Oxford Township officials are considering allocating $125,000 for the engineering and design of a new safety path that would run along the south side of Seymour Lake Rd. between Dunlap and Baldwin roads.
The proposed path tops the municipality’s new safety path master plan priority list (see right), approved last week by the township board in a 7-0 vote.
But first, township officials want to examine their finances before committing such a hefty sum from their contingency money to the safety path fund.
They’re expected to discuss the topic at their 7 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 13 meeting.
‘Yes, I support it, but we need to know we’re not (shortchanging) our liabilities later on,? said Trustee Jack Curtis, who serves on the safety path committee.
‘What I would like to do is next month, put all the money on the table, have a spreadsheet (showing available funds and upcoming expenses),? said Supervisor Bill Dunn. ‘We have some big bills coming up.?
One of those ‘big bills? is the proposed extension of a water main to connect the Lake Villa Manufactured Home Community to the township system (see story on Page 2).
‘We’ve only got so much money,? Dunn said. ‘I’m not going to spend any money until I see what I’ve got and what I’ve got going out.?
Based on a list of estimates submitted by township engineer Jim Sharpe, president of Sharpe Engineering, the cost to construct the 9,375-foot path would be $1.438 million.
In conjunction with the proposed safety path, officials are considering extending a 16-inch-diameter water main along part of this route. This main would be 3,725 feet long. It would cost an estimated $52,150 to design and $745,000 to construct. The new pipe would begin at the Sandy Shores subdivision, extend north along Sanders Rd., then head east along Seymour Lake Rd. and connect to an existing main at Brookfield Drive.
Once bidding and permitting fees are factored in as well as construction management fees, the total estimated cost for the new path and water main extension is $2.61 million, according to Sharpe’s figures.
Some officials are hoping to make this safety path project ‘shovel-ready,? meaning all the planning and engineering is done in advance, so construction can begin within a relatively short time once a funding source is obtained.
‘There’s possibilities (that) if we’re shovel-ready, grant monies may become available,? Curtis said. ‘The last time we were shovel-ready, we got ($447,968) from the federal government (in 2009) and we built the (West) Drahner (Road) safety path.?
There are currently grants available through the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR) for the Iron Bell Trail, portions of which are under development. The trail consists of two distinct routes ? a 791-mile bicycle route and a 1,273-mile hiking route ? that stretch from Belle Isle Park in Detroit to Ironwood in the western Upper Peninsula.
The Iron Trail’s bicycle route runs through Oxford Township. It utilizes part of the existing Polly Ann Trail, but the map on the DNR website shows the need to develop a 3.91-mile segment through Oxford and Brandon townships to connect the Polly Ann Trail to Ortonville.
Treasurer Joe Ferrari, who chairs the safety path committee, has suggested to the DNR that the proposed Seymour Lake Rd. path could serve as part of the needed connector to Ortonville.

Proposed new safety paths in Oxford Twp.

n South side of Seymour Lake Rd. from Dunlap to Baldwin Rd. (9,375 feet)
n East and west sides of Lapeer Rd. (M-24) from the Oxford Village limits to Drahner Rd. (6,200 feet).
n South side of Lakeville Rd. from Chinkapin Rill to Barr Rd. (1,500 feet).
n The old railroad right-of-way from E. Drahner Rd. to Indian Lake Rd. (3,800 feet).
n West side of Lapeer Rd. (M-24) from Market St. to Stony Lake Park (3,500 feet).
n South and west sides of Ray and Oxford roads from Lapeer Rd. (M-24) to Oxford Rd. (5,500 feet).
n East side of Dunlap Rd. from the ITC corridor to Market St. (3,500 feet).
n East side of Sanders Rd. from Seymour Lake Rd. to Squaw Lagoon Drive (2,400 feet).
n East side of Sanders Rd. from Squaw Lagoon Drive to W. Drahner Rd. (3,000 feet).
n North side of E. Drahner Rd. from Oxford Lake Drive to Barr Rd. (8,400 feet).