At the Aug. 26 City Council meeting, Southfield residents took to the podium during the public hearing and expressed that they did not want a third gas station on the corner of 12 Mile and Evergreen roads.
Residents speak out against gas station proposal for old bank at 12 Mile and Evergreen
BY
KATHRYN PENTIUK
kpentiuk@candgnews.com
SOUTHFIELD — A grocery store gas station could be the newest feature of 12 Mile and Evergreen. The Southfield City Council held a public hear-
ing Aug. 26 for Kroger Co. of Michigan’s request to conditionally rezone the parcel at 19991 W. 12 Mile Road from B-2 Planned Business to B-3 General Business to construct and build a Kroger gas station at the former Bank of America building with a 198-foot ki-
See GAS STATION on page 10A
Kinship Care Coalition to host symposium
Group supports grandparents and other family raising children on behalf of a relative
BY KATHRYN PENTIUK kpentiuk@candgnews.com
SOUTHFIELD — The Michigan Kinship Care Coalition will host its third annual Kinship Care Symposium virtually 9:30 a.m.-2 p.m. Sept. 20.
The coalition is a statewide group started by the Michigan State University School of Social Work and is comprised of Oakland Livingston Human Service Agency, The Guidance Center, Fostering Forward Michigan, Michigan’s Children and the National Association of Social Workers Michigan Chapter. The coalition aims to provide resources and support for grandparents raising grandchildren or relatives who are raising the children of their relative.
Photo by Patricia O’Blenes
Photo provided by Lisa Grodsky
Regina Cobb, left, of Lathrup Village, learns technology skills on her device with New Horizons Computer Trainer Ryan Randall, right. See SYMPOSIUM on page 14A
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Discover comprehensive care close to home at karmanos.org/weisberg.
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SECOND FRONT PAGE
3A/ SOUTHFIELD SUN • SEPTEMBER 12, 2024
Council changes marijuana hours of operation
BY KATHRYN PENTIUK kpentiuk@candgnews.com
SOUTHFIELD — The Southfield City Council voted 4-3 Aug. 26 to amend its zoning laws to change the permitted hours of operation of marijuana businesses in the city.
The text amendment extended the hours of operation for medical marijuana provisioning
centers and adult-use marijuana retailers 9 a.m.-6 p.m. on Saturdays and 10 a.m.-6 p.m. on Sundays to 9 a.m.-9 p.m. Saturdays and 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Sundays.
City Planner Terry Croad said at the meeting that the change “falls within the comparable range of hours of operation from all of our adjacent communities.”
Southfield is home to two recreational mari-
Warriors blanked by Clarkston, open OAA White play against Rochester Sept. 13
LUXURY REMODELING
juana retailers, Lume Cannabis, at 26760 Lahser Road, and Dreams Canna, at 28930 Telegraph Road. A third marijuana retailer, Bloomery, will be located at 28610 Northwestern Highway. There is also a grow facility, NTK Investments, at 21680 W. Eight Mile Road. Croad added that the current provisioning centers that have been previously approved under special land use requests would have
Southfield A&T beat Clarkston in a thrilling 20-17 game last year, but Clarkston earned its revenge in a 48-0 win Sept. 6 at Southfield A&T High School. The Warriors’ defense was stout a week prior in a 46-0 win over Flint Beecher, but it had no answers against the Wolves. LEFT: Junior quarterback Jeremy Porter rolls out the pocket in efforts to find an open receiver. ABOVE: Defenders crash on a Clarkston ball carrier.
Photos by Patricia O’Blenes
See MARIJUANA on page 8A
NEWS & NOTES
SOUTHFIELD TO HOST THE 2024 WALK TO RAISE AWARENESS OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
SOUTHFIELD — The Southfield police and fire departments, the 46th District Court and community partners will host the “2024 Walk to Raise Awareness of Domestic Violence” 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Oct. 6.
The 2-mile walk will begin and end on the Southfield Municipal Campus, 26000 Evergreen Road.
Registration and T-shirt pickup will begin at 9 a.m. on the front lawn of City Hall. Pre-registered participants will be guaranteed a free walk T-shirt. Non-registered participants will be given shirts on a first-come, first-served basis.
The event will kick off with a press conference addressing Southfield’s strategy to reduce the impact and occurrence of domestic violence. The city urges anyone in a domestic violence situation or who knows someone in such a situation to contact the Southfield Police Department or Haven.
Huntington Bank sponsors the walk in partnership with the city of Southfield, Haven Oakland, Southfield Public Schools, Southfield Domestic Violence Group, Family Assistance for Renaissance Men, Jewish Coalition Against Domestic Violence, the Dr. Martin Luther King Task Force, the Chaldean American Chamber of Commerce, the Southfield Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority’s Phi Tau Omega Chapter, Southfield Community Anti-Drug Coalition and Road Masters Vette Club.
Walkers can register for the event at http://walktoraiseawarenessofdv. qmigroupinc.com.
For more information, call Southfield Police at (248) 796-5500.
If you or someone you know are in a domestic violence crisis, contact Haven at (248) 334-1274.
SOUTHFIELD PUBLIC LIBRARY INVITES RESIDENTS ON HISTORY SCAVENGER HUNT
SOUTHFIELD — The Southfield Public Library is hosting a local history scavenger hunt Sept. 3-Nov. 2. The library invites people to explore some historic sites of Southfield, learn more about stories that these sites hold, and utilize the resources in the library’s John and Dorothy Creecy Southfield History Room. Those interested in joining the scavenger hunt can visit the library’s third-floor reference desk and pick up a scavenger hunt booklet. All participants will receive a prize for their efforts, and those who complete the entire challenge will be entered into a raffle for additional prizes. The historical landmarks include the Mary Thompson House, Burgh Historical Park, Southfield Cemetery, Southfield Centre, Lawrence Tech University and the Miller Barn at Inglenook Park. Participants are free to form teams or work together as a family. Each spot has been carefully selected to highlight a unique aspect of Southfield’s history. At each site, visitors will find clues and information that provide insights into the historical significance of the location, serving as an opportunity for the community to learn about pivotal moments, notable figures and Southfield’s evolution over time.
LTU HOSTS GRAND PRIX FOR HALF-SCALE INDY CARS
SOUTHFIELD — Lawrence Technological University Blue Devil Motorsports competition teams hosted the 15th annual Grand Prix for half-scale Indy cars Aug. 31. Teams from Central Michigan University, Grand Valley State University, Kettering University and the University of Windsor raced for the best time on a road course laid out with cones. LTU’s Formula SAE gasoline-powered car and its Formula SAE Electric EV racing car competed in the race. Toledo won first place, Kettering took second and Grand Valley came in third.
File photo by Patricia O’Blenes
Photo by Liz Carnegie
Easterseals baseball event celebrates launch of a new children’s book series
BY KATHRYN PENTIUK kpentiuk@candgnews.com
SOUTHFIELD — On Aug. 27, Easterseals gathered with local families and Ann Arbor-based Cherry Lake Publishing at the Easterseals MORC Miracle League Field on Evergreen Road to celebrate the release of “Making a Difference with Easterseals,” by Beth Finke.
The children’s book is part of a new series that Cherry Lake Publishing is launching with the Easterseals. It focuses on the life-changing work Easterseals and its affiliates have done across the country and outlines ways that communities can promote inclusive environments for people with disabilities.
The Easterseals MORC, which stands for Macomb Oakland Regional Center, is a nonprofit that has over 100 years of experience helping enhance the quality of life of people with disabilities, and strengthening access to health care, education and employment.
Currently, there are two other such book series, “Understanding Disability” and “Itty Bitty Bio Series.” The series serves as tools for parents, grandparents, educators and others to teach children about disabilities, reduce stigma and raise awareness about the talents and activism that those with special needs have made throughout history.
Finke became blind at the age of 26 due to diabetes and later had a son with multiple disabilities.
The collaboration between Easterseals and Cherry Lake Publishing began in 2022, when the CEO of Cherry Lake Publishing and Easterseals board member Ben Mondloch was approached with the idea of creating a book series for children focusing on disabilities.
