FeedsResidents shielded from annexation lawsuit
Laurie Marrs and Carol Poenisch won’t have to face a panel of attorneys after all.
The two Northville Township residents, founders of the Citizens for Northville (CFN) grass roots organization, had been subpoenaed to give a deposition in the ongoing lawsuits between the township and REIS, a development company formed by Real Estate Interests, Inc. and Schostak Brothers construction.
Wayne County Circuit Court Judge William Giovan upheld a protective order, however, that prevented the activists from going through the process.
“He said it was absolutely unnecessary to put these citizens through the aggravation of the deposition,” said Joe Xuereb, an attorney who represented Marrs, after the Friday hearing.
The two township residents formed the CFN to promote smart development within the community, they said, but the group has focused largely on the impending development at the former Northville Psychiatric Hospital site, a 414-acre plot of land along Seven Mile Road, just west of Haggerty Road. REIS has proposed a mixed-use development there that calls for at least 40 acres of commercial property that blends into various residential uses. All together, representatives of the company said it would represent a more than $500 million investment in the township that would bring thousands of jobs and more than 1,100 new homes to the area.
The proposed development plan was approved by township officials, but only with a list of conditions that stipulated they reduce the commercial component and follow the original setbacks in the zoning plan they crafted prior to the sale of the land.
The developer has since sued the township, claiming they’ve thwarted the development and infringed on their property rights. They’re seeking $100 million in damages. They also requested permission from the township to install 24-hour security personnel on the site. Township officials agreed, and then the eight people who moved into the four trailers on the site registered to vote and then started the process to annex the property to Livonia.
Xuereb said Marrs and Poenisch were subpoenaed as an attempt to harass them for talking about the issue, which they did at a town hall meeting they organized and through a website, www.citizensfornorthville.com.
Issue continues
Voters in Livonia may decide the annexation issue in August. Clerks in both municipalities received word last week that the issue will be on the Aug. 5 primary ballot. Because of the way the annexation procedure is currently set up, Livonia voters and the residents of the former hospital property will vote on the issues, but the remainder of township residents have no say in the annexation.
“This thing will probably be decided by the Aug. 5,” said Township Manager Chip Snider. “I don’t see anything that would usurp that vote.”
He said he’s not sure if the township would mount any kind of information campaign on the issue for Livonia voters. Township officials could send out informational literature, but not seek to sway anyone from voting for or against the issue.
“We’d have to be careful not to cross that line,” Snider said.
It might be a wasted effort, too, since Snider said the issue might be appealing to the vast majority of Livonia residents. Annexing the property would bring in additional tax revenue that could help lower the overall millage rate and cause no adverse affect for most Livonia residents. The traffic and density issues—two of the main objections critics of the plan had—wouldn’t impact them.
“They could replace the revenue lost from companies leaving town and see no consequences for it,” Snider said.
Voter rights at issue
In order to put off the annexation procedures, Northville Township filed suit against REIS, claiming the residents of the site were moved in under false pretenses. Neither side can discuss the litigation, an order put in place by Judge Sean Cox, who is overseeing the issue. Public records indicate that a hearing on that is scheduled for June 6.
Legislation could help
State Rep. Marc Corriveau (D-Northville) and State Sen. Bruce Patterson (R-Canton) have both introduced legislation to help townships with annexation issues. Corriveau’s legislation was approved by the House of Representatives 101-8 in March and has since been stalled in the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Patterson’s legislation was defeated, 20-18, after four Republican senators voted with Democrats. State Sen. Alan Cropsey (R-DeWitt), who voted against the issue, made a motion to reconsider the issue, but it has not yet come to a vote.
“I hope it’ll change the law,” said Snider. “That’s the way things go—if you don’t like the law, you change the law.”
Regardless of what happens with the Northville Township situation, Snider said he and other township officials would continue to push for the legislation to ensure townships have an equal say in annexation procedures throughout the state.
“We promised we’d finish the job,” Snider said. “Even if we get stuck, it’s important that nobody else gets stuck in this situation.”
