No. 43
NEWS YOU CAN USE, NEWS YOU CAN TRUST
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October 27 – Nov. 2, 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 27-year-old man
charged with murdering his
step-grandfather with an ax
has been committed to a
mental institution by the
courts.
See page 5.
Designers are already hang-
ing bows, trimming boughs
and decorating holiday trees
in five Northville Township
homes, preparing for the
Northville Holiday Home
Tour.
See page 4.
Vol. 131, No. 43
Vol. 69, No. 43
Vol. 69, No. 43
Vol. 16, No. 43
Romulus High School stu-
dents attended the first
annual
Construction
Academy at Eastern Market
Oct. 18 co-sponsored by
Junior Achievement.
See page 3.
Vol. 131, No. 43
Vol. 69, No. 43
Vol. 69, No. 43
For home delivery of The Eagle call 734-467-1900.
The appointments of
Robert Kelly, Viktor Barisaj
and James Raptoplous to
the Westland Downtown
Development Authority
(DDA) were confirmed last
week.
See page 4.
There are two newdeputy
directors in the Canton
Township Public Safety
Department following the
appointments of Christopher
Stoecklein and Chadwick
Bough.
See page 2.
Vol. 16, No. 43
Aurelio R. Smith, 41, and
his girlfriend, Andrea A.
Bracy, 21, both of Inkster,
have been charged with the
death of Smith's 3-year-old
son, TymeSmith.
See page 3.
Plymouth Community
United Way looking for vol-
unteers to clean yards and
do light chores in Plymouth,
and Plymouth and Canton
townships onNov. 12.
See page 5.
The Belleville Area
Council for the Arts is now
accepting entry forms for the
Seventh Annual Community
Art Show planned for Nov. 4-
6 .
See page 3.
Members of the Wayne City
Council have approved a change
in the election cycle that will
extend their individual terms by
one year.
The measure, proposed as a
cost-savings to the city, will move
the local elections into the same
years as federal and state elec-
tions, estimated to save the city a
minimum of $20,000 in each
election year. The next city elec-
tion will take place in 2018.
Councilmen Ryan Gabriel and
Richard Sutton, both appointed
to fill vacancies on the council,
will have their terms along with
those of Councilman Anthony
Miller and Mayor Susan Rowe
extended until 2018. The terms
of Councilmen Tom Porter, John
Rhaesa and Christopher
Sanders will be extended by one
year until the election in 2020.
During discussion of the pro-
posal during the regular city
council meeting last week, resi-
dents noted that with the ward
voting system adopted in 2015,
the extension of the terms of
Gabriel, Miller and Sutton
deprives them of the opportuni-
ty to choose a candidate from
their precinct or ward for sever-
al years. Residents suggested
the city delay the implementa-
tion of the new election cycle to
even-numbered years to correct
that deficiency. Residents said
this measure circumvented the
ward systemapprovedby voters.
Councilman John Rhaesa,
who had opposed the ward sys-
tem, said that this would put the
local city elections at the bottom
of the ballot which could be
overlooked by voters. He sug-
gested that the new system
would be for the convenience of
city staff rather than the most
efficient system for local voters
and is not “an afterthought.”
Porter said he would like to
find a compromise that provid-
ed the election savings, but said
that he refused to vote for an
extension of his own term.
He and Rhaesa cast the two
no votes on the plan.
The City ofWayne faces a $1.5
million budget deficit this year
and has been told by auditors
that it will completely run out of
cashat the end of next year.
Miller said the city needed to
make decisions to cut spending.
He said that should an emer-
gency financial manager be
appointed in the community, the
election consolidation would be
one of the first cost-cutting
measures implemented.
“If we don't make a decision
today, someone else will make it
later down the road. I'd rather
do it today,” Miller said. “A lot
more cuts will have to be made.
We are hanging by a rope. Is
another 12 months that impor-
tant? I don't think so. I'd like to
have staff focus on more impor-
tant things.”
