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Proposed church expansion on Sanilac side of county boundary

Brown City officials opt against public vote


BROWN CITY — The question about whether to adjust the Sanilac- Lapeer county border to include all city-limit property within Sanilac County won’t be open to a public vote.

The Brown City Council decided at its meeting Monday against placing a proposal about changing county boundaries on the November ballot.

City Manager Clint Holmes said the issue about boundaries came about with the proposed addition of Faith Baptist Church, located at 6910 Cade Road, on the west side.

He explained since the Sanilac- Lapeer county line on the city’s west side currently runs down the center of Cade Road, the issue was whether Burnside Township had to be involved in granting a building permit.

Holmes said research revealed that the property containing Faith Baptist Church and the adjacent duplex were annexed from Lapeer County’s Burnside Township into the city under Public Act 215 of 1895, and the transfer was completed in 1972. In that transaction, a complete transfer of jurisdiction from Lapeer County to Sanilac County was made.

He said the properties belonging to the Brown City Missionary Church, 8935 Burnside Road, and Sacred Heart Catholic Church, 7050 Cade Road, were annexed under a different act, Public Act 425 of 1984, and the final transfers will be complete in 2050 and 2056, respectively. Those annexations were a conditional transfer of property from Lapeer to Sanilac and included certain authoritative exclusions.

Holmes said according to the act that pertains to Faith Baptist and the duplex, the City of Brown City is responsible for the zoning administration and land use of those properties within its city limits, not Burnside Township.

He said individuals requesting building permits must first get approval from the Brown City Planning Commission and Brown City Council before Burnside Township’s code enforcement firm, Construction Code Authority, can issue permits.

Holmes said letters were sent out regarding the interpretation of granting building permits.

“We formally notified Construction Code Authority and Burnside Township that Brown City is responsible for the issuing of building permits,” he said. “A similar letter was sent to the sheriff’s dispatch to let them know those properties are under the Brown City Police Department.”

Holmes pointed out that Public Act 160 of 1974 allows the city council to place a question on the November ballot to ask voters to adjust the Sanilac-Lapeer county line to move Faith Baptist Church and the duplex into Sanilac County.

He said council members decided against putting the issue, which would only affect about two residents, up for a public vote.

“Mostly because it would be required to be on the ballots in both Sanilac and Lapeer counties,” Holmes said. “We’re talking about a couple thousand square feet, and we weren’t sure if people on the western side on Lapeer County would be knowledgeable enough about it.”


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