Together, Cherry Lake Publishing and the Easterseals have collaborated on 17 books that amplify the voices of disabled people and activists while using authors with disabilities to do so through the three different book series. Amanda Gebhardt, the editorial director of Cherry Lake Publishing, remembered a conversation between Finke and Jason Benetti, who has cerebral palsy and is a play-by-play announcer for the Detroit Tigers and formerly the voice of the Chicago White Sox, while Finke was interviewing him for an Itty Bitty Bio Series book. “They had just this fantastic conversation about their everyday experiences, of these conversations that they had over and over and over again and all the people that might think that they’re being cute or being clever, but it’s the same comments every day, so it’s the exact same thing. And so one of my favorite things that Jason Benetti had said to Beth was that he’s focused on trying to re-
See EASTERSEALS on page 12A
Photo provided by Chelsea Heckathorn
From the left, Amanda Gebhardt, Ben Mondloch, Brent Wirth, Homer the Brave — the Miracle League Mascot, Kendra Davenport, Zander Schons and Jason Slocum attend the Books, Breakfast and Baseball event Aug. 27 at the Easterseals MORC Miracle League Field in Southfield.
Clinton Township asks Oakland County to do more about sewage water
BY NICK POWERS npowers@candgnews.com
CLINTON TOWNSHIP — The Clinton Township Board of Trustees unanimously passed a resolution critiquing Oakland County for dumping partially treated sewage into the Clinton River.
The resolution suggests that funds used for other county projects should be diverted to address the problem. It also encourages action at the state and county levels to restrict grant appropriations for Oakland County as it relates to sewage management.
Though, admittedly, the resolution is more of a request than anything binding, Trustee Dan Kress, who brought the motion forward, said the resolution is the culmination of frustration with the neighboring county.
“This has no teeth to it. There’s nothing we can do to stop them from dumping in Oakland County,” Kress said. “But this shows our residents and our taxpayers that we are encouraging other elected officials to make an effort to resolve this during this short window, where there may be an opportunity to make some revisions or conditions on monies received.”
HOUSING
Housing Grants have become the way of the future in the housing market making them more a ordable. Ms. Daraylyn Bowers, owner of Bowers Realty in South eld, educates her clients on how to make these opportunities easier to utilize and become more available to the masses.
“We want everybody to know that grants are available so they can act on the opportunities.” Ms. Bowers explained. ” is is a form of subsidy that will be used very commonly in the future.”
Detroit is experiencing an expansion of housing grants available to rst-time home buyers, expanding families, home businesses, minorities and to the growing Doubling Up population where multiple families live together.
This is not the first time the county has passed a resolution like this. In 2022, a similar resolution was approved by the board.
The resolution says the neighboring county discharges the “lightly treated” sew-
the people. Ms. Bowers said, “We are looking forward to educating buyers about grants at our ongoing Saturday seminars in our o ce or by appointment.!”
T.J. Bowers, Vice President of Bowers Realty and President of the Detroit Real Estate Association, echoes this advantage with an example of how a grant made a signi cant di erence in his client’s home-buying fortunes.
Today, grants are o ered by saving and loans institutions, banks (Bank of America/ Chase), credit unions, and municipalities (City and State) to help subsidize loans and down payments. Bowers helps you explore your eligibility for these programs- sometimes up to $25,000. e income restriction limits have actually risen to include buyers who are not low income.
“Somebody has to take this message to
“ e Bank of American Program o ers a $10,000 Down payment and closing cost of $7500 on top of that. My client bought a home on Hales Street in Madison Heights using a grant as a rsttime home buyer. So instead of paying $13,000 down at the closing table, our client only paid $185 at closing by taking advantage of the grant. ere is a lot of free money out here to use. Don’t leave any money on the table when making your biggest investment.”, Bowers concluded.
Bowers Realty and Investments Inc. Invites you to stop by their o ce for your home’s current value or to learn more about housing grants. e o ce is located at 17277 W. 10 Mile Road in South eld. Call to schedule a consultation at 248.557.1200 or visit bowers-realty.com information.
age through the Red Run Drain, which is a tributary to the Clinton River. This happens when combined sewage overflows following heavy rain runoff into relief points. The township alleges that between Jan. 11-12
alone, 700,000,000 gallons of the combined sewage overflow water made it into the river.
“Oakland County has a permit to dump in the Clinton River and ultimately See SEWAGE on page 11A
HOME BUYER GRANTS
Learn more about Grants with Bowers Realty
The Clinton Township Board of Trustees unanimously passed a resolution critiquing Oakland County for dumping partially treated sewage into the Clinton River. This aerial view, left, shows the Red Run Drain, which is located on Dequindre Road near the Chicago Road intersection, as sween in the map, above. Google Earth photo / map by Jenn Shelton
Booming apple crops this year add to fall fun at local orchards, cider mills
BY MARY BETH ALMOND malmond@candgnews.com
METRO DETROIT — As the weather begins to cool in Michigan, there’s no better way to warm yourself up than with a cup of hot apple cider and mouth-watering doughnuts this fall. According to the Michigan Apple Committee, there’s plenty of apples to choose from this year.
Michigan is now in its third consecutive season of large apple crops, estimating a harvest of 30.5 million bushels in 2024 — well above Michigan’s average of approximately 25.9 million bushels.
“Apples are the largest and most valuable fruit crop in Michigan – not to mention a big part of Michigan’s culture,” Diane Smith, the executive director of the Michigan Apple Committee, said in a statement. “Ask any Michigander about their fall traditions, and you’ll hear about apple picking, apple cider and more. Apples are the flavor of fall in Michigan, naturally.”
Warmer than normal temperatures in late winter and early spring caused buds to form, leading to an earlier bloom in May.
Growers, Smith said, were fortunate this year not to experience significant frost and freeze events after that early bloom, allowing a plentiful crop to be harvested 10 days earlier than usual.
Although the Michigan Apple Committee’s estimated harvest of 30.5 million bushels this year is slightly down from 31.9 million last year, Smith said that’s still above average. Michigan harvested around a record 32.38 million bushels of apples in 2022, according to the United States Department of Agriculture.
“It is unusual to have three large crops in a row,” Smith explained. “However, as growers continue to plant high-density orchards and adopt other innovative growing practices, Michigan’s apple crop sizes will increase, and we will continue to see these larger crops.”
There are more than 14.9 million apple trees in commercial production, covering 34,500 acres on 775 family-run farms in Michigan, which means plenty of apples to taste this fall.
Visiting orchards and cider mills for
See CIDER MILLS on page 15A
FITNESS CLASSES
Get
‘Motor City ft’ at Motor City Dance Factory
It doesn’t matter if you’re young or old — you’ve got to get moving if you want to stay healthy. Motor City Dance Factory has always been known for amazing children’s dance and gymnastics, but did you know that they also ofer a wide variety of adult dance and fitness classes?
At Southfield’s Motor City Dance Factory, there’s something for everyone looking to be agile, active and engaged.
DANCE CLASSES
The studio, located on Lahser Road between Eight Mile and Nine Mile roads, in the Southfield Research Park, now ofers Supported Exercises for Ageless Training sessions at 9 a.m. on Monday and Wednesday.
“S.E.A.T. is for anyone and everyone. For those who are feeling unstable or need to work on gait and core strength, it helps instill strength in the legs and upper body without feeling vulnerable to falls or pain,” said Carole Gist, Miss USA 1990 and a fitness instructor at Motor City Dance Factory.
Gist said the program helps build core strength, improves agility and provides a safe and efective cardio workout for anyone, including
seniors looking to stay healthy and independent in their homes.
“It’s a fun workout, and you still get to work all the major muscle groups that are integral to performing
Carole Gist
activities of daily life,” Gist said. “You can invest a little time and money to move and exercise, instead of having to spend years and thousands of dollars remodeling your house to accommodate diminishing mobility.”
Camille Johnson, the studio director of Motor City Dance Factory, said the studio ofers a variety of sessions throughout the day, including the morning and evening.
“We’re celebrating our 24th season
and we’re accepting dance and gymnastics students ages 3 through adult,” Johnson said. “We serve the entire community in any way that will improve the quality of life of those around us,” Johnson added. “One of our core values is healthy living, and I am certain that exercise and a supportive community is a huge factor in healthy living.”
