Township Approves Funds to Complete Demolition of Asbestos-Filled Powerhouse

The Northville Township Board of Trustees approved using money from it’s general fund to have asbestos removed by hand from the former psychiatric hospital’s powerhouse.

Last week, the Board of Trustees approved the spending of an additional $288,000 from the general fund, according to the Observer & Eccentric, so the structure could be safely demolished.

During the State of the Community address in April, Township Supervisor Robert Nix told the audience that an additional $350,000 to $400,000 had been added to the cost of the demolition when asbestos was found on the property.

The demolition project is in part funded by a grant, but Nix said the township plans to use the revenue acquired by the REIS development on the property -- the University of Michigan medical center and planned retail center -- to fund the demolition.

According to the Observer and Eccentric, Nix said the township had an obligation to complete the demolition if they wanted to quality for future grants that would help with the cleanup of the remaining buildings on the former hospital property and complying with the brownfield cleanup plan was “crucial.”