Ypsilanti Township asks judge to address illegal dump full of concrete, construction materials
Township officials discovered a lot cleared out behind this home on South Congress Street that is being used as an illegal dump for a concrete company.
Tom Perkins | For AnnArbor.com
But the township’s attorney has been unable to locate a key player in the case - the property’s owners.
Officials say Hearns Concrete was discovered to be illegally dumping construction debris, concrete, old vehicles, construction materials, a pool and other items on the parcel, which is heavily wooded and several hundred feet off Congress.
Lincorp Holdings has owned the property and left it undeveloped for 30 years. An approximately 350-foot driveway leads to a 1.5 acre clearing, which is just east of Hewitt Road on the south side of Congress. Officials estimate debris has been dumped there for at least 10 years and concrete is piled up to four feet high at some points.
Chunks of old concrete are piled on a 1.5 acre illegal dump for an Ypsilanti concrete company.
Tom Perkins | For AnnArbor.com
Township attorney Dennis McLain said Lincorp’s last known address is in Toronto, but attempts to serve the company through the mail failed. It was discovered that another Toronto-based company has been paying property taxes on behalf of Lincorp, and the township is now attempting to have that company take pleadings on behalf of Lincorp.
“We haven’t been able to get a hold the property owner, but one would think they would be upset and would want Hearn’s to return the property to its original condition. That involves not just removing concrete, but it also involves restoring trees that have been taken,” McLain said.
An evidentiary hearing is scheduled for June 28 in front of Washtenaw County Circuit Judge Carol Kuhnke. The township is asking that the property be cleared of all its debris.
McLain said the project will be a massive cleanup effort because there is so much concrete and other debris that is spread out in pockets throughout the property.
Ordinance officials have met with the owner of the neighboring home and a Hearns representative to begin discussing the cleanup. McLain said he is pleased the company appears to be cooperating and has begun some cleanup work, but he underscored the size of the project.
“Whether or not the defendants have the ability to comply with everything that needs to be done has yet to be determined,” McLain said.
Messages left for Hearns representatives were not returned.
The site is of particular concern because it lies near the Miller Drain, though McLain said Washtenaw County Drain Commission officials were notified but didn't find any reason to take action.
Tom Perkins is a freelance reporter. Contact the AnnArbor.com news desk at news@annarbor.com.
Comments
Mike D.
Mon, Jun 3, 2013 : 1:53 p.m.
Per publicly available records (Map Washtenaw), the home pictured, which is immediately in front of the site, is owned by Jerry Hearns. Jerry Hearns also owns 212 N. Lincoln, where Hearns Concrete has is office. It is reasonable to assume the business and the man are one in the same. He bought the property on land contract between 2000 and 2004, around the time the dumping started. It's hard to imagine he doesn't know who the owners of the property are; would you dump concrete in a lot behind your house if you didn't know the owners of that lot wouldn't eventually come back and demand answers? Of course not. http://binged.it/13zKR8L
15crown00
Sun, Jun 2, 2013 : 1:17 a.m.
it's time to get with it or get off the pot.
E. Daniel Ayres
Sat, Jun 1, 2013 : 8:10 p.m.
It is about time somebody took notice of this crime! I occasionally walked my previous dog along the route of the watershed, and have been blown away for years by the crap that gets piled up in that area. Frankly, I suspect that the named Hearns concrete folks are just one of the latest who happened to be spotted. People who are too cheap to pay "tipping fees" at the local facilities scout around for places like this and unless the property owners and/or the neighbors complain they get away with it far too often. The land in question is one of the few places where the creek flow is not encased in concrete drain which got built starting after WW II to raise property values upstream and to drain the springs on the old Washtenaw Country Club grounds.
John
Sun, Jun 2, 2013 : 2:13 a.m.
Illegal dumping seems to be a traditional SE Michigan hobby. I've never seen so much of it before moving here. We used to find old refrigerators and some random junk in the woods from time to time in mid-MI, and there were some old sites in West MI that I know of that haven't been an issue for decades, but the scale I've seen here is laughable. Are the dump fees really that bad here that people can't afford to dispose of junk properly, or are they just lazy/cheap?
jondhall
Sat, Jun 1, 2013 : 4:07 p.m.
Some people get five years in Prison for dumping in the Huron River, should the same penalty be applied here?
Basic Bob
Sat, Jun 1, 2013 : 9:43 p.m.
