The process could take several years, the EPA told local officials this week in written answers to questions, describing the many steps involved in getting to a cleanup. • Darnell Thompson, 55, Elizabethtown, fourth- degree assault with minor injury. As it stands now, both options are simultaneously being pursued and the parties are due back in court this month, while local officials are still waiting to hear if Gov. Note to readers: if you purchase something through one of our affiliate links we may earn a commission. Local officials from multiple jurisdictions are planning to have a joint meeting soon to discuss next steps. “The new information addresses many of our outstanding questions, especially the (dual) paths with the court case continuing while the EPA conducts the determination phase,” Griswold said. After the feasibility study is complete, the EPA says it would select a remedy and issue a record of decision, and it could incorporate appropriate requirements of the state consent judgment into the Superfund cleanup remedy. âTo think about housing along that transit corridor and to include this piece of property in that conversation, I think is really exciting.â. The EPA already has completed some steps necessary for potentially placing the plume on the National Priorities List. Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. The current Detroit courthouse is a classic example of 1934 Art Deco and Art Moderne architecture with domed ceilings, intricate hand-painting, marble flooring, and historic bronze accents. In the meantime, it’s in the interest of all parties that the state and polluter work together to monitor and control the pollution consistent with state requirements, the EPA wrote. “NPL listing determinations are made by EPA after taking into account comments and input from all appropriate stakeholders.”, Ann Arbor-area officials still waiting to hear if Whitmer will support Superfund cleanup. Former City Council Member Anne Bannister has been one of the leading proponents of saving the tree-filled site, saying it includes trees dating back to pre-settlement Ann Arbor, representing a native forest fragment, and should be considered the cityâs highest priority for protection. 14A-1 District Court 4133 Washtenaw Avenue Ann Arbor, MI 48108 Phone: 734-973-4545 Probation: 734-973-4883 14A-2 District Court 415 W Michigan Avenue Ypsilanti, MI 48197 Phone: 734-484-6690 Probation: 734-484-6695 There is no formal agreement yet, but Weber is in support of the idea, according to Thrive. âItâs really imperative that we get some more information here,â she said, adding she wants to get a full understanding of the pros and cons and tradeoffs. Council Member Ali Ramlawi, D-5th Ward, raised concerns the resolution specifically mentioned Thrive Collaborative as a developer in talks with the property owner. He won support for striking reference to Thrive in the resolution, arguing the city should be open to any developer who can achieve the cityâs goals for the site. “EPA will not generally proceed with listing a site on the NPL absent a formal state request,” the EPA wrote. Subscribe now. Rick Snyder didn’t support it going forward. âI fully support the notion of this,â said Council Member Jeff Hayner, D-1st Ward. Feldkamp A., Josephine Saline, MI Josephine Ann Feldkamp, age 86, passed away on Monday, March 1, 2021 under the care of Arbor Hospice at Ashley Court in Brighton. Ann Arbor banned Airbnb houses in neighborhoods. Coalition for Action on Remediation of Dioxane. All rights reserved (About Us). If at any time the EPA finds it necessary to implement emergency measures to address an imminent and substantial danger, that option is available, too, the EPA said. âBy focusing on what we need to do and what we must do, then we can turn our attention to ask the very simple question: How do we collaborate to make it possible?â. Peters Building Co. is no longer interested in developing the site and Weber is now open to alternative ideas, according to city officials and Thrive Collaborative. Ann Arbor resident Matt Grocoff, Thrive Collaborative principal, thanked Radina, Grand and Griswold for their leadership on the resolution. Another preliminary assessment is not needed if the EPA decides to pursue listing the Gelman plume, though it would take about three additional years to go through the listing process, the EPA estimates, noting there is no guarantee the plume would make the list and the listing could be challenged in court, for example, if Gelman opposes it. In order to make that happen, there would need to be changes to a January 2020 consent judgment settlement in Washtenaw County Circuit Court between the city, property owner Robert Weber and developer Peters Building Co. “Even if EPA pursues listing the site on the NPL, EPA will not require that the state court litigation be ended, or the terms of a consent judgment to be changed.”