MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP - The Meridian Township Board approved changes to the existing agreement with the City of East Lansing regarding the proposed Costco development project in a 5-0 vote during their July 5th meeting.

The only change to the tentative agreement was that the Board will no longer require Costco to pay a specified wage to their employees, which they actually exceed. Mayor of East Lansing Mark Meadows originally proposed this, but he was willing to remove it and allow the federal and state governments to mandate the minimum wage.

Board members discussed their support of the agreement and they understand that while most residents are happy with the plans, a few are concerned with how close the project is to their homes.

There have been multiple meetings where residents have voiced their opinions about how the new business will affect their neighborhoods. Last month, the Township came up with a tentative agreement to add a clause that ensured at least 33 acres bordering the neighborhood would remain a natural area.

Board members recommended that Costco neighbors stay involved by going to the East Lansing Planning Commission and City Council meetings because "they're going to have an open process, take public input, and look at the level of detail that people mention" to the Township Board.

They also cited negotiations made outside of the agreement that discuss delivery times and protect neighborhoods and large areas of conservation next to the Costco site. These negotiations are with the city of East Lansing, but the Township Board will get final say on the site plan approval.

The Board discussed the amount of Brownfield Tax Credit Costco could receive, citing the corporation is highly successful. Under the agreement, they could receive up to 1 million dollars of reimbursement for the cost of cleaning up any contamination on the site.

The Board also discussed whether or not Costco should be limited to the actual cost of cleaning up any contamination and made a motion to add language to the agreement that directly addressed this.

The City of East Lansing will decide how much of the tax credit Costco will receive and they will discuss further plans at their next City Council meeting on July 12.