Brandon Twp.- It’s a done deal.
By a 3-2 vote, the township board has agreed to the purchase of 66.1 acres of land adjacent to Brandon High School at a price of $1,955,000.
Supervisor Ron Lapp, Clerk Jeannie McCreery and Trustee Sandy Willett voted yes to the land purchase agreement during the Nov. 6 board meeting, while Treasurer Linda Owen and Trustee Charlene Carlson voted no. Trustees Bob DeWitt and Tom Stowell were absent with notice.
Another 3-2 vote, along the same lines, followed, with the board accepting a 10-year, $1,369,000 loan from Chase, with an interest rate of 4.069 percent to purchase the land from Brandon Lockwood LLC.
‘I think we need to look to the future,? said McCreery, explaining why she voted for the purchase. ‘Too often, boards just look at the present and don’t plan for the future, and when they do that they leave future boards to do things at much higher costs. If we can be proactive, we should be.?
Brandon Fire Chief Bob McArthur has been researching the purchase of M-15 property for more than two years. McArthur’s main reason for wanting to obtain the land is to build a new fire hall to replace Fire Station #1. That station, located on South Street in Ortonville, is a safety concern, with emergency vehicles responding out of the village on about 500 calls per year, encountering a 25-mph zone, with pedestrians, crosswalks and traffic from three schools.
Fire department funds will be used to purchase the property, which has about 5.2 acres of M-15 frontage that the fire department would keep for the potential fire station (zoned C); 22.6 acres of property that is zoned R1B and could potentially be used by the township for a municipal complex in the future and could also serve as a location for a wastewater treatment plant; 5.3 acres of wetlands; 17 acres for a conservation easement; and 16 acres that the Brandon School District would buy from the Brandon Fire Department for parking at the high school at a price of $410,500.00.
‘We are very serious about purchasing the property from the township pending final negotiations,? said Brandon Superintendent Tom Miller.
Township Supervisor Ron Lapp says all necessary titlework, studies, and final approval by the township attorney should be completed soon. The loan bid is good through Dec. 8.
‘This will serve our needs in the future and might take care of some immediate needs of the village and school district,? said Lapp. ‘It’s always positive management practice to be proactive instead of reactive.?
Carlson said she voted no for several reasons, one of which is because she believes the traffic situation on M-15 will not be any better for the fire department. She also believes it is more land than what the township needs and it is ‘one more hunk of property off our tax base.?
‘If the township buys it, there is no tax money being brought in for it,? she said. ‘If another business came in there, we’d get the tax money. The bottom line is, I felt it was too much money at the wrong time and I felt we’re making cuts so many other places, this was not a necessary purchase.?
Owen, the other dissenting vote, said while she is not against buying property for future use, she doesn’t think right now is the right time.
‘Property values are going down, everyone can see that,? she said. ‘I think the property would be cheaper in the future… I think it’s a big loss to the taxpayers to take it off the tax rolls.?
Owen also questioned the validity of the vote and whether three votes were enough to approve the purchase of land. Lapp also had that thought, but contacted the Michigan Township Association, which assured him that it was a good vote.
‘A super majority is not mandated,? said Lapp. ‘The majority of members present constitutes a valid vote and we are moving forward.?
Willett was initially hesitant about have a vote without DeWitt and Stowell present, but ultimately cast her yes vote. She notes that she voted no in the past on Fire Station #3 on Hurd Road.
‘I’m proud of it now and it turned out to be the right thing to do,? notes Willett. ‘We’re growing… (The purchase of this property) is just another step toward progress.?