State Boundary Commission gives green light to next cityhood steps

Manchester–village or city?

A meeting of the State Boundary Commission (SBC) was held at 10 am on Thursday, March 4. The three members of the Commission — chair Robin Beltramini, Richard Datema, and Chris Beland — were all in attendance via Zoom, along with the SBC’s clerk, Sara Leiby, and a number of SBC staff members. Local officials Pat Vailliencourt, Jeff Wallace, Julie Schaible, and attorney Mariah Fink (representing the village), Peter Psarouthakis (Sharon Township Supervisor), Ron Milkey and Danell Proctor (representing Manchester Township) also attended via Zoom.

The sole agenda item was to determine if there was adequate cause to move forward with a public hearing regarding the Village of Manchester’s request for cityhood. Beland asked if the staff had reviewed the boundary maps for consistency and the response was yes. Assistant Attorney General Patrick Fitzgerald also noted there were “no concerns” with the current boundary maps that had been submitted.

All of this considered, Beltramini said that it was deemed “legally sufficient” to proceed with scheduling a public hearing locally in Manchester. The preferred date and location will be at Manchester High School, 20500 Dutch Drive, on April 28, with an alternate date of May 5 set. Once the date and time are confirmed, a notice will be published to provide the community with information on the hearing.

So, the next stepping-stone on the path to possible cityhood is set. Many concerns have been expressed on social media and around the community, due to unfounded rumors about the process. The public is invited to check out the village’s “Frequently Asked Questions” page about cityhood on its website at https://vil-manchester.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/CAC-FAQ-APPROVED-FINAL-June-18-V18_lk.pdf

Of particular interest at the meeting to Village President Pat Vailliencourt was a public comment by AAG Fitzgerald, regarding an annexation appeal by the City of Ann Arbor. One of the local rumors has been that if Manchester becomes a city, it could attempt to annex properties outside its current borders, because the SBC normally favors cities in the annexation process. Fitzgerald updated the SBC on the status of Ann Arbor’s appeal of a denial in January 2020 for annexation of residential properties known as “township islands” within the city borders, which was scheduled to be heard in Washtenaw County Circuit Court last Friday.

“The SBC is now in court with the City of Ann Arbor regarding a denial of a petition to annex these ‘township islands’,” Vailliencourt said. “And those are actually township properties which are within the city limits, not extraneous to the borders.

“It seems like this case may be proving that annexation of township properties is not much simpler if you’re a city.”

Vailliencourt noted that SBC documents state one of the reasons for denial of the city’s request was that property owners were against it. “People do have a voice,” she added.

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by Marsha Chartrand

Marsha Johnson Chartrand, a founder, writer, and copy editor with the Manchester Mirror, is a 50-year resident of Manchester. She has a long history of volunteer and community involvement.