ADRIAN — In a 5-4 vote, Lenawee County commissioners agreed on Feb. 14 to say that they are not open to selling the former Tecumseh Products property to anyone who wants to develop it for industrial purposes.

The proposal was made by Commissioner David Stimpson (R-Tecumseh). He said that when rumors start flying about possible buyers — such as a steel tubing operation that was proposed last year but didn’t end up with the county receiving an offer — it creates uncertainty in the community. It’s hard to convince people to develop an area for commercial or residential use when they think a factory might start up next door, he said.

Stimpson said an $8 million townhome and commercial development is being planned immediately north of the site. 

“Whenever we start talking about putting in an integrated steel operation or steel bending operation, that gives them pause,” Stimpson said.

Stimpson also said that Tecumseh’s new land use plan, which was developed with input from about 1,000 residents, will call for commercial and residential zoning in that area, not industrial.

Commissioner Terry Collins (R-Adrian) agreed with Stimpson. 

“There’s no doubt that that property has, over a period of time, become an albatross for this commission,” he said, adding: “There was a time I’d say, ‘Somebody give us a buck and you can have it. It’s yours.’”

But Collins said his position has evolved. If the county isn’t careful about who it sells to, he said, it could harm efforts to return the site to productive use.

“There are people who buy run-down contaminated properties and just sit on them,” he said.

Collins said it wouldn’t be fair to Tecumseh to sell the land to someone who would develop it in a way the city doesn’t want.

“It struck me that if we sell this to certain individuals or organizations, we’re in effect handing the city of Tecumseh a pig in a poke,” he said. “In virtually the heart of that city, right next door to the downtown district, we could let a factory go up because it’s going to make us a few bucks, make the county a few bucks. I’m not sure I want to do that to Tecumseh.”

One of the commissioners who disagreed was Kevon Martis (R-Riga). He said Tecumseh has the power to use its own zoning ordinances to determine whether the land is industrial or not.

“The negotiation with respect to land use is between the buyer and the jurisdiction in which they are buying,” Martis said. “We are not here to enforce Tecumseh’s zoning ordinance. They have full power and authority to do that.” 

Commissioner Dustin Krasny (R-Onsted) said he’s concerned that if the county limits its sale options, getting funds to help with cleanup could become harder. He said buried hazardous materials continue to be found on the site, noting, “We just found a buried gas container from nearly a century ago.”

Commissioner Nancy Jenkins-Arno (R-Clayton) said although the Tecumseh Products site is the county’s responsibility, the government ultimately should not be in the real estate business.

“I think our goal should be to get that back on the tax rolls as quickly as possible,” she said.

Stimpson disagreed with that position, saying “I don’t think our goal is to get that property back onto the tax rolls in the quickest manner, but to get that property back onto the tax rolls in the best manner.”

The final vote was 5-4. Voting in favor of saying the county won’t sell the land to an industrial developer were Stimpson, Collins, K.Z. Bolton (D-Adrian), Ralph Tillotson (R-Adrian Township), and Dawn Bales (R-Madison Township). Voting no were Martis, Jenkins-Arno, Krasny, and chairman Jim Van Doren (R-Tipton).

During the public comment period, Todd Gillman, a Republican precinct delegate from Cambridge Township, blasted the commissioners who voted yes and threatened some of the Republicans with a primary challenge over the issue.

“Sitting on property, waiting for the value to go up, is not the role of the government,” he said.

He said that “if a citizen wants to buy it and sit on it, more power to them.”

Gillman also argued that Stimpson, who owns property near the site, should not be involved in decisions about it, because he could be affected financially.

“He has a conflict of interest,” Gillman said. “He owns property in the immediate vicinity. He should not have input on what happens with that property, he should not have a vote on what happens with that property, and he probably shouldn’t even be on the board as long as the county owns that property.”

What’s next: Commission chairman Jim Van Doren appointed a committee to talk with Tecumseh city leaders about the future of the Tecumseh Products site. In addition to Van Doren, the committee will consist of commissioners David Stimpson (because he represents Tecumseh), Dustin Krasny (chair of the physical resources committee) and Terry Collins (chair of the ways and means committee), plus county administrator Kim Murphy.

The Lenawee County Commission meets on the second Wednesday of every month at 1:30 p.m. at the Lenawee County Courthouse, 301 N. Main St.  Meetings are open to the public. Meeting agendas and recordings of past meetings can be found at www.lenawee.mi.us/agendacenter.