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ANN
ARBOR CHARTER TOWNSHIP The regular monthly meeting of the Ann Arbor Charter Township Board of Trustees was called to order by Supervisor Moran at 7:30 p.m. at the Township Hall, 3792 Pontiac Trail, Ann Arbor MI 48105. Present: Supervisor Michael Moran, Clerk Catherine Braun, Treasurer Virginia Forshee, Trustees John Allison, Richard Dieterle, Della DiPietro and Gene Ragland . Also present Attorney Sandra Sorini, Attorney Scott Munzel, Engineer Roger Gaugler, Building and Zoning Inspector Gary Dresselhouse, Chief Rick Ericson. Citizen Participation: Zona Scheiner, 4131 Thornoaks spoke about being a neighbor of the 4141 Thornoaks Drive property. She presented board members with a letter from her and Bennet Wolper in reference to conditions of the property, which explained the neglected and dangerous condition of the property. Marcelle Mourou, 4151 Thornoaks also spoke about the serious neglect at 4141 Thornoaks Drive. October 21, 2002 Minutes: Allison moved approval of the October 21, 2002 minutes. Dieterle supported and motion carried. Hearing on Dangerous Building at 4141 Thornoaks: Attorney Scott Munzel, Bodman Longley & Dahling opened the hearing by giving the board members a brief history of the home. Gary Dresselhouse said the owners of 4l41 Thornoaks were first given a notice of violation on February 5, 1987. He stated that there has been no maintenance of any kind since that time, and indicated that the property was becoming more and more overgrown. There are four automobiles parked on the property with trees growing through the bumpers. He presented pictures of the structure which showed the failure to the roof system, and missing and broken doors and windows. He stated that the house is completely full of items brought from other dwellings making the inside of the house impossible to walk through. The exterior of the home is completely overgrown making it impossible to get a fire truck in if necessary to fight a fire. The exterior of building has had no maintenance; there is no electricity to the structure, and no heating source is visible. He stated that it is very unsafe to go inside the structure and that it presents a hazard to children who might go in and play. He reported that the structure is full of animals, and that when he was in the structure five years ago, the upstairs was full of manure from the animals living in the house. Mr.Dresselhouse stated that the structure needs to be torn down for the health and safety of the neighborhood. Jack Donaldson was the hearing officer for the show cause on the property 4141 Thornoaks pursuit to the township ordinance. At the hearing he took testimony from the Building Official and Fire Marshall. Under the ordinance any one of eight conditions could qualify the building as a dangerous building. As indicated in his decision letter, which was sent to the township as well as the homeowner, six of those eight conditions are present in this structure and qualify it as a dangerous building. Following the testimony he issued an order stating that this was a dangerous building under the ordinance and that it should be demolished. The owners were given 30 days to start the work and have it completed another 30 days, but they failed to take any action whatsoever. When he was notified by Mr. Dresselhouse that the owners failed to comply with the order, he sent a letter to the township indicating that they had failed to comply with the decision and order, and requested that the board take the appropriate action as described in the ordinance. Mr. Munzel reviewed the timing involved in the process for the Board. He indicated that Mr. Dresselhouse had prepared his report in April 2002. The Drakes were sent a notice of dangerous building in May 2002. Mr. Donaldson held his hearing on June 25, 2002 after all appropriate notices were filed. The letter of non compliance came from Mr. Donaldson at the end of September. The Drakes were notified of the second hearing in late October. The state statue has been enacted as an ordinance by the township. Mr. Munzel stated that the Township had followed the statute and ordinance and had provided all the appropriate notices and postings. At this time under the state law and ordinance, the Township Board has three options: l) Approve Mr. Donaldson's order, 2) Deny the order, or 3) modify the order in some way. After the Board makes a decision, the state law requires that the owner comply with that decision within 60 days, and if he fails to comply, the township has the authority to go in and undertake the ordered corrective action. The Township can require that the owner reimburse the Township for the expenses of that corrective action, and if owner fails to reimburse those, they can be charged against the property as property tax. If that is not eventually reimbursed to the Township, the property can be foreclosed by the County Treasurer and the money reimbursed to the Township from the sale of the property. If that happened we would not receive the money