Board Tables Dam Request, Approves Country Creek Commons Amendments

The Oakland Township Board of Trustees voted 5-1 Tuesday evening to adopt .

With the passage of the amendment, the shopping complex at Adams and Silverbell roads can now hold special events, house a veterinary clinic and grooming center and construct a 6-foot by 7-foot LED sign on the northwest corner of the intersection in front of the clock tower.

The lone dissenter was trustee Michael Bailey who, during discussion preceding the vote, noted that he dislikes electronic signs.

"I think they’re ugly, they’re distracting, they’re not very effective," he said. "It’s a fact that they cause traffic accidents because of drivers looking at those signs trying to read them. ... I don’t like it.”

"We obviously struggled with (the amendment)," Trustee Marc Edwards said. "We regulated that sign to the point that ... it would be dimmed at night."

He added, "The only thing they are allowed to list is the name of the business."

"If this is a benefit to the shopping center, then I agree to it," Trustee Kathrine Thomas said.

Board tables dam access request

The board also voted 5-1 to table the request to approve an access agreement with the Clinton River Watershed Council for the .

The decision to table the vote came after a lengthy debate between those opposed to the removal of the dam and the Clinton River Watershed Council, which, citing ecological restoration and habitat restoration, seeks to use a $700,000 grant from the Environmental Protection Agency to remove the dam at no cost to the township.

For five trustees, the debate left lingering questions about the issue of the township’s liability if the current dam fails. It also raised new questions of whether the council could keep its original promise to maintain the current flow of water into the millrace once the dam is removed.

The latter issue proved to be a contentious one as several residents voiced their opposition to the proposed installation of a pipe that measures eighteen inches in diameter and is much smaller than the two 32-inch pipes currently on the dam site.

Council defends dam removal

Ann Varaa, executive director of the Clinton River Watershed Council, reiterated to the board of trustees that they had provided all the information that was requested of them a year ago, including a letter from the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) stating that the removal of the dam wouldn’t have an adverse impact.

Vaara went on to explain that the council and its team of consultants had put a lot of thought and time into the project and have continually monitored the dam for the past year.

Members of the council’s consulting team from Hubble, Roth and Clarke addressed concerns over the width of the new pipe. Residents and a few trustees wondered how a smaller pipe could maintain the flow of water at its current rate – something the council had promised the township last January.

The council responded, saying the issue was not the size of the pipe, but rather the amount of sediment at the bottom of the millrace, which was, in fact, obstructing all water flow – a rather new issue that came as a surprise to many in the audience.

"If the dam is removed and everything goes through as planned,” Trustee Kathrine Thomas said, "and the millrace just ends up drying up ... at whose expense does this fall on to correct that situation?”

In her response, Vaara said she wanted to address the millrace and noted that it hadn’t been maintained in more than fifty years.

"This isn’t a historical issue anymore," she said. "SHPO issued its approval and allowed us to move forward. Now the issue is sediment."

Vaara then suggested that the township could seek grants to fund the dredging of the millrace – a process not included in the $700,000 grant the council received from the Environmental Protection Agency to remove the dam.

Cleaning out the sediment in the millrace, noted Vaara, would maintain the current flow of water into the millrace after the new pipe is installed.

Residents concerned about millrace

The millrace is at the heart of the opposition to the removal of the Paint Creek dam, as opponents of its removal continually cite – both during and outside of meetings – the millrace’s historic origins and the quality of life it provides for property owners and the township at large.

In addressing concerns over the historic preservation of the millrace, Gene Hopkins, the council’s historic preservation expert, reiterated that the millrace may be eligible for the national register of historic places, but because the water in the millrace isn’t currently at its original level, the dam is actually creating an adverse effect on the historic resource.

"Because of the work going on and the build-up in the millrace,” explained Hopkins, "it makes sense to leverage the work that is being done with grant money and with SHPO’s support ... to dredge the millrace back down to its original level, and SHPO strongly supports us pursuing that.”

Trustee Marc Edwards, however, is greatly concerned with any liability to the township if the dam fails.

"This is a once-in-a-lifetime gift," he said. "We have unlimited liability with this dam. If it fails, the township is liable, the taxpayers are liable ... it could run into the millions if we had a big storm. We need to get this done. We need to approve this."

John Staran, an attorney hired by several residents to represent their concerns over the removal of the dam, called the issue of future liability "a red herring" and explained any liability would depend on the circumstances.

"Historical evidence suggests that there has been a dam at this location for upwards of 175 years," he said. "If liability was truly a primary concern, I would hope that some lesser alternatives such as reinforcing the dam would be considered rather than ripping it out."

Township resident Judith Spitz told the board that she and her husband were opposed to the removal of the dam not only for historic preservation reasons, but because it would have an adverse environmental effect on township residents.

“The result will be an intermittent water flow (into the millrace),” leading to standing water which may increase residents’ exposure to malaria and the West Nile Virus, Spitz said.

Spitz also wondered if the agreement the Board of Trustees was considering mentioned anything about who will fix the road that provides access to the dam site.

"There’s nothing in writing about the road," she said.

A representative from Hubble, Roth and Clarke said they plan to restore the access road, stating, "We have allocated funding to have a contractor restore (the road) to its existing condition."

The board did not vote on the issue itself, but instead voted to table it for now.

Other meeting highlights:

• Rama Emmons presented the audited financial report saying that
  the township had "hit a home run," as they managed to pay off a large sum of debt which was a direct savings to township residents of over $900,000. Emmons also commented on the grants the township has received, noting that grants "bring in
  a large sum of money each year," but called downsizing the debt the "most significant thing in the audit."
• The board of trustees voted unanimously to approve a resolution
  supporting the Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund Grant that will allow for the development of a pedestrian connector to the Paint Creek Trail.
• Barb Wolak and Roger Schulze were reappointed to three-year
  terms on the Planning Commission, while Chuck Beach was reappointed to a three-year term on the Zoning Board of Appeals and Jim Foulkrod was reappointed as the Planning Commission representative to the Zoning Board of Appeals.
• The Board of Trustees approved a request for funding the
  township portion of Rochester Area Youth Assistance.
• The board of trustees approved a millage levy.