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April 22, 2004Fast track to resolution serves both GT, ClousIn a case where clarity has often been bulldozed and progress glacial, a ruling by Circuit Judge Thomas Power got right to the point on both points.In issuing an order to prevent developer Bill Clous from doing any more work on land he owns in East Bay Township until environmental charges against him are resolved, Power didn't quibble. Clous can't take any machinery of any kind on the property until the case is settled, Power said. No trucks. No tractors. Nada. At the same time, Power also rejected a requested preliminary injunction from Grand Traverse County Prosecutor Dennis LaBelle that would have required Clous to do remediation work at the site before the current case is settled. That would have taken too long, Power said. And it could have opened the door to endless debate over work being done on the site, something this case already has seen plenty of. Power also put the case on a fast track. He said the trial will be held in June even if he has to hold court on weekends. Without that change, the trial wouldn't have been held until early 2005. The fast track ruling is fair for Clous and also good for the site. The sooner there is a final ruling, the sooner remediation - if that's what's ordered - can take place. Power's swift action and the clarity he brought to the process is welcome. County and state environmental officials say Clous began destroying wetlands at the site off Hammond Road as early as 2001, and in the process ignored at least one stop work order from LaBelle. This is an important case for Grand Traverse County, at least as far as enforcing its own soil erosion rules is concerned. By claiming a farming exemption for what county and state officials say was preparation for development of the site and allegedly ignoring a stop work order, Clous was making a direct challenge to county rules - and the county's will to enforce them. For a time, that was in question. Former drain commissioner Marueeen Templeton had to prod LaBelle into acting. State Sen. Michelle McManus exerted political pressure on Clous' behalf at the state and local levels. And in recent months the county board mounted and then abandoned an attempt to essentially take over soil erosion enforcement from the elected - and independent - drain commissioner. Power's clear directions and his push for a quick resolution should not only bring justice in this case but show that the process, though sometimes slow, can work.
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