Leonard Village President Mike McDonald recently accepted a $5,000 check from ITC, the largest independent electricity transmission company in the country, to be put toward efforts to restore the historic Leonard mill and develop it into a public park.
‘I have to express the village’s thanks to ITC. They’ve been a great corporate partner already,? McDonald said. ‘They’ve supported the mill in the past and this is just a continuation of what I hope (will be a) long-standing relationship with them.?
Luba Sitar, manager of customer relations and community education for ITC, said the company is ‘pleased to be a recreation partner? with the village.
‘It hits all the cylinders that ITC wants to be known for ? corporate responsibility, environmental awareness, historical preservation and (improving the) quality of life of residents in Oakland County and in Addison Township,? Sitar said.
Addison Township Supervisor Bruce Pearson called it a ‘combined effort.?
‘The township and the village are one. Mike has helped with the (Arnold) schoolhouse and we’re helping him now with the mill,? he said. ‘When we get corporate sponsors like this, it just helps this whole community. We’re really, really thankful.?
‘We bring the labor to the table, but we don’t have the funds (to do all these projects),? Pearson added. ‘So, when we get grants like this, it’s just terrific.?
Sitar, along with members of the Oakland County Planning and Development team, got to enjoy a tour of both the Leonard and Lakeville mills, as well as a drive-by tour of the Lakeville Cemetery Auxiliary building and historic Arnold Schoohouse.