If we don't make
a decision today, someone else
will make it later down the road.
”
Westland residents continue
to mourn the death of Sam “Mr.
Westland” Corrado who died
Oct. 15 after a long illness.
Mr. Corrado, 82, was the pub-
lisher of a well-known shopper
in the area, a small circular that
was distributed throughout the
city. He was active with nearly
every community group and
club and was almost constantly
working for one charity or
another in the community.
Former
Westland
Councilman Glenn Shaw
remembered that Corrado was
always a showman, bringing
attention to whatever charity or
collection effort he was working
on at the time.
“He always had away ofmak-
ing whatever he was doing big-
ger than life,” Shaw said. “I've
known him for a long, long time
and worked with him on many
projects.”
Shaw said that Mr. Corrado
was active with the Westland
Community Foundation Board
of Directors and donated many
hours to the group before his
health battles limited his
involvement.
“As Sam's health failed, so did
his ability to take care of his
business which was such a
shame after he spent so many
hours helping so many other
people,” Shaw added. “Many of
us in the community joined to
offer him whatever advice and
help we were able to get him
back on track.”
Shaw recalled that his first
meeting withMr. Corrado was in
1976 when Shaw was new to the
Wayne alters city election years
Miracle workers
New pavilion at ball field to be
named for Lou and Gail LaRiche
Death of Sam Corrado ‘Mr. Westland’ mourned
See
Corrado,
page 4
It takes a lot to surprise Lou
LaRiche.
The long-time Plymouth car
dealer has a wealth of life
experience and isn't easilymis-
led.
Just ask his son, Scott, who
had been secretly maneuver-
ing a special tribute to his dad
and late mother for several
months.
“It wasn't easy,” Scott
LaRiche said, “but we man-
aged to pull it off.”
What Lariche and Deb
Madonna of the Miracle
League of Plymouth, managed
was the surprise announce-
ment recently during a regular
meeting of the Plymouth Noon
Rotary Club, that there was
about to be another 'miracle' in
the community that would be
named inhonor of his parents.
Not nearly the size or scope
of the current Miracle League
athletic field located behind
the Plymouth Arts and
Recreation Complex, the for-
mer Central Middle School,
but a new, covered pavilion,
attached to the current build-
ing, with a concrete pad for
picnic tables that will accom-
modate rolling devices.
And, the younger LaRiche
announced, looking directly at
his father during the meeting,
the covered pavilion now
under construction at the
fields will be named for Lou
and the late Gail LaRiche, as a
tribute for all the couple has
generously contributed to the
community for decades.
Scott LaRiche, as a past
president of the North
American International Auto
Show, was able to use funding
from the Chairman's Choice
fund of theNAIAS, an opportu-
nity for each individual chair-
man to designate funding to a
local charity project. LaRiche
chose the Miracle Network
field.
LaRiche said a real issue
was keeping the surprise from
his father. “I was so excited. My
wife, Dawn, and I kept the
secret for months. A couple of
times I had the plans out onmy
desk and had to quickly hide
them from him when he came
in.”
“It was all worth it to see his
reaction. He just stared,
shocked,” LaRiche said.
“We are just honored and
humbled to be able to do things
for this community that means
somuch tous,” LaRiche said.
The covered pavilion and
an accompanying canopy at
the bleacher area where the
players await their turns at bat
are improvements of more
than $100,000 at the fields.
Lariche, along with Madonna,
who was instrumental in the
original development of the
field which provides children
with physical and mental dis-
abilities the opportunity to play
organized baseball, displayed
the plans for the improvements
See
Miracle,
page 5
Lou LaRiche, sitting with daughter-in-law, Dawn, was taken by
surprise at the announcement of the new pavilion named for him
and his late wife, Gail.
Many of those involved gathered in front of the screen presentation of the new pavilion and improvements at the Miracle League ball
fields to be named for Lou and Gail LaRiche.
Photos by Dave Willett
