UPDATED: Dexter's Cityhood Plans Advance to Next Phase Following Approval from State

After months of wrangling, the state Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs has approved the Village of Dexter's proposed cityhood boundary petition, advancing Dexter's proposal to the next stage.

"I was very happy to hear that our boundary petition has been approved," trustee Paul Cousins said. "We felt we were right, our lawyer though we were right, the State Boundary Commission staff thought we were right and the Attorney General thought we were right. The only ones who were opposed were not basing their decision on facts."

The village's quest for cityhood has been a long and arduous process. In August, the State Boundary Commission ruled Dexter's second petition for cityhood "legally insufficient" due to a land dispute with Webster Township.

At issue was whether a current Public Act 425 annexation and tax revenue-sharing agreement, which includes parcels in Webster Township, can be incorporated into a new city, according to Ann Arbor.com.

In September, village officials requested the State Boundary Commission reconsider its decision, however the commission upheld its ruling, and denied the village’s proposed boundaries, which includes Gordon Hall and in Webster Township. The village appealed that decision with the state department director, who approved the boundary as legally sufficient this week.

"I think there may be some people who are not happy with the decision, but at least now we can move forward in the process to bring cityhood to a vote of the people," Cousins said.

Trustee Jim Carson said with the boundary's approval, the State Boundary Commission will next set a public hearing in Dexter sometime in January to allow residents to voice their opinion.

"The decision from the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs is truly exciting," Carsons said. "It saved the village $10,000 in legal fees and a year's worth of work if we would've gone to court. It puts the opportunity for our residents to have a voice in the process that much closer."

Village President Shawn Keough agreed.

"I am thankful that the state decided to re-evaluate all the information we sent them," Keough said. "I've been vocal about my opinion because I always felt we deserved a better initial review. I'm not sure what factors weighed in their decision to overturn the Boundary Commission's ruling, but I'm glad they took the time to do a review."

Kevin O’Brien, a representative from the State Boundary Commission's Office of Land Survey and Remonumentation, explained that a decision by the commission can be overturned for several reasons.

"If I had to speculate, I would say it was because both the Attorney General and the Boundary Commission staff recommended approval of Dexter's petition," he said.

O'Brien explained that orignally the commission was a Type I body with authority to make decisions on cityhood petitions. That all changed in 1996 when Gov. Engler changed the commission to a Type III recommending body and transfered all authority on decisions to the director of the state Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs. Now the process for applying for cityhood is the same, but all decisions go to the director for final approval.

Assistant Village Manager Courtney Nichols said the public hearing date will be set by the Boundary Commission at their Nov. 17 meeting and will likely be in January.