Board to Revisit Controversial Shelby Woods North Consent Judgment

Shelby residents will get an update tonight on the status of a consent judgment that was approved last year to allow a developer to convert some condominiums at Shelby Woods North site on 22 Mile Road into apartments.

Shelby Township Attorney Rob Huth is expected to give residents the update Tuesday at the Shelby Township Board of Trustees meeting.

The controversial consent judgment was approved during a July 28, 2010 work session when the developer, Joe Caradonna, told the board he had 30 days from July 14, 2010 to save the site before he went into bankruptcy and the bank note was sold to the highest bidder.

According to meeting minutes, Caradonna told the board that a homeowner who paid $200,000 for the condo would much rather have a developer who is interested in the site own the property. He said at that meeting he had roots in Shelby and wanted to see the site be successful, moreso than an unknown person who could buy the site from and liquidate the units for $50,000.

Caradonna said the FHA denied the site a loan because the noise level of the condos closest to the freeway did not pass the FHA's sound barrier requirements.

"Because of the urgency of this and the fact that there was no board meeting Aug. 3, the board decided to make a motion and vote on it," said Clerk Terri Kowal. So it passed, even though several board members had questions and issues with changing a consent judgment without notifying the public.

During the work session, Kowal said the proper course of action to change land use would be to publish it twice in the newspaper, post a sign notifying the homeowners, and hold public hearings at both the planning commission and board levels.

Treasurer Paul Viar asked, "if Mr. Caradonna builds rental units along the freeway as proposed, how many of those 28 or 30 people living there will know the difference?” according to the minutes.

After an extensive debate between the board and Caradonna, a motion proposed by Trustee Paula Filar and supported by Trustee Michael Flynn was approved by a 4-3 vote.

Board members voting against the consent judgment were trustees Lisa Manzella and Doug Wozniak and Kowal.

“The whole thing seemed like it was to bail out the builder and there is no reason to, we don’t bail out builders,” Kowal told Patch.

Caradonna eventually filed for bankruptcy, and brought in builder William Scalabrino with Hometown Building LLC to develop the rest of the condo units and get the apartments up and running. However, no new apartments have been developed yet.

The township will give residents an update on the situation because it has been a source of turmoil and contention for more than a year, and the consent judgment still not been signed by either party: the city or the developers.

Consent Judgment Vote Spurs Recall Efforts; Angry Condo Owners

Fueled by anger over the consent judgment vote, Shelby Woods Condo owner Tom Delise filed dozens of against Shelby Township Supervisor Rick Stathakis, Viar, trustees Filar and Flynn, citing their yes votes to rezone a parcel of land on 24 Mile Road.  Delise said that although the language he used to get the recall petitions approved by the Macomb County Elections Commission was for the rezoning of 24 Mile and Schoenherr roads, he was upset by the Shelby Woods North consent judgment.

After Delise failed to collect enough signatures to put the , he launched another round of recalls, this time he is also pushing to collect signatures to recall Flynn.

Delise and other residents have been very vocal about how upset they are that the consent judgment has now devalued their condos. They also claim the condo complex has not been well maintained—as was promised by the developers during the work session.

“What started out as a quite peaceful, nice condo has turned into an absolute nightmare,” said condo owner Pikora.  “From the time I purchased it, to the bank going under, to the builder filing bankruptcy, to the consent judgment ..., all the headaches from the repairs—I will never buy a condo again.”

Pikora said he purchased his condo in 2010 for about $140,000, and now it’s valued at $80,000.

Delise said he and many neighbors are looking for an out.

“If I had a chance to get out, I will leave Shelby Township only to return at election time to help boot these criminals, and when they’re out, I will never step foot in Shelby again,” said Delise.

Manzella told Patch that she is sad to hear the condo owners are so desperate that they want to completely move out of the city.

Kowal said that she hopes by putting an update on the consent judgment on the Board’s agenda she can help the residents get a resolution.

“The whole thing has to be straightened out. Maybe we can come together and work something out,” said Kowal.