. Grand, D-3rd Ward, said she didnât support spending millions of dollars from the cityâs parkland acquisition funds to purchase the site in the past, but she sees this as a different opportunity now. Ann Arbor and Washtenaw County officials also didn’t support the Superfund petition at the time. © 2021 Advance Local Media LLC. ANN ARBOR, MI — Local officials have been asking questions and now they have more answers. “EPA is not a party to this action and cannot dictate its terms,” the EPA wrote. âAt Thrive Collaborative, weâve got a very different approach to development,â Grocoff told council. Ann Arbor Times covers local and county policy decisions that impact businesses, schools, and residents of Washtenaw County. âItâs an interesting idea,â he said. • Donald Spalding, 30, Ann Arbor, Michigan, probation violation for felony offense. Dioxane is classified by the EPA as likely to be carcinogenic to humans by all routes of exposure. Gretchen Whitmer will support petitioning the EPA for a Superfund cleanup. The previously agreed-upon deal, stemming from a lawsuit over the cityâs rejection of subdivision plans, stipulates a subdivision of 51 homes can be built, including 25 single-family lots and 26 attached units in four buildings. âTo avoid the catastrophic consequences of climate change and to create the sustainable development solutions that we need, rather than focusing on what is politically possible, we need to focus on what is technically necessary,â Grocoff said. Should Ann Arbor cut $30M police budget to fund mental health crisis responders? Potential vapor intrusion into homes is another concern, since there’s dioxane in shallow groundwater in parts of Ann Arbor’s west side. EPA answers lingering questions about possible Superfund cleanup in Ann Arbor. Thrive representatives say theyâve been in talks with Weber for months about their proposed development and options for purchasing the land. How to Get Criminal Records, Public Records, Court, and Background Checks for Free It is entirely possible to get a full background report for free. Now theyâre in legal limbo. ANN ARBOR, MI — Ann Arbor is entering negotiations with the owner of an eight-acre site filled with hundreds of trees to see if there’s potential to avoid a subdivision development. ANN ARBOR, MI — Local officials have been asking questions and now they have more answers. Council Members Travis Radina, Julie Grand and Kathy Griswold co-sponsored the resolution to empower city staff to enter negotiations with the property owner and a developer of the property ownerâs choosing. Washtenaw County Trial Court 101 E Huron Street, PO Box 8645 Ann Arbor, MI 48107-8645 Phone: 734-222-3270 Contact Court Administrator That would preserve 54% of the site as open space, preserving 62 woodland trees and 13 landmark trees. ANN ARBOR, MI â Ann Arbor is entering negotiations with the owner of an eight-acre site filled with hundreds of trees to see if thereâs potential to avoid a subdivision development. âI just want to thank all of the neighbors and residents who have reached out to us, who have asked great questions, who have shown a willingness to think differently and to potentially embrace some different kinds of housing, which I think is terrific,â she said. After looking into it, staff will be able to say whether thereâs potential to make a deal or if itâs a bust, said Derek Delacourt, community services administrator. Any opportunity to look at a new type of development that preserves open space and meets many community goals is important, Hayner said, noting he took a virtual tour of the site, seeing the opportunity for park pathways. Subscribe now. All rights reserved (About Us). The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. Council members want enough information to determine whether further consideration of an alternative development is in the cityâs best interests. “Though the site was determined eligible for further evaluation as an NPL site, at that time Michigan requested to continue addressing the Gelman contamination under its state enforcement authority,” the EPA wrote. Judge finds some of polluter’s arguments in Ann Arbor dioxane case ‘significantly valid’. In response to a 2016 petition from local township officials and the Sierra Club, the EPA worked with the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy to conduct a preliminary assessment that determined the plume was eligible for further consideration, but then-Gov. “The timeline for design and cleanup work at an NPL site is also highly variable, taking from a few years to several decades. Gelman, as it has for many years, is continuing to do some pump-and-treat remediation, though local officials argue it’s not enough. The Canopy, 5-story development proposed in Ann Arbor. The 15th Judicial District Court is located in downtown Ann Arbor in the Ann Arbor Justice Center. It also can cause kidney and liver damage, and respiratory problems. The resolution council approved directs the city administrator and city attorney â and the cityâs Park Advisory Commission if parkland acquisition funds are considered â to do a preliminary evaluation of the feasibility of an alternative development after receiving such a proposal, and then recommend next steps to council. The EPA is not taking a position in the court case, nor has it taken a position on consent judgment terms. “At this time, EPA is not familiar enough with data that has been collected at the Gelman site to determine if it would contribute to efficiencies in our process to evaluate and address site contamination under the Superfund NPL process,” the EPA wrote. This week’s meeting of the Coalition for Action on Remediation of Dioxane was attended by dozens of people, including U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell and representatives from EGLE and the state attorney general’s office, said City Council Member Kathy Griswold, D-2nd Ward, noting Dingell revealed the EPA’s new information about the Superfund process. As for whether the litigation needs to conclude before the Superfund process can go forward, the EPA says no. Treated water with lower levels of dioxane is then discharged to Honey Creek, which flows to the Huron River upstream of Barton Pond, Ann Arbor's main municipal water supply. © 2021 Advance Local Media LLC. