Of Mice and Men

Very soon the taped recordings of our township meetings in February will be online and accessible, so that anyone interested may listen to the presentations by our chairman, Jeff Michael, and our attorneys from Shumaker, Loop and Kendrick LLP.

We weren't able to do a video recording, which is a shame as listeners will not be able to see the slides that were shown to those in attendance.  Slides of various newspaper articles from the Toledo Blade and the Swanton Enterprise from years ago show how the Village of Swanton has been planning for a railyard here for at least a decade.  Proof of Norfolk Southern's involvement in the Hallet overpass was shown - they paid the same amount toward the overpass as did the Village.   

Essentially, the township learned that Village Council, the Chamber of Commerce and the Mayor have been well aware all along that a railyard was coming - and they planned for it.  All the meetings we attended to encourage - no, BEG - them to join us in our fight against NS were a total waste of our time and energy.  They had been planning this for a very long time.

Why they deliberately chose to pretend otherwise is an issue for village residents to consider for the next several election schedules.  It will be up to village residents to decide whether they want to have the rats in charge of a sinking ship, or if they want men and women in positions of authority and power in their community whom they can trust to be honest and do what is best for the entire Village - nothing less.

At least now our Township will be safe from unwanted annexation attempts perpetrated by the Village.  When you listen to the meeting recordings, you'll hear the applause from attendees when that fact was announced.

To all the residents in both the township and the village who tried their level best to prevent a Norfolk Southern railyard from becoming a reality in our collective backyard, we owe a huge debt of gratitude. Your efforts were deeply appreciated.  Had elected officials from the village and school board stood shoulder to shoulder with you and the elected officials from Swanton Township, this railyard would not have happened.  

As you look at the Swanton Village Council and Chamber of Commerce decision (made without your input) as well as the "neutral stance" from the school board, and see our community struggle with its result - remember and learn.  They believed their choice was best for our community - hold them accountable for their actions.  Hold them accountable for resultant declining property values.  Hold them accountable for resultant declining school district enrollment numbers.  Remember who brought this in to our community and hold them accountable for everything that happens because of it.  

For detailed information, please listen to the recordings of our February township meetings that will soon be available at:  Swanton Township website