Motor City Dance Factory is located at 21630 Melrose Ave., Building I, in Southfield. To inquire about classes or for more information, call (248) 905-5678 or visit motorcitydancefactory.com
S.E.A.T. (Supported
Marijuana
to come individually to request to extend their hours and that the City Council would review each request on an individual basis.
Council members Yolanda Haynes, Nancy Banks and Charles Hicks voted no.
“When the petitioners initially sought the ability to provision, they chose their hours of operation,” Hicks said. “At that time, they could have sought later closure hours. I believe having earlier closure hours mitigates the risk of undesirable activity.”
Councilman Lloyd Crews voted in favor.
“At the crux of my decision and those that voted in favor was that Southfield has always been a friend to small businesses in our community. We want to see them thrive,” Crews said.
He said that, like the ordinance that allows gas stations to sell until 2 a.m., this ordinance is creating a convenience.
“So those of us that were for it felt that that’s all we were doing here, is providing a convenience for people who maybe get off at 5 o’clock and are headed home. If you’re closing at 6 already, it just really isn’t given much time to be able to stop in and get what it is that they desire to have, what Southfield has to offer. Our surrounding cities are much more lenient in that regard. We did look at the numbers in terms of the time frames and so forth. And I mean, we had everything from 6 o’clock to midnight from different areas. And so we said we just want our businesses to be competitive, and that is why the ‘yes’ votes came through.”
The public hearing for the amendment
was held July 15, and one resident, Earl Crum, spoke out against the change in the ordinance.
“I am opposed to the changing of hours, those who are using marijuana, the facilities that are open later than the requested hours. If those individuals want to use marijuana, they should go to those facilities. What will they ask for next? Would they ask for a 24-hour operation? I’m totally opposed to the change of hours and any update to the changes.”
At the Aug. 26 meeting, representatives from Southfield’s marijuana retailers addressed the council on their reasons the ordinance change should be made.
“The biggest reason is that a lot of our customers do come to us on a weekend basis and are requesting this,” David Moyski, who runs the operations at Lume, said.
“This is Southfield residents that we know are spending this money in other municipalities. They’re going directly from our store. I’ve sat in our parking lot for a time of an hour or longer afterwards, just to greet those customers and see if it is even worth us staying open. And we have a lot of Southfield residents that are asking us to stay open. It’s not that they’re not consuming or purchasing these products. They’re just going and spending that money elsewhere. And we’d like to keep that money in Southfield, and we’d like to keep our customers very valued, as we do.”
Nadia Lutfy, one of the owners of Dreams Canna, echoed Moyski’s sentiment.
“Same. Our customers request that we stay open later. A lot of our customers work on Saturday, so it’s hard for them to get to us before 6 p.m. and it’s a service we can of-
Photo by Patricia O’Blenes
In a 4-3 vote, the City Council approved an ordinance change to extend the hours of operation for marijuana facilities in Southfield. Pictured is Lume Cannabis, located at 26760 Lahser Road.
Marijuana
from page 8A
fer our customers. And as far as safety, it’s going to be safe. We’re at six more hours of the weekend that we have an armed security guard and staff in the store, so it’s safer when we’re open.”
John Abbo, an attorney for Lume Cannabis, added, “I simply just wanted to state that we’ve done this. We have several stores throughout the state of Michigan, 38 to be exact, in 37 of those municipalities, we have the ability to operate till 9 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays, and we just feel that being at a disadvantage in Southfield hurts our business for those hours. We have the Berkley store down the street that we could send people to, but we prefer to keep that Southfield store doing the accurate numbers and serving the Southfield residents.”
Councilman Hicks asked the proprietors what the anticipated traffic between 6 p.m. and close would be.
Moyski answered. “So on a typical weekday, we see anywhere from 250 to 300 customers in transactions in those days during the weekend, where we typically would see busier traffic. We actually only see anywhere from around 200 to 225, so we antici-
pate that then we would see the equivalent amount of customers during that period of time, during the weekend, if not more. Most of our business does come in the later hours of the evening, just because that is when most people are off of work and able to come visit us.”
Lutfy added, “If I’m going to compare it to what we do on Thursday, Friday evenings, it’s probably about 100 customers, and those six to nine hours that come in about like $6,000 in revenue during those hours that we miss out on, on Saturdays and Sundays. And another good thing: It would create another shift of employees. So it would increase jobs for residents of Southfield to work, because we’d have two different shifts on Saturdays instead of just one.”
Paul Lutfy, the co-owner of Dreams Canna, said, “We actually put pylons out there so they don’t come on my driveway, so we don’t disappoint them. But yet, they’re driving off to other cities. And you know, like Nadia said, you don’t get busy till 6 o’clock, 5 o’clock on a Friday. It’s when they start coming in and it’s time they relax and want to go home and get their, whatever they want to get, their food, their marijuana, even in the liquor business, we don’t get busy till 7 o’clock at night on the weekends, especially on Saturdays.”
Gas station
osk. The daily hours of operation would be 6 a.m.-10 p.m., with six full-time positions available for one employee per shift and two during shift changes.
Terry Croad, Southfield director of planning, said, “This is a proposed site plan for a fuel station only, with a small kiosk, landscape plan, floor plan. It’s really only a 22- by roughly 6-foot-wide kiosk for the cashier, the proposed canopy stations, and then a rendering of what it would be looking like from the entrance, the northern entrance off of Evergreen Road. We did ask them to prepare a traffic circulation study to address other concerns that came up from the public and the council, and in the past, they made several recommendations to help with the flow of site circulation on the site.”
The 34-page traffic study was conducted by Collier Engineering and focused on traffic within the center’s parking lot, as well as the traffic on Evergreen and Twelve Mile roads, where two other gas stations currently operate: a Sunoco and a BP. According to Croad, there have been approximately seven accidents in the past six years, all minor, in that area.
Per the traffic study, the eight recommendations were made, some of which include adding yellow crosshatching adjacent to the curb along the store fronts to further emphasize parking and standing is not permitted, as well as upgrading the signage at the north driveway to Evergreen Road to include a “DO NOT ENTER” sign supplemented with a “WRONG WAY” sign on each side of the driveway. A long-term mitigation would be to reconfigure the driveway as a right-inright-out only driveway and close the existing median opening located slightly north of the driveway.
Matthew Pisco, representing Kroger, likened the fuel station to the deli, stating, “It’s a proprietary category of the grocery store. It’s like the deli or the meat market.”
Pisco added that 30% of the gas station visitors will come from the Kroger parking lot.
“In six years, it equated to 1.17 crashes per year on the perimeter of that shopping center,” he said. “As far as the growth of traffic, the proposed fuel station had no significant traffic impact on the adjacent road network. On either 12 Mile or Evergreen it would be indiscernible from the bank, if it were open.
“The fuel station would generate 12 or fewer new trips to the adjacent roadways compared to the previous bank, which is insignificant. Additionally, the proposed development will generate 51 or fewer trips at the existing shops, at Evergreen site, driveways to 12 Mile
Road and Evergreen, so that cross merchandising between our grocery store and our fuel center, where we offer discounts. It’s not a private club like Costco. For our customers, you shop at our grocery store, you can get up to $1 off into the fuel center on each gallon of fuel up to 35 gallons. It’s a way to, one, make
the shopping center a one-stop shop. It’s more convenient. We offer discounts, and it builds loyalty between the stores.
“And I know in last week’s discussion, we talked about the eventuality of improvements to the grocery store as a result of growth im-
Photo by Patricia O’Blenes
If approved, the proposed Kroger fuel station would be at the location of the former Bank of America building, 19991 W. 12 Mile Road.
the lake (Lake St. Clair), which closes Metro Beach, and you end up with the sludge in the river and the lake south of the Clinton River,” Kress said.
The resolution points out that Clinton Township spent $30 million to expand its sanitary sewer system to prevent overflows into the Clinton River. Clinton Township Supervisor Bob Cannon spoke to this and said the township will address any issues relating to water quality.
