Two new faces joined Oxford Township government last week as resident Thomas Berger was appointed to the planning commission and resident James Butler to the Zoning Board of Appeals.
Officials voted 5-1 to appoint Berger to replace longtime Planning Commissioner Dan Clark, whom Supervisor Bill Dunn chose not to reappoint. Berger’s term will expire Dec. 31, 2006.
Dunn said the township’s planner, Don Wortman, “highly recommends” Berger, who has 13 years experience as Orion Township’s Building Official and has lived in Oxford Township for 2? years.
Township engineer Shannon Parry, of Rowe, Inc., called Berger a “great candidate” for the planning commission, “very thorough” and “very goal-oriented.”
“He’s done some wonderful things in Orion,” she said. “He know his ordinances.”
When asked why he applied for the planning commission, Berger replied, “I’m always active within the community I live in. I’ve always had an interest in what happens around me.”
When Berger lived in the Village of Lake Orion, he served on the Zoning Board of Appeals.
He was employed as a building inspector and code official for Oxford Village from 19?? to 19??
Berger said he intends to start his term on the township planning commission as a “listener.”
“I want to find out what the needs of the community really are,” he said. “I need to be a listener first, before I can make comments in any direction one way or the other.”
Berger said he is concerned about the lack of commercial development to provide the goods and services residents (whom he calls “consumers”) need and want.
He cited the fact the township only has one grocery store (Meijer) as an example.
“I don’t think people want to travel long distances anymore because of gas prices,” Berger said. “They want to be able to buy within their own community.”
Berger said he would like to help “develop some commercial mix to help blend the uses necessary to provide services for the consumers” and “make sure a balance occurs” between commercial and residential development.
“Traffic management” is another “deep concern,” according to Berger, “because of the complexity of the road network” in Oxford.
“Our infrastructure is just weak,” he said.
Township officials also voted 4-2 to appoint Butler to replace Brian Glowiak on the ZBA.
Glowiak’s term recently expired and he chose not to seek reappointment because he believes in term limits and giving others a chance to serve, according to Dunn.
Butler has 17 years experience as a civil engineering consultant, who’s appeared in front of various ZBAs, planning commissions and township boards in the surrounding tri-county area.
“I feel that these experiences will allow me to provide an educated perspective on zoning ordinance issues,” he wrote in a Jan. 16 letter to Dunn.
“He seems like he would be a good candidate,” Dunn said.
A total of six candidates applied for the two appointments.
Trustee Shirley Clancy said just because the other candidates were not appointed, that shouldn’t deter them from applying again in the future as other seats become available.