When you dump toxic waste into the river, it immediately affects the environment, and is nearly impossible to clean up. Broken concrete is not an immediate environmental hazard, and the water resources commissioner recognized that when she declined to act. The alleged criminals will be forced to clean up the mess and pay the cost of labor and disposal. Jail will be an option if he does not comply with court orders, just as the courts do with slumlords and international bridge owners who are held in contempt.
Frank Lee
Sat, Jun 1, 2013 : 1:23 p.m.
This is laughable! The owner of Hearn's Concrete has a public profile on Facebook that is updated regularly, his home address is readily available, and the company along with their equipment are still in operation. Safe to say that Ypsilanti Township isn't trying very hard to contact them.
mike
Sun, Jun 2, 2013 : 3:36 p.m.
"Messages left for Hearns representatives were not returned." That is a quote from the article only after "Ordinance officials have met with the owner of the neighboring home and a Hearns representative to begin discussing the cleanup." I guess that the township was in a discussion with HEARNS yet it must have been one sided. Still, this type of dumping can not be tolerated at any level. Even if the property owner knows about the illegal dumping and is ok with it, the loss to the community is unforgivable. The loss of neighbors property values, the possible contamination to land and water in the area. Hearns, knowingly dumping solid waste in an area not designated for this should be held repsonsible. The owner, knowledgeable or not should be investigated as well. Tis should be cleaned up ASAP.
Frank Lee
Sat, Jun 1, 2013 : 2:33 p.m.
"Ordinance officials have met with the owner of the neighboring home and a Hearns representative to begin discussing the cleanup. McLain said he is pleased the company appears to be cooperating and has begun some cleanup work, but he underscored the size of the project." I stand updated. I'm going to start taking screenshots of articles before I comment on them.
Frank Lee
Sat, Jun 1, 2013 : 2:15 p.m.
I understand what was written in the article. While the property owner must be contacted as part of the legal process, it doesn't negate the crime of illegal dumping. It's very possible that Lincorp Holdings had no knowledge of the illegal dumping and is being contacted to support the litigation against Hearn's. That notion is back by what Gerald quoted in his comment. You start at the root of the problem. "Ypsilanti Township is moving forward with litigation against a local company accused of illegally dumping concrete and other debris on a private 17.5-acre site near Congress Street and Hewitt Road". That's Hearns Concrete, not Lincorp Holdings whose last known address was outside of the country. "messages left for Hearns representatives were not returned" which was the same status the last time this story was run months ago.
Reverend Bubba X
Sat, Jun 1, 2013 : 2:01 p.m.
Please open the good eye when reading. The article indicates it is the property owner who can't be located, nor Hearns Concrete.
Gerald
Sat, Jun 1, 2013 : 1:56 p.m.
@Frank Lee: "We haven't been able to get a hold the property owner, but one would think they would be upset and would want Hearn's to return the property to its original condition. That involves not just removing concrete, but it also involves restoring trees that have been taken," Therefore its Lincorp that can't be located or contacted not Hearn's.
YpsiLivin
Sat, Jun 1, 2013 : 1:53 p.m.
It's not Hearns Concrete that the township is having trouble contacting. The township can't find the owner of record of the property that was being used as a dump.
Nicholas Urfe
Sat, Jun 1, 2013 : 12:30 p.m.
It's blight and must be removed. As they remove some of the material they may find toxic substances have necessitated a far more expensive cleanup. If someone does not go to jail for the illegal dumping, it just encourages others to do the same. The fines are often much less than the cost of proper disposal.
Paul
Sat, Jun 1, 2013 : 11:12 a.m.
But the owners of the land are not complaining about it and it is THEIR land and they have been paying the taxes. Sounds like the township is jumping the gun so to say.
John
Sun, Jun 2, 2013 : 2:04 a.m.
'Murrica!!!
Reverend Bubba X
Sat, Jun 1, 2013 : 2 p.m.
The article gives no indication that the property owners are even aware of the disposal occurring at the site. More importantly, disposal of waste concrete is legal only at a Type III landfill permitted by MDEQ per MI Act 451 Part 115. This is blatantly illegal disposal of solid waste.
no flamers!
Sat, Jun 1, 2013 : 12:12 p.m.
The issue isn't whether the property owner likes or dislikes the fact that Hearns has been dumping. The issue is that the property isn't zoned for a dump and is subject to various ordinances including the blight ordinance.