By Lisa Carolin
Four members of the Lima Township Board met in person for their monthly meeting Monday, May 11, and the first order of business was to choose a trustee to replace Don Laier, a longtime member of the board, who died in April.
David Hensel was nominated and chosen by three of the four board members (Duane Luick against). Hensel will serve the remainder of Laier’s term until Nov. 20, 2020.
According to Lima Township Supervisor Craig Maier, Hensel has lived and worked at Thornton Farms since its inception and has an extensive background.
“We had other folks under consideration, but I did not feel it was proper at this point in time to nominate someone who is currently running for the position,” said Maier. “I thought that would show undue favoritism, and I wanted to get someone neutral to occupy the position for the six months remaining in Don’s term.”
Maier says that there are about 800 registered voters living in Thornton Farms, and several board members agreed the subdivision should have representation.
Hensel has time to decide if he wants to run as an independent.
In other action, Lima Township Board members approved a dust control contract with the Washtenaw County Road Commission.
Maier says the board had considerable discussion regarding the Trinkle Road hill project, for which the board received an engineer’s estimate and preliminary blueprints.
“It’s extremely hazardous there and a very extensive and expensive project,” said Maier, describing the area as offering “limited sight distance.”
“We have heard rumblings that we may not receive all of our state shared funding for this year, so we’re not sure what our budget is,” he said.
Maier says the Trinkle Road hill project involves cutting the hill down approximately four feet, blending back the affected driveways, and removing more than 30 trees.
