The Orion Township board moved one step closer to making the proposed public safety complex a reality last week.
The board approved going forward with negotiations on the architectural contract for the complex with French Associates, but the contract will come back to the board before it is signed.
Cost estimates presented by township officials and members of Plante & Moran’s CRESA group (the project manager) showed a new price for the complex that was $1-$2 million higher than originally thought.
Building & Grounds Director Reenae Tulip said the increase was based on a variety of factors at the proposed 11-acre site along Joslyn Road (just south of Orion Oaks Elementary School).
Supervisor Jerry Dywasuk added that the longer the board waits, the higher the cost will likely rise.
CRESA’s estimate of just over $11.6 million included a central fire station, in addition to the sheriff’s department and department of public works.
Tulip said the fire department has ‘other immediate fiscal obligations? and would not be ready to build for a few years, which would trim initial costs to between $8 and $9 million.
Though the board approved going forward in some fashion (Trustee Neal Porter cast the lone dissenting vote), Dywasuk said there is still some unexplained uncertainty among a few board members.
‘It’s almost like people are looking for a way not to do it,? he said. ‘But they’re not offering a solution to our problem.?
The supervisor referenced meetings between full-time township officials and CRESA, which Trustee Matt Gibb inquired about.
‘The board hasn’t been brought any information since January,? Gibb said. ‘I don’t know what’s happened in those meetings, but they clearly haven’t been productive to the financial sustainability of this project. You can’t tell me that in seven months, the cost of construction estimates have gone up $2 million because of what amounts to a few thousand square feet of wetland mitigation on a retaining wall. It makes no sense to me.?
Gibb wasn’t the only one to raise some questions, as members of the public, including Gibb’s opponent for supervisor in November, also spoke up.
‘It was $9.3 million dollars and now it’s gone up to $11 million,? David Hodges said, citing his concerns over the ability to expand at the proposed location. ‘This is a bad investment, at this time, for the township to make.?
‘You’ve already spent over $70,000 to get where you are today, and you’ve got nothing but information to show for it,? he added. ‘I think this township board needs to table this matter.?
Others were curious why the public has not been more involved in the process.
‘The water and sewer fund is not funded by the taxpayers,? JoAnn Van Tassel said. ‘It is a business that is funded by the users of that system and I just wonder if the users of that system are fully aware of what this township board is considering.?
Van Tassel, set to be elected as a township trustee in November, said she’d like to see a public hearing on the matter before any big decisions are made.
‘I think there are some serious questions that need to be asked,? she said. ‘And with this current board in office for another 90 days, I think this is not something that this board should run in to.?
Porter cited the Michigan Townships Association’s Estate Enabling Act, wondering why the township’s planning commission has not been involved in the process.
‘This, to my knowledge, has never gone to the planning commission and that’s what the planning commission is supposed to do,? he said.
Eventually, however, the board followed the urging of Lieutenant Bruce Naile, who said, ‘Please, let’s not start over.?
‘That next board is going to face the same problems that we’ve been trying to solve here for the last year and a half,? Dywasuk added.
After talking with Naile, Dywasuk amended his statement, saying the issue has lingered for eight years.
‘Here’s a project that probably once-in-a-lifetime happens to a community,? Dywasuk said. ‘It’s never going to get any cheaper. There’s no use wasting any more time if we’re not going to go forward.?