By Jim Newell

Review Editor

Orion Township officials and staff held an open house and ribbon cutting ceremony on Feb. 1 to celebrate the completion of the new, $18 million Orion Township Municipal Complex.

Orion Township Supervisor Chris Barnett said the new Municipal Complex – which includes the Orion Township Hall government offices and the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office – was a shared process between the township board and employees, the builders and architects, the residents and everyone who supported the project.

“This has been kind of my baby,” Barnett said. “But not mine…it’s ours, it’s yours. This is a remarkable day. I’m so happy to be here. I never thought we’d be here even just a few years ago.”

Architect Scott Reynolds of Auger Klein Aller commended the township for pushing ahead with the project.

“Myself and the entire Auger Klein Aller team commend the Orion Township board, its staff and its residents for pulling together the vision of this 52,500 square foot facility. It’s been a long time coming,” said Reynolds, who is a township resident. “It’s thanks to them for really motivating this effort and deciding that they needed to do something with their facility. It was approximately 20 years ago, in 2002, there was a facilities study looking at what could Orion Township be, what facilities did they need? And it took 20 years of discussion and vision to finally implement the building you see here today.”

The Municipal Complex uses 14 acres of the 77.6 acre site and will preserve much of the wetland areas. There are also areas for future development, including the opportunity for park space or athletic fields. The complex also has a trailhead to the Polly Ann Trail.

The Municipal Complex cost $18,412,500. The township had $2 million set aside and is financing the remaining $16 million through the sale of bonds

The township was able to sell $15 million worth of Capital Improvement Bonds at a competitive public sale with multiple bidders, with the winning bidder as Morgan, Stanley & Co. to purchase the Bonds and pay $16,074,254.29 to the township, which will repay the $15,000,000 of Bonds over 20 years at an historically low interest cost of 1.77 percent.

The bonds will be paid with revenue from the Eagle Valley Landfill’s host fee and general fund off-sets made available from Marihuana permit and licensing fees, and not through new township taxes, Barnett said.

The open house included tours of the facility, its nine meeting rooms, offices, board room and community rooms, which residents, homeowner’s associations and other groups can reserve. Orion Township restaurants also provided food for guests, giving everyone a taste of Orion.

“The open house was phenomenal. It was emotional. It was exciting. We had a lot of people from all walks in the community come out and support this. And we were so grateful to have the place packed,” said Clerk Penny Shults. “Everyone was celebrating along with us. It was very special. And I know we’ll have more gatherings like that here. So, thank you to everybody who came out.”

Oakland County Sheriff’s Office Orion Township Substation

Of the 52,500 square feet in the Municipal Complex, the sheriff’s office has a new 9,000 square feet facility that includes better facilities for all of the deputies and command staff. Previously, there was a locker in the women’s shower stall because the old facility was not built with female deputies in mind.

It also has room for the sergeants, who worked out of a trailer at the old township hall.

“It has been an amazing ride and none of this could have happened without leadership,” said Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard during the ribbon cutting ceremony. “I know that none of our folks were complainers, but sometimes they would roll their eyes when I visited the substation because they were working in very difficult circumstances. We need certain kinds of equipment and certain kinds of opportunities. Interview rooms and a professional place to meet with residents who have safety concerns and want to make a report.

“Thank you so much for giving my men and women, really, the facilities they deserve and your community deserves. We believe that we are a state-of-the-art police agency and we believe in giving the best service to the community. And you’ve given them a place to come and work that reflects both of those things. So, thanks. It takes leadership and we appreciate the leadership you’ve shown,” Bouchard said.

In 2019, following over 20 years of studies and evaluating the needs of the Township, trustees voted to move forward with the construction of a new Municipal Complex to replace the existing Township Hall that was built in 1974, later expanded in 1996 and totaled approximately 20,000 square feet.