The West Bloomfield Township Planning Commission approved the construction of a 192-bed behavioral hospital south of Henry Ford West Bloomfield Hospital in November. Anthony Spokojny, an Environmental Commission member, later resigned due to this decision. He stated that 18 acres of mature trees will be cut.
18 acres of trees will be removed by the Henry Ford Health System/Acadia Health Behavioral Health Hospital Plan.
Photo by Patricia OBlenes
WEST BLOOMFIELD — In 1988, Anthony Spokojny was appointed to the West Bloomfield Township Wetlands Board, which is now known as the Environmental Commission.
He has finally decided to quit the business after more than three decades.
On Feb. 14, Spokojny opted to resign from his position in protest of a decision made by the township’s Planning Commission.
Spokojny served as the chairperson for the Environmental Commission. He agreed to serve on the Environmental Commission until a replacement was appointed by West Bloomfield Township Board of Trustees.
At a regular meeting on Nov. 10, the Environmental Commission suggested that the Planning Commission deny a request for a permit to construct a 192-bed behavioral healthcare hospital south of the Henry Ford West Bloomfield Hospital, Maplegrove Center and Henry Ford campus. The Henry Ford campus is located at 6777 W. Maple Road.
Spokojny stated that it is hospital property and is located west of Drake Road, between 14 Mile Road and 15 Mile Road.
According to West Bloomfield Township’s website, the name of the proposed site is “Henry Ford Health System/Acadia Health Behavioral Health Hospital.”
The Environmental Commission recommended denial of a use permit request for the construction of the facility, along with construction of stormwater management systems with “impact to” woodlands, according to the minutes recorded at the Nov. 10 Environmental Commission meeting.
Members of the Environmental Commission unanimously voted in favor of denial.
The Planning Commission was then notified by HFHS-Acadia Joint Venture LLC of the request.
The Planning Commission unanimously approved a motion to approve the stormwater management plan, site plan, and environmental permits.
Spokojny said that this was the first time he had ever seen it.
“There has never been a petition where the Planning Commission did not accept the recommendation of the Environmental Board, the Wetlands Board or, to my mind, the Woodlands Board. And in this case, the Planning Commission, without stating their reason, denied the recommendation of the Environmental Commission and issued the permit,” he said. “The plans have progressed since that point in time. … The project is moving forward.”
Sally Wenczel from West Bloomfield, who is also a member of the Parks and Recreation Commission, shared a similar sentiment.
“The Environmental Commission’s final decision for a project proposal like this has never been overruled by the Planning Commission,” she stated via email. “The integrity of the EC and the integrity of our long-standing woodlands ordinance has been undermined. It’s a slippery slope.”
In a letter of resignation to the Board of Trustees, Spokojny explained the reasoning for his opposition to the Planning Commission’s decision.
“The Township’s position on the Henry Ford Health Systems property, in allowing Henry Ford to tear down 18 acres of trees, has largely undone all of the environmental preservation that preceded it,” he stated. “The damage to the environment in knocking down a stand of mature trees unique to southeastern Michigan is incalculable, as is the damage to the Woodlands ordinance in permitting this activity. Henry Ford should have been required to provide a more environmentally sensitive plan.”
Spokojny continued his letter with more thoughts.
“In recognition of the harm, I am tendering my resignation to the Environmental Board, a board and a cause to which I have been devoted since my appointment 34 years ago. I will continue serving on the Board until my successor becomes available. My resignation will be effective upon appointment of my replacement.”
According to West Bloomfield Township Planning and Development Services Director Amy Neary, there was a 21-day timeframe in which the Planning Commission’s decision could have been appealed to the Township Board, but that step was not taken.
“The Environmental Commission is a recommending body to the Planning Commission for site plans. They made a recommendation for the Planning Commission, who is final approving authority. So if anybody wanted to appeal the Planning Commission’s decision, they would (have) had to do it within 21 days of the Planning Commission’s decision,” said Neary, who is not a member of the Planning Commission. “A board can’t appeal. An individual could, or a resident, but the body doesn’t itself appeal to the township board.”
Neary says that the proposed site violates neither a woodland ordinance nor a wetland ordinance.
“I would emphasize that there is a process for approval, and this project did follow the process,” Neary said. “Ultimately, it was approved by the Planning Commission. The Planning Commission did take into consideration the Environmental Commission’s comments, but ultimately, it was their decision, and they made a determination that it was approvable.”
Neary discussed the reasons for the approval.
“There’s a provision in the ordinance that allows for a greater disturbance of trees if it’s necessary in order to provide space sufficient for buildings, structures, roads, drives, parking and utilities, and the Planning Commission made the determination that the applicant demonstrated to them that they showed there were no prudent or feasible alternatives to the project that they were presented with, and they approved it,” she said.
Neary explained the current state of the project.
“The Planning Commission approved the Henry Ford Behavioral Health Hospital project and all the permits that go with that — their environmental permits — wetland, woodland and stormwater, to allow the facility to be constructed,” she said. “They’re currently under construction plan review right now. Once they get their site plans approved by the township they then go through the engineering reviews for their construction documents. They’re currently under review for that, but I believe they want to break ground this year.”