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has offered more clarity about what it … City Administrator Tom Crawford said staff could come back to council with an update on negotiations with the property owner and whatever developer he chooses within 90 days. Gelman Sciences is removing water from the ground using extraction wells and then treating it to remove dioxane. In Michigan, the state district courts are limited jurisdiction courts which handle traffic violations , civil cases with claims under $25,000, landlord-tenant matters, and misdemeanor crimes. Local officials from multiple jurisdictions in Washtenaw County have been trying to figure out the best course of action for addressing the Gelman plume, whether that means seeking a more aggressive cleanup strategy overseen by the state through litigation in court, or turning to the EPA. On May 23, 1953 in Saline, Jo married Lloyd 'Shorty' Feldkamp. COVID-19: Vaccine news and outbreak updates. Registration on or use of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your California Privacy Rights (each updated 1/1/21). “The timeline for these negotiations is variable, but generally it takes several months to a year,” the EPA wrote, adding the studies could then take a few years to several years or longer. The city has not yet formally received a request to amend the consent judgment, officials said. Note to readers: if you purchase something through one of our affiliate links we may earn a commission. The next step would be the negotiation of a federal consent decree for completion of a Superfund cleanup with the polluter implementing the selected remedy. The court is presided over by three judges; the Honorable Joseph F. Burke, the Honorable Miriam A. Perry and the Honorable Karen Quinlan Valvo, as well as one … Ann Arbor banned Airbnb houses in neighborhoods. Weber has not responded to requests for comment, nor has Peters Building Co. Only the back part of the site thatâs degraded and overgrown with buckthorn would be developed, leaving over five acres of heritage and landmark oak, walnut and hickory trees to be preserved, Grocoff said. Ann Arbor also has a local state district court (15th District Court), which serves only the City of Ann Arbor. Even though the cityâs staff said thatâs the only developer the property owner is working with at this point, Ramlawi was concerned about Thrive having âan inside track.â. Enough of the planet has been developed and there are plenty of developed areas to add more housing density, he said, also calling for ecological restoration. âWe use the frameworks of the Living Building Challenge and the Living Community Challenge and really a three-fold approach to development that I would like to see frankly become law.â. “As such, Michigan reports to EPA annually on the progress of its Gelman cleanup efforts.”. Ann Arbor hopes to end housing discrimination against people with criminal records, COVID-friendly outdoor classroom earns Saline student Eagle Scout rank. About 14A District Court. Oral arguments in the legal case are set for March 22 before Washtenaw County Circuit Court Judge Tim Connors. Grocoff hopes a collaboration can result in a development that is socially just, culturally rich and ecologically restorative. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. The EPA is not a party to the consent judgement between the state and polluter that governs how the miles-long plume is managed, nor has the EPA been part of the legal negotiations over the last several years that fell short of achieving a new cleanup plan. Grand said this is possibly one of the most complex sites sheâs ever encountered while on council. Ann Arbor hopes to end housing discrimination against people with criminal records, Ann Arbor City Council approves sidewalk snow removal study. First, he said, that includes not building on previously undeveloped land. Now they’re in legal limbo. Rising dioxane levels west of downtown Ann Arbor spark concerns. COVID-19: Vaccine news and outbreak updates. Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. Local officials are most concerned about the plume potentially poisoning Ann Arbor’s main drinking water supply from Barton Pond, as well as township residents with well water. Should Ann Arbor cut $30M police budget to fund mental health crisis responders? Officials are interested in a new proposal from Thrive Collaborative, which has approached the property owner about purchasing a portion of the site to do a five-story sustainable housing development called The Canopy, while the city could acquire and preserve the surrounding forested area. The 14A District Court, which covers all of Washtenaw County with the exception of the City of Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti Township, is now offering online plea for certain misdemeanor cases and online warrant resolution, in addition to traffic ticket review. The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan has jurisdiction over federal cases, criminal and civil, in Michigan’s eastern Lower Peninsula. If the plume makes the list, the EPA would become the lead enforcement agency and negotiate to have Gelman conduct an investigation to study the extent of the contamination, as well as a feasibility study evaluating remediation options. Registration on or use of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your California Privacy Rights (each updated 1/1/21). At more complex sites, such as Gelman, EPA can evaluate segments of the contamination to identify and implement interim cleanup actions early in the process, followed by additional interim action(s), and a final cleanup action.”. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has offered more clarity about what it could take to get the Gelman dioxane plume on the National Priorities List and positioned for a federal Superfund cleanup under the EPA’s watch.