“We had probably one of the most serious problems in the state of Michigan,” Cannon said. “We have not even come close to that again. Oakland County is doing a very poor job, and I think what this brings forward is (Macomb County Public Works Commissioner) Candice Miller and others are addressing it. We should encourage that.”
Trisha Bruzek, the marketing and communications supervisor for Oakland County Water Resources Commissioner Jim Nash’s office, said the office had “no comment” about the resolution at this time.
Trustee Julie Matuzak said she feels “outrage” over the dumping.
“The underlying problem of all of this is that state government and the federal regulators don’t set standards high enough,” Matuzak said.
Trustee Mike Keys said he has the same frustrations but said Oakland County is working to address issues that are also a problem in Macomb County.
“As a region, if we work together to ask for money from the state and the federal government and for changes versus continuing to punch our neighbor in the eye at the expense of a press release and a resolution, I think we would get more done,” Keys said.
Keys asked Department of Public Services Director Mary Bednar at the meeting if Oakland County had been contacted about the resolution. Bednar said township officials attend meetings concerning the Red Run Drain and are in communication with Oakland County.
“The thing is we want to do more,” Bednar said.
Cannon agreed that the township should work together with the neighboring county, but said they needed to put more money toward fixing the problem.
Township Treasurer Paul Gieleghem said there was a double standard at work. He said that Oakland County communities are not required to update their sewer system even though Mount Clemens and Fraser have been required to.
“The DEQ should be requiring that these communities take that same action and that the standards are applied across the board, rather than selectively,” Gieleghem said.
Township Clerk Kim Meltzer implied that one political party, when in power, was not doing enough to address these problems. Meltzer is a Republican. She said that the difference in the standards the township is held to compared to communities in Oakland County makes her wonder about the situation.
“We’re talking about agencies and putting it all on them,” Meltzer said. “There are leg-
CRIME WATCH
Tote bag stolen from office desk
A woman momentarily stepped away from her desk between noon and 12:30 p.m. Aug. 19, and when she returned, her tote bag was gone from her office, in the 16000 block of West Nine Mile Road.
Man reports assault after going home with stranger
SOUTHFIELD — At 12:16 a.m. Aug. 19, a man met a woman and went back to her home, where they began to argue. The woman took money from the man and assaulted him, according to a police report. He contacted police after leaving her residence.
Phone app notifies victim of stolen vehicle
SOUTHFIELD — At 3:26 a.m. Aug. 20, a resident received a notification from a phone app linked to his vehicle that his 2024 Dodge Durango had left the parking lot where he had parked it, in the 23000 block of Orleans Place.
Witness thwarts theft attempt
SOUTHFIELD — A resident reported to Southfield police that he saw a man attempting to remove the wheels and tires from a vehicle in the 20000 block of Charlton Square at 12:27 a.m. Aug. 23.
The caller asked the suspect if it was his vehicle, and the suspect responded “no.” The caller then asked the suspect if he was attempting to steal the wheels and tires, to which the suspect responded, “yes.” The caller then held down the suspect until police arrived.
Car keys stolen
SOUTHFIELD — A woman reported that a known individual stole her car keys at 6:21 p.m. Aug. 25 in the 25000 block of West Twelve Mile Road.
— Kathryn Pentiuk
LEGAL NOTICE
CITY OF SOUTHFIELD ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS
islators there who have to do some of that heavy lifting for us to be able to address this issue.”
Cannon tried to dissuade Meltzer from making it a partisan issue.
“I have hope because when I took this position
Easterseals
spond to people in ways they don’t expect and keeping people on their toes, making sure that if he’s underestimated, it’s only for a short amount of time.”
The book also includes photos of real families who have benefited from Easterseals MORC’s services and their personal stories of receiving services, including the family of 22-year-old Zander Schons, from Lake Orion. Zander has cerebral palsy with a seizure disorder, and is non ambulatory, nonverbal and blind. Kristi Schons, Zander’s mother, described her son as an “easygoing people person who loves to smile and play the keyboard.” She added, “He loves to play baseball and bowling. That’s the contribution from Easterseals MORC that’s, like, mostly our connection with them.”
Kristi Schons is the president of a nonprofit called the Daisy Project, which is how her family came to be involved with Easterseals MORC in 2019, when she was looking for resources to help create more inclusive spaces. “Originally, it was just we wanted him to be able to swing on a swing,” she said. “So we helped raise money at Friendship Park in Lake Orion, which is where the Miracle League of North Oakland is, which is through Easterseals. We made a playground called ‘Let Them
APPEAL NOTICE REGARDING ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS CASE #24-26
The City of Southfeld Zoning Board of Appeals will hold a public hearing regarding:
The appellant, Mike Tassoni of MIMG CCIII Chateau Riviera, LLC, owner, is requesting the following variance from the Board:
A 6 foot variance of one-way driveway width (20 feet required, 14 feet proposed).
The property is located on the west side of Southfeld Rd, between Nadol Dr and Nine Mile Rd, Sidwell Parcel #2435226-017, located at 22277 Southfeld Rd, zoned (RM) Multiple Family Low Rise.
This appeal is to Section 5.31(10), Article 4, Chapter 45 of the Southfeld City Code, more commonly known as the Zoning Ordinance.
This is a public hearing. If interested, you are encouraged to appear in person. You may have a representative (attorney or agent) appear in your presence to make the Board aware of your opinion. When appearing before the Board, please speak slowly and distinctly so that your testimony may be accurately recorded.
Documents regarding this appeal are available for review prior to the public hearing. Written comments, questions, and requests to review these materials must be received prior to 4:00 p.m. on the date of the hearing and should be directed to the Zoning Board of Appeals, Department of Building & Safety Engineering, 1st Floor Public Works Building, 26000 Evergreen Road, Southfeld, Michigan, Telephone 248-796-4100.
The meeting will be held Tuesday, October 1, 2024, at 7:00 p.m. in the City Council Chambers, 26000 Evergreen Road, Southfeld.
City of Southfeld Zoning Board of Appeals
Individuals with special needs who plan to attend this meeting should contact the City Clerk’s Offce at 248-796-5150 (voice) or 354-4831 (TDD) if auxiliary aids or services are needed. Reasonable advance notice is required.
Janet Jackson City Clerk
Published: Southfeld Sun 09/12/2024
we were in a mess,” Cannon said. “Mrs. Bednar, and (Township Attorney) Jack Dolan helped, got us out of this mess and this board got us out of the mess. We paid for this. Nobody once on this board complained about all the money we had to spend. Nobody once. I haven’t seen that in other communities.”
Resident Fred Nienstedt, during public comment, thanked the township and Miller for her efforts to combat sewage making it into the river.
Play,’ and it has wheelchair swings, and it’s an accessible playground. And then we wanted a baseball field, and that’s how the relationship started with my family and Easterseals.”
The city of Southfield is home to Michigan’s first Miracle League, which opened in 2003. It is a baseball field for children with any physical or cognitive disability and uses a buddy system to assist the players.
The Daisy Project is based in Shelby Township and each year hosts a fundraising event called LO Palooza, which features music, food trucks and other vendors to help raise funds for the nonprofit’s mission of creating more inclusive recreational spaces for individuals with disabilities to enjoy.
The books in all three series can be found in schools and libraries nationwide and can also be purchased online at cherrylakepublishing.com; 10% of sales from “Making a Difference with Easterseals” will go towards Easterseals MORC to provide care to those in Michigan.
For more information on Easterseals MORC, visit www.easterseals.com/MORC/.
To learn more about the Daisy Project and LO Palooza, visit thedaisyprojectmi.com.
Call Staff Writer Kathryn Pentiuk at (586) 4981070.
LEGAL NOTICE
City of Southfeld
CONSOLIDATED ANNUAL PERFORMANCE AND EVALUATION REPORT (CAPER) for FY 2023/2024 CDBG FUNDS AND ANNUAL ACTION PLAN FY 2025/2026.
The City of Southfeld has prepared a proposed Consolidated Annual Performance and Evaluation Report (CAPER) FY 2023/2024 Program Year for review by all interested residents and groups. Input is also being solicited for the Annual Action Plan FY 2025/2026. At the conclusion of this review period, citizen comments shall be considered for incorporation into the updated CAPER and/or the Annual Action Plan FY 2025/2026.
