No. 42
NEWS YOU CAN USE, NEWS YOU CAN TRUST
75¢
October 20 – 26, 2016
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 Commission
on Aging and the Senior
Services Office have chosen
Beverly Campbell as the
winner of the 2016 Diamond
of theCommunityAward.
See page 4.
The Great Pumpkin Festival
Returns to Maybury Farm
from noon until 5 p.m. this
Sunday, Oct. 22.
See page 4.
Vol. 131, No. 42
Vol. 69, No. 42
Vol. 69, No. 42
Vol. 16, No. 42
Prosecutor Kym Worthy
has determined that a
Romulus mother will not be
charged in connection with
the non-fatal stabbing of her
16-year-old son.
See page 2.
Vol. 131, No. 42
Vol. 69, No. 42
Vol. 69, No. 42
For home delivery of The Eagle call 734-467-1900.
Streetscape beautifica-
tion has already begun along
Central City Parkway in
Westland.
in the area between Ford
andWarren roads.
See page 5.
The Spellbinder is set to
appear again this year with a
whole new repertoire of
creepy, ghost stories for
those brave enough to attend
the evening of spine-tingling
tales.
See page 5.
Vol. 16, No. 42
The Inkster Legends
organization is now selling
$10 raffle tickets to help pro-
viding the gift of Christmas
to 100 families inneed.
See page 6.
Following protests from
several residents, Plymouth
Township officials did not
act on a proposed contract
change
with
Rizzo
Environmental Services last
week.
See page 3.
April Crawford was sworn
in last week as the newest
member of the Van Buren
Public School Board of
Education.
See page 5.
There was no lack of interest
or criticism for plans to remake
Kellogg Park in downtown
Plymouth during a meeting at
the city Cultural Center last
week.
Plans for the 150th anniver-
sary of the City of Plymouth
include a complete remake of
the park, the centerpiece of the
downtown area, funded by pri-
vate donations.
The changes for the park
were presented at a Downtown
Development Authority work-
shop meeting last week when
mayor Pro Tem Oliver Wolcott
and City Manager Paul Sincock
discussed the plans. Details of
the revitalization of the 1.3-acre
park include wider walkways,
moving the fountain to the west
and adding a seating wall on the
Main Street edge of the park.
Several audience members
expressed their opposition to
the plans and criticized the
designs as presented.
One long-time Plymouth resi-
dent, who asked not to be
named, was concerned about
the impact of the new design on
the image of the community.
“Redefining the people-
friendly, quaint town square the
way they want it will change the
feel of the downtown area forev-
er, and certainly not for the
best,” he said.
David Rucinski, a downtown
resident and Plymouth business
executive, was among the nearly
160 people in the audience. He
has collected more than 1,100
signatures in opposition to radi-
cal changes to the park and
fountain. Contacted after the
meeting Rucinski said, “We are
working closely with the DDA
and the City of Plymouth to
resolve the citizen concerns on
the proposed changes to Kellogg
Park and the fountain.”
According to details present-
ed by Wesco Fountains, the
Florida-based contractor award-
ed themore than $1million con-
tract, the renovations will
include a complete rebuilding of
the circular fountain with state-
of-the-art controls, water sculp-
ture capabilities and an LED
lighting system. In addition, all
of the existing park sidewalks
will be replaced and relocated
to complement a better route to
the downtown main streets. The
plans call for the new fountain
to be reconstructed 21 feet west
of the current site with a 35-foot
diameter, up from the current
31-foot fountain. The fountain
footprint
will
remain
unchanged.
Also discussed was having
See
Park,
page 3
A move which could extend
the terms of some Wayne elect-
ed officials by a year was the
topic of a public hearing set for
last Tuesday at CityHall.
The proposal to move local
elections to coincide with presi-
dential and gubernatorial elec-
tions on even numbered years
would save the city from$20,000-
$40,000, the estimated election
costs.
To move to a consolidation of
the local, state and federal elec-
tions would require extending
the terms of current Mayor
SusanRowe and several council
members by one year. Those
terms now expire in 2017, and
would be extended until the
next state election in 2018, elimi-
nating the cost of the local bal-
loting. State law prohibits the
shortening of elected officials'
terms but does allow the consoli-
dation by council action, accord-
ing to city officials.
In addition to Rowe, the
terms of Tom Porter, Anthony
Miller, Ryan Gabriel and
Richard Sutton would be
extended.
During public discussion of
the proposal, Porter expressed
his concern at having his term
altered. He said he did not want
his term extended and suggest-
ed that the proposal be placed
on a ballot to allow voters to
decide. Sutton agreed, noting
that he would be uncomfortable
extending his term without a
public vote. Both Sutton and
Porter were appointed to the
council to fill vacancies by a res-
ignation and Rowe's leaving her
council term when she was
elected asmayor.
Council members have only
until Dec. 31 to adopt any such
change in time for the next elec-
tion.
Council members also dis-
cussed the possibility of elimi-
nating primary elections in the
city.
The newly-adopted ward sys-
tem allows voters from each
ward to select a candidate dur-
ing a primary election. The can-
didates are then subject to vot-
ing from the entire city for elec-
tion to the council.
One resident suggested that
moving the city election to coin-
cide with the federal and state
balloting might bring more peo-
ple to the polls. Another told the
council members that the mat-
ter should be voted on by resi-
dents as “this affects everyone's
right to vote.”
The difference between a
big city and a small town could
be a reverence for history.
Officials in the City of
Romulus embraced their histo-
ry and small-town atmosphere
recently, with the ribbon-cut-
ting of the new gate at the orig-
inal entrance of the Romulus
Memorial Cemetery. The
Victorian arch, designed in
black wrought iron, is off
ShookRoad.
“It's been a passion for a lot
of people,” said Romulus
Mayor Leroy Burcroff. “It's
been a teameffort.”
Burcroff and Jan Lemmon,
chair of the Romulus
Memorial Cemetery Board of
Trustees, presided at the brief
public ceremony. Dozens of
city officials, volunteers and
donors attended, as well-wish-
ers drove by, whistled, honked
andwaved.
“I just love the gate,” said
Lemmon. “To me it's a symbol
of dignity and respect for a
cemetery that's five years older
than theState ofMichigan.”
The cemetery dates back to
1832, half a decade before
Michigan officially became a
state. Lemmon said a wealth of
history could be found within
its borders-it holds the resting
place of Medal of Honor win-
ners, men who fought in the
Spanish AmericanWar and, of
course, local political and busi-
ness leaders. The names on
many headstones are repre-
sented on streets throughout
the
community.
Jerry
Wendland, a current member
of the cemetery board, has
nearly a hundred relatives
buried there-he is a direct
descendent of Polly Pullen, the
first person laid to rest on the
grounds.
“It's just an amazing piece of
property in Romulus,”
Lemmon said. “There is a lot
of history here.”
Efforts to maintain and
improve the cemetery were
Council members also discussed
the possibility of eliminating
primary elections in the city.
”
Kellogg Park plans draw residents’ ire
Don Howard
Staff Writer
Proposed Kellogg Park fountain
Heaven’s gate
Historic city cemetery
undergoing restoration
See
Gate,
page 2
Wayne considers change in election dates
Jan Lemmon, chair of the Romulus Memorial Cemetery Board of
Trustees and Tim Keyes, city economic development and plan-
ning director, were among those celebrating the dedication of
the new cemetery gate.
