Van Buren Township, Michigan

VAN BUREN TOWNSHI P , MI CHIGAN by Detroit Edison transformed the narrow Huron River into a seven-mile long lake. The community then became a popular resort destination as city dwellers from miles around came to swim, fish, and build summer cottages on the beautiful lakeshore. Today, Van Buren Township is a thriving community enhanced by its homes, schools, churches, shopping centers, and industrial parks. Its convenient location near two airports and two major expressways has boosted interest in the Township, and as a result, several new residential and industrial developments are under construction. Belleville Lake, now with hundreds of homes along its shoreline, continues to be a prime recreational site. Van Buren Twp. is blessed with a fascinating past, a vibrant present, and ambitious plans for the future. Business View Magazine recently spoke with Township Supervisor, Kevin McNamara, and Matt Best, Director of Public Service, for updates and insights into this visionary community. The following is an edited transcript of that conversation. BVM: Geographically, the Township surrounds the city of Belleville, although the two are administered autonomously. Can you share the story behind this? McNamara: “Van Buren Township is a community of about 30,000 people situated almost dead center between Ann Arbor and the city of Detroit. We own Belleville Lake and there’s a small city about a mile and a half square in the center of the Township called the city of Belleville. We liked the city so much, we named our lake after it. Unfortunately, four years ago, when this administration came in, the township infrastructure was crumbling after 185 years. There were no plans in place with regard to sustainability, and there was an identity crisis amongst the city’s residents. “In fact, one of the first things we did was contact the post office to identify Van Buren Township as a community, which started a battle because most residents considered themselves