until approximately the spring of 2004. Dale Newman was requested by the Drakes to read a letter to the board members He explained that he and another had examined the house at the request of the Drakes by walking around the property as well as on the roof, and had taken several pictures which he sent to the Drakes. He does not feel it is a structure problem as much as a roof problem caused from the water damage. He has given the Drake's an estimate of what he and another builder feels it would take to repair the property, that being $50,000.00 to $150,000.00. Despite receiving the photographs and the estimates, The Drakes have not engaged Mr. Newman or engage someone to make any repairs to the property. Asked for clarification of his order after Mr. Newman spoke, Mr. Donaldson stated that his order was to demolish the building and clear the site. He stated that he based this opinion on the information presented to him at the hearing. He noted the complete collapse of the garage and the potential for further collapse of the main structure, the fact that the structure is open to the elements and evidence that water has been leaking into it for an extended period of time. He stated that the building continues to deteriorate because of the water infiltration. He stated that it is also an attractive nuisance, and that there are vehicles that have been there for a length of time sufficient to allow sizable trees to grow up into them. He said that the vehicles and house are filled with all types of debris and discarded household goods. He further stated that there is no evidence that anybody is making any effort to maintain or secure the house. He indicated that in his opinion, due to its lengthy exposure to the weather and elements over the years, the residence is beyond economical repair and should be torn down as a dangerous building. DiPietro moved to approve Mr. Donaldson's report. Allison supported.
DiPietro amended the motion to approve Mr. Donaldson's report and act
on the recommendation to demolish the house within 60 days. Allison modified
his second accordingly. The hearing recommendation is, therefore, approved and the owners are ordered to demolish the property, remove all the debris, and clean up the over grown brush within 60 days.
AZ-5-02: Allison moved approval of the annexation release of 5.42 acres,
1756 Broadway (owner Sue LeClair) to permit redevelopment by Intergroup
Realty for student housing. 09-22-260-001 Area A. Braun supported and
motion carried. Open Space Preservation Community: Dieterle moved approval of the Amendment
to the Zoning Ordinance (Section 11.27) for an Open Space Preservation
Community to permit clustering of units in residential districts outside
of the Open Space Preservation District. DiPietro supported. Planning Commission Appointment: Braun moved approval of the appointment to the Planning Commission of Richard Mitchell, 2420 Blueberry Lane, Ann Arbor Mi 48103 to fill the vacancy and remaining term of Herbert Sloan who resigned effective December 31, 2002. Allison supported and motion carried. Forester report on KLB: Paul Bairley, Consulting Forester provided a report regarding the landscaping of KLB Corporate Center at Plymouth Road and Old Earhart Road. Gary Dresselhouse was asked if the county had made inspection regarding soil erosion. Gary is also asked to notify Mr. Bairley when road realignment and tree removal begins. J & L Report for WCC: Eugene Jaworski, J & L Consulting Services provided a report on Field Inspection, Wetland Mitigation at Washtenaw Community College, Gundar Myran Building and Campus Storm water System. Sheriff Services: A packet of information from Robert E. Guenzel, Washtenaw County Administrator on Police Services. It is anticipated that the Board of Commissioners working group on Police Services will meet with local units in December to share information and hear comments and concerns. Supervisor Moran stated that it might be worth looking at combining the Fire & Safety and Police Services Committees to review the services again. Claims Listing: DiPietro moved approval of the November 1, 2002 claims listing in the amount of $42,032.02 and the November 14, 2002 claims listing in the amount of $308,442.62. Allison supported and motion carried. Fire & Safety: Dieterle reported on the November 6, 2002 Fire and Safety meeting. Chief Ericson reviewed his overtime 2003 report. Planning Commission: John Allison reported on the November 6, 2002 planning
commission meeting. Moran suggested we designate people to attend some of the meetings that
take place during each month. He requested a list from Board Members on
days and evenings of the month that they would be able to attend such
meetings. Public Comments: Don Oswell spoke about development rights and that he also requested that residents be permitted to publish a short rebuttal on township issues in the newsletter. Dieterle moved to adjourn. Ragland supported and motion carried. Meeting adjourned at 9:30 p.m. Catherine A. Braun
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