Draft documents may be reviewed on the City of Southfeld website https://www.cityofsouthfeld.com (departments/ housing/ CDBG information), a copy received by email, or a hard copy by request at the city offces 26000 Evergreen Road, from September 12 through September 27, 2024.
Consolidated Annual Performance and Evaluation Report: The CAPER for FY 2023/2024 Program Year is an annual performance and evaluation report on how the City of Southfeld utilized the Community Development Block Grant entitlement funds during the most recent program year. This document provides an assessment of results and accomplishments of those projects which include, housing rehabilitation, and public services.
Annual Action Plan FY 2025/2026: The Annual Action Plan describes the housing and non- housing needs within Southfeld and strategies for CDGB funds to address them in the fscal year.
Public Meeting
The City of Southfeld will conduct a public meeting via teleconference, on Monday, September 23, 2024, from 11:00 p.m.3:00 p.m. at phone number (248) 796-5052. The purpose of the meeting will be to obtain the views of interested citizens, public agencies, and other interested parties on the CAPER for FY 2023/2024.
Comments may also be sent to ngreenstein@cityofsouthfeld.com through the end of business on Friday, September 27, 2024.
Further information may be obtained by calling (248) 796-5119, or emailing ngreenstein@cityofsouthfeld.com.
Published: Southfeld Sun 09/12/2024 0425-2437
Gas station
pact of the fuel station, the marriage of those two. So we have an opportunity to take down an existing vacant bank, redevelop it, help the grocery store, help the shopping center, perform all the improvements that were identified, as far as the signage, to help within circulation, striping and the light. So we’ve gladly looked at the recommendations and said, ‘We want to be good neighbors, and we want to have a safe shopping center.’”
Pisco added that between 2019 and 2023, the Southfield store has paid almost $490,000 in property taxes, the store has donated 200,000 pounds of food to local food rescue partners since 2020, and the investment between 2018 and with projected spending in 2024 (not including a fuel station), Kroger has spent $3.23 million in that store.
However, an overwhelming number of Southfield residents took to the podium during the public hearing and expressed that they did not want a third gas station on the corner of 12 Mile and Evergreen roads.
“I’m not in favor of this at all. I remember when Kroger came here before and told the residents and the City Council members at the time that if you did not get this gas station, that you was going to pull out, and we told you to get your hat, your coat and leave. What did you do? You got your hat, your coat, and you left, and you closed down that Kroger by Providence and Greenfield,” Southfield resident Pamela Gerald said.
She said that due to the conditions at that location, she leaves Southfield to shop at cleaner Kroger locations.
“I’m very familiar with that area, but the attitude that Kroger has, and this representative to say that, ‘If we get the approval, then we will invest in the store.’ You have not invested in this store whatsoever. Now it appears to me that it might be because a lot of African Americans shop there. I used to love going to that Kroger store. I go in Birmingham. I go to Northville. I go to 15 Mile.”
Other residents mentioned what they called the unkempt condition of the Kroger
store, as well as safety concerns about the traffic increase and students walking home from University High School Academy, located just half a mile down the road at 19301 W 12 Mile Road.
City Council members also expressed similar concerns.
“He (Pisco) talked about, possibly within three years, the store may be remodeled. And again, we don’t know what remodeled means. The existing store in the existing format — I’m embarrassed. I was there this past weekend. I’m not even sure what to say, and I personally feel for the people that shop in that store. There’s a lot of improvements that need to be made,” Councilwoman Nancy Banks said. “It is not a Southfield-standard store.”
Councilwoman Coretta Houge said, “I’m just wondering: Can we go back to the drawing board to see if we can consider, like, a comprehensive study, as my colleague said? But think about that or go back to the Greenfield location site, because that building is still open, right? I mean vacant. We all want to support Kroger. That’s not the issue. However, we have always said, and I was honest with you last week, that I just flat out said, ‘I’m concerned that when we see Black and brown customers, do we care how their stores look?’ And I’m not saying that’s the case, but sometimes that’s what we feel like, because we always gotta show first. We always gotta put up first, versus somebody showing a commitment to us. And because, like I said, we know businesses that do their business here in Southfield, they’re very profitable, just about everybody.”
Kroger representatives did not address the comments about the condition of the store at the meeting, and a representative could not be reached for further comment by press time.
The Kroger representatives in the audience did not approach the City Council, and the City Council decided unanimously to postpone any conversations regarding Kroger and the vote until the Oct. 28 council meeting so that Kroger could provide further details on what remodeling would mean for that location and what other improvements could be made before putting in a fuel station.
Southfield Mayor Ken Siver expressed
disappointment with the current state of the store and concern that Kroger would leave if the fuel station isn’t approved.
“So I really wanted to hear what, specifically, what Kroger plans to do to give Southfield residents a better store. I also will say that I could support the additional gas pumps there, because I know a lot of Kroger shoppers, including my sister, swear by it. She loves that dollar off her gas, but I want to see something in return, as far as what Kroger plans to do in that store.
“Just telling me three years — I don’t think that’s good enough. I want to hear specifics, and then I’ll go back to Clock Tower,”
he said, referring to a different strip shopping center in the city. “So when Kroger left there, and I was involved in those negotiations, when Kroger left, then what happened? Bing, bing, bing, bing, a whole number of other people (left). The anchor was gone. Kroger was the traffic generator to that strip center, Clock Tower. We lost the CVS there as well.
“There just aren’t strong businesses there anymore. I don’t like vacant stores. I don’t like vacant buildings, and that’s what I’m afraid will happen.”
Call Staff Writer Kathryn Pentiuk at (586) 498-1070.
PUBLISHED LEGAL NOTICE
NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARINGS & SITE PLAN REVIEWS CITY COUNCIL
CITY OF SOUTHFIELD
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that a meeting will be held on Monday, September 30, 2024, at 6:00 P.M., Local Time, in the Council Chambers of the Municipal Building, 26000 Evergreen Road, South eld, Michigan, at which time and place the South eld City Council will consider the following requests pursuant to Title V, Zoning and Planning, Chapter 45, Zoning, of the Code of the City of South eld, to wit:
PZR24-0009 (REZONING) is a request of the Family Victory Fellowship Church, to rezone the parcel at 19421 W. 10 Mile Road, South eld, Michigan (Parcel 24-26-126-030) from OS Of ce Service and R-E Single Family to all OS Of ce Service. Churches being a permitted use in the OS district.
PSP24-0013 (SITE PLAN REVIEW) is a request of the Family Victory Fellowship Church, to establish an approved site plan for existing church and to permit construction of a new storage shed at 19421 W. 10 Mile Road, South eld, Michigan (Parcel 24-26-126-030).
PZR24-0010 (REZONING) is a request of the Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers Foundation, to rezone the parcel at 25100 Northwestern Hwy, South eld, Michigan (Parcel 24-22-426-004) from B-3 General Business to RC Regional Center to permit the conversion of the existing hotel into a multiple family residential use.
PSP24-0015 (SITE PLAN REVIEW) is a request of the Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers Foundation, to convert an existing hotel to a Veterans Village (apartment housing and services for Veterans) at 25100 Northwestern Hwy, South eld, Michigan (Parcel 24-22-426-004).
Written comments may be delivered to the City Clerk’s of ce, 26000 Evergreen Road, P.O. Box 2055, South eld, MI 480372055, prior to the meeting.
Questions regarding this matter should be directed to the Planning Department at (248) 796-4150 or tpaison@cityofsouth eld.com
JANET JACKSON – CITY CLERK
Individuals with special needs who plan to attend this meeting should contact the City Clerk’s Office at 248-796-5150 (voice) or 248-354-4831 (TDD). If auxiliary aids or services are needed, reasonable advance notice is required.
Published: South eld Sun 09/12/2024
Symposium
Lisa Grodsky, Grandparents Raising Grandchildren program operations manager of the Oakland Livingston Human Service Agency, explained that kinship care refers to children who are sent to live with their next of kin, and while most people are familiar with foster care, kinship care is “greater and broader” than foster care.