Spokojny said this is not a “save the trees” and “don’t put up a health facility” argument.
“This is a ‘put up a mental health facility and respect the environment’ type of argument,” he said. “They got conditional approval for rezoning; they came to the Environmental Commission with a footprint and plan in place and were unwilling to modify, at all, their footprint, which includes intrusion into this mature forest and the leveling of 18 acres of trees. While not all 18 acres are matured, a substantial portion of 18 acres contains trees between 100 and 200 year old. And they refused to modify — even put a driveway in a different location — even to relocate their detention base.”
Henry Ford Health System issued a statement regarding the controversy surrounding site approval.
“The need for mental health services has reached crisis levels across the nation,” stated Henry Ford Health System Senior Vice President and CEO of the North Market Denise Brooks-Williams. “We are honored for the opportunity to increase access to those services and eager to make this a reality for the communities we serve. We made a commitment to be good neighbors and responsible stewards of land when we bought it in the 1980s. Over the years, we have taken a thoughtful approach to our development plans.”
Spokojny, a township environmental specialist, was able to take a look at the plans. He is also a forester, a wetlands, and woodlands expert.
“He’s looked at the plans and said a slight modification to the plans could result in saving a substantial portion of the woods, and made that representation to the Planning Commission, made that representation to the petitioner, and Henry Ford Health Systems has denied every effort to, in any meaningful way, move the project, shift the project, alter the footprint, modify the configuration,” he said. “They’ve just said no to every effort.”
From Spokojny’s perspective, there was a way for all parties involved to come away from the project as a winner.
“The Environmental Board believed that this could be a win-win situation, that we could have the mental health facility and preserve our woods,” he said. “Henry Ford was unwilling to modify its plans at all.”
Spokojny shared his thoughts on steps that could be taken to make the facility more accessible and to reduce the environmental impact.
“There’s a road there that’ll be the eastern boundary of the building. They can move their detention basin across the road,” he said. “There’s a number of things they could easily do. It might take time, it might take effort, there might be some cost involved, but there are a number of things they could do to save those trees.”
Spokojny said that, “Henry Ford is taking 60% of the woodlands down,” and that, “we’ve never approved more than 25%.”
“I’ve been on the Wetland Board and the environmental Commission since 1988, and this is, from my perspective, the biggest environmental disaster in West Bloomfield since the ordinances were enacted in 1979,” he said. “I consider this to be a disaster.”
Brooks-Williams shared more of Henry Ford Health Systems’ perspective.
“Robust conservation efforts associated with our newest development include the permanent preservation of more than 17 acres (42% of the property) of woodlands and wetlands through a conservation easement and positioning the building to minimize the impact on natural features,” she stated. “Throughout this project, we’ve partnered closely with community leaders and neighborhood associations, and worked diligently to comply with state environmental regulations. In order to preserve the wooded area and create a buffer between the building’s height and the surrounding neighborhood, ongoing conversations led to a reduction in the building’s height from 3 stories to 2. We look forward to continuing conversations with the community and sharing our progress in the coming months.”
Despite his disapproval with where things stand with the project, Spokojny said that Henry Ford hasn’t “done anything illegal.”
“They’ve gone through the process in the ordinary fashion. They have flexed their muscles, and people have bowed to their will,” he said.
Rochelle Ruby has replaced Spokojny’s position as chairperson of Environmental Commission.
She said that, “We were surprised” by the Planning Commission’s decision.
“I was out hugging the trees and saying goodbye to them,” Rubin said. “It was very sad to me that these trees are (going to) be cut down. … It was very disappointing to many of us that we basically were bypassed, I think.”
Jonathan Warshay, a member of The Board of Trustees is the liaison for the Township Board on the Planning Commission.
In an email, he stated that he was not present at the Planning Commission meeting when plans were approved, and that, “Consideration of this matter began prior to my appointment to the WB Planning Commission.”
“I would urge the Supervisor (Steven Kaplan) and Township administration to encourage HFWB to change its plans in order to save as many trees as possible,” Warshay stated. “HFWB may also be able to add other environmentally friendly features to its plan and should explore such options. … Because there is a lack of in-patient mental health facilities within our community, I believe this is a worthwhile project and look forward to an accommodation that satisfies the Township’s environmental priorities while providing vital care to those in need of mental health services.”
Other members of West Bloomfield Township’s Planning Commission did not respond to opportunities to comment.
Debbie Binder, Township Clerk, shared her thoughts on the topic that has become a major talking point in West Bloomfield.
“The Planning Commission was tasked with a challenging decision to protect the environment as well as honor a commitment to serve the residents by providing a much-needed behavioral health facility,” Binder stated via email. “While I understand and share the public’s concern and sentiment toward environmental protection — a true asset that makes West Bloomfield such a desirable place to live — we now must move forward and focus on the benefits the new facility will provide for our community.”
