Manchester Township discusses fires, new master plan, & Iron Mill Pond special assessment district

Manchester Township Hall

by Sybil Kolon

All board members were present at the October 9 board meeting except Krista Jarvis. Also present were fire chief Bill Scully; deputy fire chief Mike Kouba; planning commissioner Carl Werner; and a few other members of the public.

Fire chief Bill Scully provided the monthly report for September. There were 38 calls for service, including 19 EMS responses and three HAZMAT incidents. There were no fires reported. There was discussion of the house fire in Manchester the day before. A nonprofit group, HEART, provided food and drinks for the firefighters during the course of the fire. HEART provides these services at large incidents in Washtenaw County.

Supervisor Ron Milkey reported that zoning administrator Carl Macomber issued permits for two residences, two pole barns/garages, one deck, and one household solar installation. A court date is set for October regarding the blight issue on Sharon Hollow Road near Wellwood.

Trustee Mike Fusilier provided a report from the Planning Commission. There is a public hearing scheduled for October 24 for the proposed revisions to the zoning ordinance for utility scale solar facilities and wind energy facilities. The city has withdrawn from the joint master plan and the township is now required to establish its own master plan. The planning commission had a special meeting on October 9 to appoint planning commissioners Mike Walter, Dave Thompson, and Carl Werner to the Master Plan committee. The township board will be represented on the committee by Danell Proctor, Kim Thompson, and Lisa Moutinho. Milkey will submit an application for a grant for planning assistance to help cover costs.

Sybil Kolon provided a report about the River Raisin Watershed Council. Changes to staffing and executive committee members are expected soon. The annual meeting will be October 23 and changes to the bylaws are proposed. Kolon pointed out that Washtenaw County is providing significant support to the RRWC.

Kolon provided an update on the Land Preservation Committee’s progress. There will be no meeting in November. The final report, with recommendations to the township board, is expected to be approved at the December meeting, which will conclude their responsibilities. The LPC will provide a letter to be included with the winter tax bill to inform landowners that they will have an opportunity early next year to provide input regarding the recommendations.

Residents of Iron Mill Pond have submitted a petition to the township board to establish a special assessment district around the lake to provide for weed control. Treasurer Kim Thompson has been researching the requirements. Residents of the lake were present and will provide the monetary information so the township can proceed with the next steps. The residents would like it to be in place to allow for weed control in the spring.

Milkey reported that the attorneys for the township and city are working to come to mutual agreement on asset division to account for the village becoming a city and now being completely separate from the township.

Editor’s note: Do you live in Sharon Township, Freedom Township, or Bridgewater Township and attend the monthly board meetings? Or are you looking for a reason to? We are looking for volunteers to attend and summarize board meetings of the other three townships. If you are interested email us at themanchestermirror@gmail.com. 

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by Sara Swanson

Sara Swanson is an editor, writer and founder of the Manchester Mirror.