“Well, the foster care system has made some improvements in the last five years, where their priority is to find kin as placements for children who end up in the child welfare system, which is amazing, and I know that they are educating those family members that they are considered kinship care, but out of the 8,000 children in Michigan who are in foster care, about half are with relatives,” she said. “For every one of those children with a relative in foster care, there are 13 other children in kinship care with a relative outside of foster care; 13 — that’s a lot of children.”
The symposium will feature presentations that focus on kinship care in Michigan.
The first presentation, “Growth By Extension: The Impact and Influence of GRAND Relative-ships Across Generations,” will feature Danyelle Orr-McNeil 1011 a.m. sharing her professional experience working as a parent support partner and Parent and Youth Advisory Board coordinator from Assured Family Services. She will share her experience working with families in similar situations, as well as her personal experience of having been raised by her grandparents. She will discuss the barriers that exist when being raised by a grandparent, such as the generational divide. Orr-McNeil will provide encouragement to caregivers.
Attendees will choose between two breakout sessions, each covering a different aspect of kinship care. “Enhancing Positive Thinking and Resiliency in Kinship Care-
givers,” by Andrea Smith, a professor at the College of Education and Human Development at Western Michigan University, will focus on the emotional well-being of caregivers. “Paths to Legal Authority for Kinship,” presented by Erin Peets, an attorney at the Elder Law and Advocacy Center, will provide legal guidance. Grodsky added that she believes this segment will be especially beneficial. “There are an awful lot of informal caregivers who have kids in their house. They don’t have a legal leg to stand on, and those are the ones that are really going to be interested in that legal authority for kinship caregivers. Because, I kid you not, sometimes these grandparents have a written note, folded up in their purse from one of the birth parents that says, ‘She has my permission to bring my child to school or take them to the doctor,’ but it’s not even notarized. But these grandparents wholeheartedly think that that piece of paper written by the birth parent is worth its weight in gold.”
A break will take place at noon, and then attendees will choose between “Keeping the Peace: De-Escalation Strategies for Grandfamilies Confronting Physical Aggression,” presented by Laura Fuller, the School Success Initiative supervisor at the Guidance Center, which will cover conflict resolution, or “A Closer Look at Pre/Teens and Digital Technology,” presented by Allison Smith, a School Success Initiative clinician at the Guidance Center, which will discuss the impact of digital technology on preteens.
Grosky added that there is a great need for support for kinship care and grandparents raising grandchildren.
“The Ageways nonprofit senior organization is our funder for older adults that are kinship caregivers, and OLHSA funds the younger adults who are kinship caregivers. So we’re able to not turn anyone away. Unfortunately, there are so many potential people that could use this service that we choose to not create a waitlist and just enroll everyone who would like to take part in
the support group and receive the referrals for the time being, because Ageways had done an ad hoc study of grandparents raising grandchildren in our service area, well their service area, which are six counties, but our three counties — they determined that in Macomb County, there’s about 5,400; in Oakland County, there are almost 5,900; and in Livingston, there are almost 1,000, so in our service area of about 2,600 square miles, there are about 11,000 parenting relatives, and we are funded for only about 200.”
The coalition has monthly hybrid meetings hosted virtually and at different locations for kinship caregivers to connect and be aware of the resources that are available to them. Lathrup Village resident Regina Cobb began raising her grandson after her son’s passing. “I’m learning to be a parent all over again. So it’s rewarding and a blessing, and it’s also challenging at the same time. Grandparents Raising Grandchildren has made that a lot simpler for me and given me a lot of positive advice to look forward to, because it is overwhelming at times.”
She added that she commends the parents who put in the hard work to raise their children well.
Southfield resident Lesa Tripp is a
grandmother who has been raising her grandchild since he was a year and a half old. She found the coalition two years ago after a Google search and decided to check it out.
“It’s a wonderful group to unite different communities of people that otherwise wouldn’t get together … like when we do different activities, for instance, like the Detroit Institute of Arts. It was very, very beautiful. We had a pottery class, and the people were there from Wyandotte, Southfield, all the communities, Pontiac. We all got together, the big group of us, the grandparents and the children made pottery masks. Those masks were displayed at the DIA for about six weeks last year for everybody to see that came for Christmas.”
Tripp said that she appreciates the coalition because it engages the kids and grandparents. “There are pros and cons, as it is with everything in life, but raising grandchildren is something special.”
To register for the third annual Kinship Care Symposium, visit bit.ly/KinshipCare2024.
For more information on the Michigan Kinship Care Coalition, visit www.facebook. com/MichiganKCC or contact Lisa Grodsky at (248) 372-1915.
S SATURDAY, , OCTOBER R 5 4:00 0- 9:00 0 PM AT JIMMY JOHN’S FIELD 7171 Auburn Road, Utica, 48317
Photo provided by Lisa Grodsky
Lesa Tripp, of Southfield, left, and OLHSA Grandparents Raising Grandchildren Program Operations Manager Lisa Grodsky, right, attend the “Gigabytes for Grand-families.”
and friends enjoy
CIDER MILLS IN OAKLAND AND MACOMB COUNTIES
Armada
• Blake’s Orchard & Cider Mill, 17985 Armada Center Road, blakefarms.com/orchard-cider-mill
• Blake’s Big Apple, 71485 North Ave., blakefarms.com/big-apple
Bloomfield Hills
• Franklin Cider Mill, 7450 Franklin Road, franklincidermill.com
Commerce Township
• Long Family Orchard and Farm, 1540 E. Commerce Road, longsorchard.com
Highland Township
• Bonadeo Farms, 1215 White Lake Road, bonadeofarms.com
Holly
• Diehl’s Orchard & Cider Mill, 1479 Ranch Road, diehlsorchard.com
• Mitchell Farm, 3500 Mitchell Road, mitchellfarm.biz/index.html
Lake Orion
• Yates Cider Mill at Canterbury Village, 2375 Joslyn Ct., yatescidermill.com/canterbury-village
Northville
• Parmenter’s Northville Cider Mill, 714 Baseline Road, northvillecider.com
Ortonville
• Ashton Orchards, 3925 Seymour Lake Road, michigan.org/property/ashton-orchards
Rochester
• Rochester Cider Mill, 5125 N. Rochester Road, rochestercidermill.com
Rochester Hills
• Yates Cider Mill, 1950 E. Avon Road, yatescidermill.com
Romeo
• Hy’s Cider Mill, 6350 37 Mile Road, hyscidermill.com
• Stony Creek Orchard and Cider Mill, 2961 W. 32 Mile Road, stonycreekorchard.com
• Westview Orchards & Cider Mill, 65075 Van Dyke Ave., westvieworchards.com
South Lyon
• Blake’s Lyon Township, 61475 Silver Lake Road, blakefarms.com/blakes-south-lyon
Washington Township
• Big Red Orchard and Cider Mill, 4900 32 Mile Road, bigredorchard.com
• Verellen Orchards, 63260 Van Dyke Ave., verellenorchards.com
Cider mills from page 7A
freshly picked apples, or sipping apple cider with fresh doughnuts is part of the culture of Michigan.
“It’s definitely a southeast Michigan tradition for people to have a pilgrimage to a cider mill in the fall,” said Katie Titus, who owns Yates Cider Mill in Rochester Hills.
Yates Cider Mill, touted as one of the oldest cider mills in Michigan, has been in operation for over 160-years, bringing families and friends together each year for fall flavors and fun.
“Some folks have actually been coming for decades. I’ve spoken to so many of them who’ve said they started coming when they were little, they brought their kids, and now, their grandkids,” Titus said. “We even have that within our own employee base, where we have third generations of kids working whose parents and grandparents have worked here — so it’s not just the customers, it’s also our employees that keep coming back year after year.”
Fresh-pressed cider, warm doughnuts, farm animals and scenic trails are a few of highlights at Yates that keep guests coming back.
“Our focus is really good cider and really good doughnuts, and that’s what we do really well,” Titus explained.
The mill’s press can produce 300 gallons of apple cider each hour, and guests can even watch cider being made on-site. The cider recipe, Titus said, changes a bit as the season goes on and different apples become ripe, adding new flavors as the weeks pass by.
