Suit could block dredging

Thursday, September 15, 2005 JEREMIAH STETTLER THE SAGINAW NEWS

Saginaw County has come up against a lawsuit that could sink its plans to build a dump site for dredge spoils in Frankenlust and Zilwaukee townships.

With less than a month before the county's funding expires, Bay County's Frankenlust Township has taken legal action to stop construction.

If successful, the suit could stall a commercial dredging project and potentially threaten businesses and 280 jobs tied directly to the upper Saginaw River, as well as about $388,000 in annual property tax revenue from companies along the waterway, officials say.

Saginaw County Public Works Commissioner James A. Koski said the complaint comes at a precarious time for the project. Unless the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers can award a contract this month, officials could miss out on about $2 million in federal funding linked to construction of the dump site.

The county must use the money by the end of the federal fiscal year, Friday, Sept. 30.

"If those funds aren't used, the whole thing could be in jeopardy," Koski said.

The $5 million project, to acquire the land and build the facility, is funded by federal, state, county and private sources.

Frankenlust Township officials requested an injunction in Bay County Circuit Court on Monday to stop Saginaw County from building a disposal site for dredge spoils in their community. They say the township's zoning laws prohibit it.

"The proposed use is neither permitted or allowed," said James Hammond, an attorney representing the township.

"(Saginaw County) has to comply with local land use regulations, which they haven't done. Until they do, they shouldn't be able to turn one spade full of soil."

"You don't put a landfill in a wetland," said Supervisor Hilda Dijak.

If Saginaw County officials want to build, Dijak said they will have to apply for a special use permit or a zoning change, just like everyone else.

"If we expect other people to abide by the zoning ordinance, then we have to have the same rules for everyone," she said.

The supervisor says she sent a letter to Koski a year ago about the zoning and the steps he must take to build a disposal facility. She said the public works commissioner confirmed that he had received the letter but never requested a hearing to have the zoning changed.

"If she sent a letter, I don't recall it," Koski said. "I certainly would have addressed it."

Dijak said the township's attorney has both letters. She declined to provide The Saginaw News with copies, saying they were not readily available.

Until now, Koski said he was unaware of any potential conflicts with zoning. In four separate appraisals, he said the land was listed as an agricultural zone.

The public works commissioner and township officials were to meet at 9 a.m. today to discuss their differences on the project. Koski said the stakes are high.

"If the funding goes away and the site goes away, then we can't dredge the river," he said. "What happens if we can't dredge? The river shuts down." v

Jeremiah Stettler is a staff writer at the Saginaw News. You may reach him at 776-9685.
 

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