Township Supervisor Says Northville is a Destination

The township has a positive fund balance, Northville Township Supervisor Robert Nix said to applause from his fellow township trustees at the annual State of the Community Luncheon Wednesday.

"We're here because of a lot of dedicated work by our predecessors," he said at the luncheon at Meadowbrook Country Club.

He said the board members of 2007 cut costs and did everything they could to ensure the township had a future. The community is growing and the township is developing into a place where people want to live, he said.

"We're realizing the fruits of that right now," he said.

One of the accomplishments of the past year for the township was acquiring $1.1 million in federal grants, he said. The township has a designated grant subcommittee that works to secure these funds and allocate them properly.

As far as progress, Nix said the vacant prison on Five Mile and Beck roads will be demolished at no cost to the township. This is because the township is giving Adamo Group, the contractor, the salvage value of the property, he said.

He said the demolition should be complete in November and the property will be used for developing the Five Mile corridor.

Read more about the vacant prison here.

The other property facing demolition is the former psychiatric hospital on Seven Mile Road. Nix said it will cost $9 to $15 million to take down all of those buildings.

There were also $350,000 to $400,000 added to the cost of the demolition when asbestos was found on the property, he said.

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.

Read more about the Seven Mile Road property here.

How do you think Northville Township is doing? Tell us in the comments.