(Chelsea Update would like to thank Mary Jane and Tim Eder for the information in this guest column.)
It is beautiful on the lakes and in the natural areas that surround Chelsea. The spring peepers are out, and the geese, swans and sandhill cranes have migrated back after a very long and cold winter.
We are so fortunate to be able to witness this in Lyndon Township and around Chelsea, the gateway to the Waterloo and Pinckney Recreation areas. May is finally here, and if the McCoig Materials’ Special Land Use Permit had been approved as they requested, the excavation of Stofer Hill to create a sand and gravel mine would have begun.
Luckily, hundreds of citizens have signed petitions, written letters and attended public meetings. No gravel haulers are rumbling down Main Street.
But the threat is not over. There are two main decision makers at this stage of the process: the Lyndon Township Planning Commission and the State of Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ).
Lyndon Township is responsible for reviewing the request for a Special Land Use permit. The Michigan DEQ is responsible for determining whether to grant a wetlands permit.
Both of the decision makers will hold public meetings. We encourage concerned citizens to attend these meetings and make their presence felt.
On Monday, May 19, at 6 p.m., a public meeting will be held at the Washington Street Education Center Auditorium, 500 E. Washington St. in Chelsea. The meeting will be a question-and-answer format between the Lyndon Township Planning Commission and representatives of applicant McCoig Materials, Inc.
Statements from the public are not encouraged, so the Planning Commission has time to ask questions of McCoig representatives. This will give the public a unique opportunity to hear what McCoig says about the proposed mine’s impact on health, property values, water contamination, traffic dangers and environmental destruction.
The Michigan DEQ is the second decision maker and will also hold a public hearing, but no date has been set. McCoig Materials’ DEQ application is still not complete and its deadline has been extended twice by the DEQ.
At press time, the application is due May 26. If citizens write to the Michigan DEQ, they will be notified prior to the public hearing once the date is set.
Here’s a list of upcoming dates:
- May 12, 5 p.m.: Deadline for McCoig to answer written questions received from Lyndon Township Planning Commission
- May 19, 6 p.m.: Lyndon Township Planning Commission meeting on the McCoig Special Land Use Request, Washington Street Education Center Auditorium (attendance encouraged, but public statements discouraged)
- June 12, noon: Deadline for public written submissions (expert reports, studies and comments)
The Lyndon Township Planning Commission has said on the township’s website there is no “scheduled” vote date. Only when the commissioners are comfortable with the information received from their professional team, McCoig and input from the public will a vote take place.
So the work is not done.
The more letters and emails sent to the Planning Commission and the Michigan DEQ, the more evidence is compiled into the public record.
We hope the Planning Commission and the DEQ will deny the requests. Once they make their decisions, lawsuits could be filed. In that case, an extensive public record will be required for the courts to deny the mine.
To have your voice heard, please write:
Lyndon Township Planning Commission, 17751 N. Territorial Road Chelsea, MI 48118, Email: [email protected]
Michigan DEQ, Helana Nelson, Water Resources Division 301 E. Louis Glick Highway Jackson, MI 49201, Email: [email protected], (focus on impacts to wetlands, inland lakes and streams)
Tim and Mary Jane Eder, Members Friends of Chelsea and Lyndon Township, click here.
