Give us what you promised, then we’ll consider what you want.

In a nutshell, that was the Oxford Township Board’s message to Christian Mills, owner of Legacy 925 (formerly known as the Legacy Center), at last week’s regular meeting.

Mills came seeking the board’s permission to perform a sound test “to verify that there (would be) no impact on (his) neighbors” if he was allowed to have televisions and music on the outdoor patio connected to the restaurant/bar inside Legacy 925.

At its June 12 regular meeting, the township board voted 4-2 to give Mills temporary permission to use the outdoor patio on the west side of his 208,000-square-foot building until Sept. 30. Customers are allowed to eat and drink there each day until 11 p.m., but Legacy is not allowed to have any televisions or music on the patio area.

These restrictions were placed as a result of concerns expressed by residents of the nearby Stony Lake Village condos who fear a potential increase in noise could negatively impact their quality of life and property values.

To address those concerns, Mills was originally planning to conduct three days worth of sound tests on his patio. They were to happen on July 23 to 25 from 3 to 6 p.m. Mills invited both his neighbors and township officials to attend, experience the sound levels firsthand and enjoy “complimentary beverages and appetizers.”

“We will demonstrate to our neighbors and this board that there is no impact on our neighbors, only enjoyment when they eat on our patio,” read one of the slides from Mills’ presentation to the board.

However, the proposed sound test never happened because on July 22, Mills received an email from township attorney Gary Rentrop informing him that “if it were to occur,” it would “be in violation of the township board’s motion granting temporary outdoor patio use.”

“If you wish to conduct a sound test, you will need to come before the township board and ask that this be part of your temporary approval from the board . . . Conducting the sound test without board approval will result in the board considering rescission of its approval for temporary outdoor patio use,” Rentrop wrote.

Mills explained to officials that he was not attempting to “circumvent” the conditions of his temporary approval.

“My attempt was to address our neighbors’ concerns (about noise) and do it in a very prudent manner,” he said.

Mills indicated he wants to be “respectful” when it comes to his neighbors, but he also doesn’t want the operation of his businesses “dictated by fear and rumors.”

In light of Rentrop’s letter, Mills approached the board, but instead of permission for a sound test, he received an approved motion stating the board will “consider” his request after he has completed – which includes all necessary inspections and approvals – the eight “outstanding (site-related) items” identified by township engineer Jim Sharpe in a June 7 email along with any other outstanding items that may be identified by the township attorney, planner, fire chief and building official.

The motion went on to state that “in the event, (Mills) does not complete the outstanding items” by the dates he provided, the township reserves the right to use funds deposited by Mills to finish things.

Officials passed the motion 4-2 with Supervisor Bill Dunn, Treasurer Joe Ferrari, Clerk Curtis Wright and Trustee Elgin Nichols all voting for it. Voting against it were trustees Jack Curtis and Patti Durr. Trustee Margaret Payne was absent.

“I want what’s promised to be done,” said Ferrari, who made the motion. “I want to see a good faith effort, not just Christian Mills telling me it’s going to be done. I want Christian Mills to have it done.”

Ferrari made the motion after reading aloud the Aug. 12 opinion letter from Rentrop to the board.

In that letter, Rentrop advised that “pursuant to the township ordinance, the board should decline to consider any proposed revision or increase in use of the site by (Mills) until there has been satisfactory completion of the items required from prior site plan reviews, and verification of such completion by the township planner, township engineer and building inspector.”

Marianne Kainz, president of the Stony Lake Village condo association, also expressed concern about the outstanding items and urged the board to heed the advice of its attorney.

“I interpret (Rentrop’s letter) as we need to make sure . . . those outstanding issues that are building-related, safety-related and community-related are all complete prior to giving more and more amenities to a business that can’t handle what they currently have,” she said.

Based on Sharpe’s June 7 email, the following eight items had not been completed:

1) A safety path along M-24 that “dates back to the site plan approval in 2016.”

2) A dumpster enclosure near the building, which is “from the 2017 site plan revision.”

3) Landscaping on the north side of the building from when the northerly parking lot was paved in 2017.

4) Fix the pavement where the sewer crossed the access drive.

5) Landscape restoration near M-24 and west of the building “from when the sewer was installed in 2018.”

6) Landscape restoration on the west slope of the north parking lot – “just a bunch of weeds.”

7) Dispose of the broken asphalt curb at the southwest corner of the Great Lakes Kids Energy Zone.

8) Install rip-rap at the pavement low area near the lake to eliminate the “gully-washer.”

In response, Mills told the board, “We have made a commitment to complete those (items) and we’ll honor that commitment.”

He added the “only caveat” to that is if he has a contractor who “doesn’t keep their word,” which is something beyond his control.

Mills said while he does not take these eight items “very lightly,” he also does not view them as “an indication that I’m a developer who hasn’t kept his word or a developer who hasn’t completed a massive project in your community.”

Mills informed this reporter that items 4-7 have been completed and item 2 was half-done.

As for item 8, a contractor is scheduled to have that done by Aug. 25.

With regard to the first two items, the M-24 safety path and dumpster enclosure, a list provided by Mills shows a contractor is scheduled to begin the work on Sept. 15 and finish both by Oct. 31.

Mills explained to the board that he did not receive approval from the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) for his safety path until June of this year. He indicated that process “took almost seven months.”

“I can give you the 50 emails (where) we went back and forth with MDOT and you can speak to MDOT and ask them why it’s taken them so long to approve it,” Mills said.

On top of that, Mills said “it’s virtually impossible to find guys who do pavement and concrete work” right now because the economy is booming.

Mills explained he wants to complete all of the work “as soon as possible” because “if we don’t complete it,” the township will use the $100,000 bond he previously posted.

“There’s really no incentive for me to skip it or not do it or try to not keep my word,” he said.

Mills noted he considers it “pretty respectable” that “there’s only eight items left to be done” given the Legacy building was in a “dilapidated” state when he bought it four years ago and now, it houses about 27 tenants and provides hundreds of jobs.

“We’ve accomplished something in less than four years that, to my knowledge, has never been done,” he said.