallywhy it is so popular and
successful. It is for and about
the community groups and
the volunteers,” Joy said.
That small Rotary Club
picnic in a city park has
grown to an event that
attracts more than 50,000 visi-
tors during the three-day
weekend. Joy handles the
applications from the civic
groups and booths and makes
sure they are in the correct
spots throughout the down-
town area. The other myriad
details all fall to him, too,
including sanitation and
scheduling, not to mention
publicity and the thousands
of other details involved in
ensuring that all the moving
parts fall together correctly.
Bingo has to move from
TheGatheringFriday night so
that the Kiwanis can begin
setting up for the traditional
pancake breakfast. They have
The long-awaited federal cor-
ruption case against Mike
Mitchell, 49, the former director
of parks and grants in Plymouth
Township, resulted in a guilty
plea last week during his
arraignment before Judge
Terrence Berg in the U.S.
District Court, Eastern District of
Michigan.
According to documents filed
lastMarchby JefferyE. Peterson,
acting special agent in charge of
the Detroit Field Office of the
Federal Bureau of Investigation,
Mitchell was charged with one
count of theft from a local gov-
ernment receiving federal assis-
tance. The charges would nor-
mally carry a 10-year prison term
and a $250,000 fine. He was
accused of stealing township
property, including a John Deere
Gator utility vehicle and other
items of landscaping equipment.
The value of the stolen items, dis-
covered during a warrant search
of Mitchell's Livonia home, was
estimated at approximately
$10,000.
Mitchell admitted in court
that he had the equipment deliv-
ered to his home and that he was
aware that other township equip-
ment “would never be returned”
by a “friend.” Prosecutors said
that all of the equipment has
been recovered.
Informed sources say because
the charges were filed in what is
known as “information,” which is
an indicatorMitchell is cooperat-
ing with law enforcement and
has negotiated a plea deal in
exchange for the information, he
is not likely to be facing that 10-
year prison term nor a $250,000
fine. Prosecutors confirmed that
a sentence of probation had been
recommended in the case but
was not binding on the court.
Following federal charges
resulting from a joint investiga-
tion by the FBI and township
police department last March,
rumored details of the alleged
theft and Mitchell's involvement
with other individuals have run
rampant. According to the FBI,
charges filed against Mitchell
were reportedly the result of a
Judge removes candidate from city ballot
See
Mitchell,
page 4
Prosecutors confirmed that a sentence
of probation had been recommended
in the case but was not binding on the court.
”
Township official pleads guilty to theft charges
See
Festival,
page 4
Eric Joy
Labor of love
63rd annual Fall Festival begins in Plymouth
Don Howard
Staff Writer
This will leave him as the only choice
for voters and will protect the status
quo both at city hall and on the council
Photo by Helen Yancy