“We also aim to have fresh doughnuts all day long — we don’t just make them in the morning. We make them all day, so everybody gets fresh doughnuts,” she added.
Fudge, ice cream, hot dogs and more are available for purchase.
“We aim to have an environment that
is park-like, where people can take a walk on the trail with their cider and doughnuts, enjoy some hotdogs for lunch and grab some fudge from the Frankenmuth Fudge Shoppe here,” Titus said. “We just want our customers to come enjoy time with their friends and family, and enjoy the fall weather, because Michigan is having amazing fall weather so far.”
Blake’s, a family-owned and operated orchard and cider mill in Armada that has been serving generations since 1946, is reporting a robust crop this year leading into the busy fall season.
“The harvest of the crop is two to three weeks earlier this year than it has been in past years because it’s been so hot this summer — and because of that too, we are seeing a bumper crop,” said Jacqlyn Bradford, director of marketing at Blake’s Orchard and Cider Mill.
The Blake’s Family of Companies has a harvest of fun-filled events and attractions at its four locations — Blake’s Orchard & Cider Mill in Armada, Blake’s Big Apple in Armada, Blake’s Backyard in Almont and Blake’s Lyon Township in South Lyon.
The farm and apple orchards started it all in 1946, and they expanded over the years to include year-round attractions, experiences and events.
This fall, the crowds are already rolling in.
“It’s a tradition that’s passed down,” Bradford said. “It’s a simple activity, but one that has been around for so long.”
Depending on the Blake’s site, guests can enjoy u-pick apples and pumpkins, cider and doughnuts, corn mazes, a haunted house, hayrides, a hard cider bar, farm stand produce and more.
“We really try to create experiences for our customers and innovate all the time. We really try to get people out and create memories that you wouldn’t be able to do at your typical cider mill,” Bradford added.
Call Staff Writer Mary Beth Almond at (586) 498-1060.
Photo by Erin Sanchez
Families
some sweet treats at Yates Cider Mill in Rochester Sept. 7.
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COMMUNITY CALENDAR
SEPT. 12
Eat to the Beat: Hear Kathleen Murray Band, also food trucks on site, 11 a.m.-2 p.m., Southfield Municipal Campus front lawn, 26000 Evergreen Road, (248) 796-4620, cityofsouthfield.com
‘How Disinformation is Sabotaging America’: University of Michigan law professor Barbara McQuade discusses her new book, 7-9 p.m., Temple Emanu-El, 14450 W. 10 Mile Road in Oak Park, (248) 9674020, templefamily@emanuel-mich.org, jlive.app/events/8577
SEPT. 13-15
One Acts Fest: See eight performances, 8 p.m. Sept. 13, 2 and 8 p.m. Sept. 14, and 2 p.m. Sept. 15, Rosedale Community Players inside Peace Lutheran Church, 17029 W. 13 Mile Road in Southfield, (313) 532-4010, rcptickets@gmail.com, rosedalecommunityplayers.com
SEPT. 20
International Day of Peace ceremony: Presentations and more, 5-6 p.m., outside Southfield City Hall, 26000 Evergreen Road, www. cityofsouthfield.com
SEPT. 20-22
Funky Ferndale Art Fair: More than 140 juried artists and authors, 4-7:30 p.m. Sept. 20, 10 a.m.-7:30 p.m. Sept. 21 and 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Sept. 22, west of Woodward Avenue on Nine Mile Road, www. funkyferndaleartfair.com
DIY Street Fair: Bands, artists, crafters, breweries, wineries, distilleries, restaurants, food trucks, businesses, nonprofits and more, 6 p.m.-midnight Sept. 20 11 a.m.-midnight Sept. 21 and 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Sept. 22 east side of Woodward Avenue between Nine Mile Road and East Troy Street in Ferndale, ferndalediy.com
SEPT. 26
Women of Vision fundraiser: Hosted by Southfield-based National Council of Jewish Women, Michigan, features Boston Marathon survivor and inspirational speaker Rebekah Gregory, awardees include skinnytees founder Linda Schlesinger-Wagner and nonprofit Bookstock, 11:45 a.m.-1:15 p.m. with lunch, door prizes and 50-50 to follow, plus boutiques 9:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m., Adat Shalom Synagogue, 29901 Middlebelt Road in Farmington Hills, ncjwmi.org
WANT
Visit candgnews.com/ calendar or use this QR code
SEPT. 27-29
Michigan Women’s Expo: Hundreds of exhibits and vendors covering health and wellness, beauty and skin care, clothing and accessories, home décor, self-defense and safety training, travel, cooking and baking, Michigan authors and books, senior care resources, and much more, 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Sept. 27-28 and 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Sept. 29, Suburban Collection Showplace, 46100 Grand River Ave. in Novi, kohlerexpo.com/michigan-womens-expo
SEPT. 28
Clawson Fall Festival: Hayrides, live music, artisan market, food trucks, kids activities, nonprofit booths, cider and doughnut tent, bake sale, and Clawson Fire Department’s bonfire event, 3-7 p.m., Clawson City Park, 1080 N. Custer Ave., (248) 589-0334, parksrec@ cityofclawson.com
SEPT. 28-29
Birmingham Street Art Fair: Featuring 100 artists, silent art auction to benefit Common Ground, art activities, live music and food, 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Sept. 28 and 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Sept. 29, located in and around Shain Park, 270 W. Merrill St., birminghamstreetartfair.com, givebutter.com/c/bY3iFr
SEPT. 29
‘No Balls’ Comedy Ball: Fundraiser for Michigan Animal Adoption Network and Canine Companions Rescue Center, presented by Pet Supplies Plus Bloomfield Hills, featuring comedian Dave Dyer and emcee Jay Towers, cash bar, buffet dinner, raffles and auctions, and adoptable puppies, 12:30-5 p.m., Mark Ridley’s Comedy Castle, 310 S. Troy St. in Royal Oak, (586) 914-1623, marieskladd@yahoo.com, nbcb.weebly.com
Walk to fight Huntington’s disease: 10 a.m. (registration 9:30 a.m.), Memorial Park, 31050 Woodward Ave. in Royal Oak, michigan.hdsa. org/events/team-hope-walk-detroit-mi
Lung Force Walk: Untimed 1.5-mile stroll through Detroit Zoo, 8:30 a.m. (7:30 a.m. check in), 8450 W. 10 Mile Road in Royal Oak, lungforce.org/detroit ONGOING
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Input the details, upload a photo and select “Review Changes,” then “Submit and Finish.” Events should appear online within 2 hours, and will appear in print as space permits. There’s no limit as to how many you can submit.
munity Center, 14300 Oak Park Blvd., (248) 691-7555, oakparkmi. gov
‘Visions of Excellence: Unveiled’: Art exhibit featuring 13 Michigan-based artists, on display until Oct. 31, Southfield City Hall, 26000 Evergreen Road, (248) 420-3396, cityofsouthfield.com
A Matter of Balance: Managing Concerns about Falls: Weekly workshops presented by National Kidney Foundation of Michigan, for ages 65 and older, 2-4 p.m. Mondays until Oct. 28, Emmanuel Lutheran Church, 23425 Lahser Road in Southfield, free but donations appreciated, registration required, (313) 259-1574 (ext. 2029) or (734) 222-9800 (ext. 2140), mobprogram@nkfm.org
Career development program: For ages 45 and older, 10 a.m.-noon Mondays and Wednesdays until Sept. 25, Gesher Human Services, 29699 Southfield Road, registration required, (248) 233-4472, sjames@geshermi.org, geshermi.org
Optimist Club of Southfield-Lathrup Village: Meets 6:30 p.m. every second Tuesday of month via Zoom, southfield-lathrupvillageoptimists. org, slvoptimist@gmail.com
Real estate exam study group: Free classes 6-8 p.m. Thursdays, Southfield Public Library, 26300 Evergreen Road, (734) 644-3947
Support group for birth moms: For those who relinquished their children for adoption, also light meal, 6:30-8:30 p.m. every second Tuesday of month, Christian Family Services, 17105 W. 12 Mile Road in Southfield, Sarah@CFS-Michigan.org
Michigan Renaissance Festival: Themed weekends are Shamrocks & Shenanigans Sept. 14-15, Harvest Huzzah Sept. 21-22, and Festival Friday and Sweet Endings Sept. 27-29, 9 a.m.-7 p.m., 12600 Dixie Highway in Holly, michrenfest.com
Health workshops: Hosted by Corewell Health, free and virtual, beaumonthealth.digitalsignup.com
Lupus support groups: 10 a.m. every second Tuesday of month and 7 p.m. every last Wednesday, Zoom, (248) 901-7299, milupus.org/ support-groups
Medication goes missing
WEST BLOOMFIELD — On Aug. 13, a resident told police that after a gathering at their home with more than 40 people they noticed that several medications were missing.
