Chase v. State Boundary Commission

303 N.W.2d 186, 103 Mich. App. 193, 1981 Mich. App. LEXIS 2691
CourtMichigan Court of Appeals
DecidedJanuary 23, 1981
DocketDocket No. 43874
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 303 N.W.2d 186 (Chase v. State Boundary Commission) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Michigan Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Chase v. State Boundary Commission, 303 N.W.2d 186, 103 Mich. App. 193, 1981 Mich. App. LEXIS 2691 (Mich. Ct. App. 1981).

Opinion

Per Curiam.

Plaintiffs petitioned the Ingham County Circuit Court for review of an annexation decision by the Michigan State Boundary Commission in which the commission refused to amend the original petition to include the Brookland Farms Subdivision. The defendants moved for summary judgment, which was granted on February 5, 1979. Plaintiffs appeal as of right.

On April 23, 1971, the Novi City Council filed an annexation petition with the Michigan State Boundary Commission seeking the annexation of seven noncontiguous parcels of land comprising a substantial part of Novi Township. Since the total population of the combined parcels numbered less than 100, there was no statutory right to petition for a referendum with respect to the proposed annexation.

An eighth parcel of land, the Brookland Farms Subdivision, which contained more than 100 people and constituted the remainder of Novi Township, was not included in this petition. Novi Township subsequently requested the Boundary Commission to expand the petition to include this eighth parcel of land pursuant to MCL 123.1010; MSA 5.2242(10), which authorizes the commission to revise the boundaries of the area proposed for annexation.

[197]*197The original petition by the City of Novi was deemed legally sufficient and a public hearing, Docket No. 71-AR-9, was held on October 20, 1971. Testimony was taken and documents were presented, the bulk of which pertained to the seven parcels of land. The request to include the eighth parcel of land was addressed at the meeting, but the commission indicated that there were serious legal questions with respect to its authority to revise the proposed boundaries to include Brook-land Farms, since the subdivision was not contiguous with any other parcels proposed for annexation.

An adjudicative (nonpublic) meeting was held on January 26, 1972, at which discussion centered on the petition for the seven parcels of land. At the conclusion of the meeting, the commission voiced its approval of the petition and ruled that it did not have the authority to revise the petition to include the Brookland Farms Subdivision. On May 25, 1972, the commission issued a document to that effect entitled "Findings of Fact and Order”. The annexation was ordered to be effective on May 31, 1972.

After the original petition had been filed, the City of Novi also filed a separate petition for the annexation of the Brookland Farms Subdivision. After public hearings, this petition was also approved by the commission. Because residents in Brookland Farms numbered more than 100 and a referendum was required, a referendum was held on May 7, 1973. The proposed annexation was defeated by a vote of 74 to 4.

On June 26, 1972, the Township of Novi petitioned the Ingham County Circuit Court to review the commission’s decision of May 25, 1972, approving the original annexation petition. Both the [198]*198circuit court and the Court of Appeals incorrectly found an amendment to the state boundary commission act unconstitutional as a violation of 1963 Const, art 4, §§ 24, 25. On appeal of this case sub nom Midland Twp v State Boundary Comm, 401 Mich 641; 259 NW2d 326 (1977), the Supreme Court rejected all constitutional objections to the statute and affirmed the commission’s decision to allow the annexation of the seven parcels of land in Novi Township. The Supreme Court also held that the Boundary Commission did possess the authority under § 10 of the act to revise the proposed boundaries so as to include noncontiguous parcels, such as the Brookland Farms Subdivision. Since the Supreme Court had "no way of knowing whether the commission would have included the subdivision if it was aware that it had the authority to do so”, the Novi petition was remanded for reconsideration. 401 Mich 677.

On remand, the Boundary Commission held four adjudicative meetings on November 22, 1977, January 25, 1978, April 19, 1978, and August 2, 1978, concerning the amendment of the City of Novi’s petition to include Brookland Farms. These meetings were not noticed public hearings, but anyone present was permitted to address the commissioners.

On January 25, 1978, counsel for both the Township of Novi and the City of Novi presented arguments, but no other witnesses testified. Mr. John H. Bauckham, the township’s attorney, argued in favor of including Brookland Farms. Bauckham stated that the seven parcels consisted of 72% of the township’s total valuation of real property as compared with Brookland Farms’ 28%. The seven parcels also accounted for 91% of the total acreage of the township. He contended that all criteria [199]*199supporting the annexation of the other seven tracts — the need for urban services, the absence of topographical problems, and the extension into the proposed areas as a natural boundary for the City of Novi — applied equally well to the Brookland Farms Subdivision.

In response, David Fried, the city’s attorney, argued that Brookland Farms should not be included. Fried admitted that Brookland Farms was not a viable community on its own, and that it must depend on the City of Novi for many of its services, including the fire department. However, historically the Brookland Farms Subdivision had never belonged to the Village of Novi and had refused the choice of annexation in a vote in 1973. Bauckham countered this assertion by pointing out that the electorate had changed substantially from 1973, due to the 1,200 members of a mobile-home park located in one of the other seven parcels of township land. The remainder of the meeting was devoted to discussion of road construction and tax problems of Chateau Estates, the new mobile-home park.

Prior to the next meeting, both parties submitted written position papers and replies thereto concerning the issue in question and whether the public hearings were necessary due to the changes of circumstances since 1971. The city argued that the increased urbanization and resulting increase in the need for municipal services, such as police and fire protection, necessitated that the seven tracts of Novi Township be annexed to the city. However, the city also stated that Brookland Farms should not be included because such inclusion would result in a referendum for the entire township, which would ultimately defeat the petitioned annexation and continue the fragmented, [200]*200parasitic Township of Novi. The township reiterated its contention that the revision of the petition to include Brookland Farms must be decided on the basis of statutory criteria, all of which pointed toward its inclusion. The township argued that to approve the petition without revision would result in the disenfranchisement of an electorate that had been significantly altered since the original 1973 referendum.

At the adjudicative meeting on April 19, 1978, the commission refused to admit any new evidence. The attorneys for both parties then reiterated their basic positions. A representative for the mobile-home park stated that the residents did not prefer annexation.

On August 2, 1978, the Boundary Commission issued an order in which it refused to revise the petition so as to include Brookland Farms. The following findings of fact were made:

"Finding # 1: The Commission finds that, after review of the entire record of this petition at their adjudicative meeting of April 19, 1978, a motion was made by Commissioner Rozian, 'I move that we adjust the boundaries of 71-AR-9 to include Brookland Farms Subdivision’, and the motion died for lack of support.

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Related

Casco Township v. State Boundary Commission
622 N.W.2d 332 (Michigan Court of Appeals, 2001)

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Bluebook (online)
303 N.W.2d 186, 103 Mich. App. 193, 1981 Mich. App. LEXIS 2691, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/chase-v-state-boundary-commission-michctapp-1981.