No suspects were identified.
PayPal scam shows fake phone number on internet search
WEST BLOOMFIELD — On Aug. 13, an officer was dispatched to the 5400 block of Fairway Court to take a fraud report.
The resident reported having received a potentially fraudulent email about a PayPal charge.
The resident searched for a customer service number and reportedly called a fraudulent one by mistake.
The unknown suspect or suspects allegedly conned the resident out of thousands of dollars by stating that there was a problem with the resident’s computer.
Motorcyclist reportedly hits 130 mph before arrest
ROYAL OAK — A motorcyclist was arrested in Royal Oak Aug. 8 after allegedly speeding at more than 130 mph on Interstate 94 and 100 mph on Interstate 75.
The Michigan State Police had tried to stop the motorcyclist and reportedly tracked the motorcyclist from the sky in a helicopter and took a video of the whole incident. The incident began on I-94 in Dearborn near the Wyoming Avenue exit and ended when the driver pulled into downtown Royal Oak and Royal Oak police were able to pull him over.
Customer damages inside of Mobil gas station
ROYAL OAK — A complainant reported that at 1:30 p.m. Aug. 13, a customer became irate and damaged multiple shelving units at the Mobil gas station on Woodward Avenue.
Apartment resident finds door lock tampered with TROY — A resident on John R Road reported that on Aug. 2, around 5:45 p.m., his lock was messed with when he briefly left his apartment to take out the trash.
When he returned, he discovered an unknown suspect had squeezed superglue into the deadbolt lock of his door, rendering it inoperable.
Sewer drain cover stolen from park
TROY — A city employee reported that, between Aug. 3 at 10 p.m. and Aug. 4 at 7:30 a.m., an unknown suspect stole a sewer drain cover from the parking lot of Brinston Park, located at 2250 Brinston St.
Books stolen from municipal campus
SOUTHFIELD — Between 10:30 p.m. Aug. 9 and 3:19 p.m. Aug. 10, miscellaneous books were taken from a rolling cart left unattended in the city complex at 26000 Evergreen Road.
Resident observes break-in while out of town
SOUTHFIELD — While a resident was out of town, she saw a break-in at her home.
At 2:20 a.m. on Aug. 10, the victim reported seeing through her security cameras an unknown individual enter the back door of her home in the 17000 block of Roseland Boulevard.
Man scammed while trying to buy speaker
NOVI — A man was scammed out of $377 after he attempted to buy a Bose Bluetooth speaker from someone online Aug. 17. The man sent the seller the money via Cash App and was told that the speaker would be coming from Grand Rapids. However, he never received it and the seller blocked him online. At the suggestion of police, the man contacted his bank, but he was told he could not be reimbursed, according to the report. He reportedly did not want to pursue a court case and told police he was just going to take it as a “lesson learned.”
Vape pens stolen during Dream Cruise
BIRMINGHAM — Police were dispatched at around 10 a.m. Aug. 17 to a parking lot in the 34600 block of Woodward Avenue that had been rented by a tobacco shop for a special event during the Woodward Dream Cruise.
The event manager reported that multiple vape pens and possibly other items were stolen from a display table by at least one person who jumped the fence overnight.
Two hired security guards reportedly discovered the unknown people in the event area near the display table. An investigation was ongoing.
Suspects wait for police to leave, steal clothing
BIRMINGHAM — An officer was dispatched to a clothing store in the 100 block of South Old Woodward around 7 p.m. Aug. 13 for a retail fraud. The store manager reported that two females in their mid-20s had entered the store while police were there investigating a theft that had happened 30 minutes earlier. The suspects walked around the store until officers left, and then they began creating piles of merchandise. One suspect left the store, and moments later, the other suspect ran out the door with a pile of clothes valued
vehicle recklessly drove away, heading north on Old Woodward. An investigation was ongoing.
Drunken man crashes car trying to flee from police
BLOOMFIELD TOWNSHIP — A 31-year-old man from Bloomfield Township was arrested after reportedly crashing his car fleeing from police while driving drunk with no license.
Bloomfield Township police were dispatched to a possible drunk driver in a white Toyota Tacoma heading north on Telegraph, from Lone Pine Road, at approximately 12:50 a.m. Aug. 17.
Officers saw the car on Telegraph, near Square Lake road, and attempted to stop the vehicle, which was reportedly crossing over all lanes of traffic and traveling at speeds over 100 mph. As the suspect neared Humphrey Avenue, police said, his vehicle struck a curb, drove over the center median into the southbound lanes, drove into a ditch, and then crashed into a tree. The suspect, who exited the vehicle, was ordered to the ground by officers, but reportedly took off running. He was taken into custody shortly after and reportedly smelled of intoxicants. He had a small baggie of pills on him that police suspect to be oxycodone.
A breath sample taken at the Bloomfield Township Police Department reportedly showed a 0.153% blood alcohol content.
The driver was arraigned at the 52-1 District Court and was charged with second-degree fleeing and eluding, resisting and obstructing, operating while intoxicated and driving without a license. He was issued an $8,000 bond.
Three men arrested after stealing clothes
BLOOMFIELD TOWNSHIP — The Bloomfield Township Police Department was dispatched to Dick’s Sporting Goods, 2105 S. Telegraph Road, for a retail fraud in progress at approximately 3:30 p.m. Aug. 17.
Information was provided that two men had entered the store, stolen several items of clothing, and left without paying. Officers arrived at the scene and were flagged down by several witnesses, who informed them that the suspects had fled southbound on Telegraph in a black Nissan with heavy front-end damage.
Additional officers located the vehicle traveling south on Telegraph Road, near Maple Road, and initiated a traffic stop. Three male passengers were identified, and 55 articles of stolen clothing, totaling $2,755, were recovered from inside the vehicle. All three individuals were taken into custody for retail fraud. The report was forwarded to the Oakland County Prosecutor’s Office for review.
Parking spot disagreement leads to assault charges
FARMINGTON — On Aug. 8 at approximately 8:15 p.m., officers were dispatched to the 32000 block of Grand River Avenue for a report of an assault and battery.
When officers arrived, the suspect, a 56-year-old man, had fled the scene, but witnesses were able to copy down the license plate of the suspect vehicle.
A 27-year-old man reported that he and the suspect had had a disagreement about a parking spot. The suspect then assaulted him and fled, according to the police report.
Officers were able to locate the suspect from the license plate, and he was arrested and cited for assault and battery.
Juveniles apprehended
HAZEL PARK — According to a police report, police were dispatched to the area of East Harry Avenue and Merrill Avenue at around 1 a.m. Aug. 16 to investigate a report about three male subjects walking in the street wearing masks.
When police arrived, the three subjects started running. Police were able to apprehend two of them — both were 14-year-old juveniles from Hamtramck and Detroit. There were no reported thefts, and the two juveniles were turned over to their parents.
Also on Aug. 16, at 2:30 p.m., a resident in the 1700 block of East Harry reported that sometime between 6 p.m. Aug. 15 and 7 a.m. Aug. 16, someone entered his unlocked vehicle and stole a 9 mm handgun, along with some cash. The vehicle had been parked in front of the victim’s home.
Around 2:30 p.m. the next day, Aug. 17, a postal worker walking his route observed a gun on the front lawn of a home on East Jarvis. The gun was loaded with ammunition and next to its holster. The postal worker called the police. The gun was verified as the one that had been reported stolen.
The case was being investigated to determine the identity of the third juvenile who ran from police and whether any of the subjects were involved with the theft of the gun.
Customer caught