Kiernan’s Steak House and Silky’s are hosting a fundraiser for the Dearborn Animal Shelter. One hundred percent of the proceds raised will be given directly to the shelter. The event takes place on Thursday, August 27 from 4:00 – 9 p.m.
Contact 313-565-4260 for more details.
Over the years, Tarick Seifeddine and his father Adel have patiently waited to get approvals from the city of Dearborn to transform a long-vacant service station at the corner of Military and Cherry Hill into something more than the current eyesore that it is.
An artist rendering of the proposed new building at Military and Cherry Hill.
It has been a sometimes arduous process but the family now has the needed approvals from the city (and residents) to construct a very tasteful looking office building.
But their dream building could be delayed, due in no small part to telecom giant and bully AT&T.
With no regard for residents or business owners, AT&T is installing ugly, refrigerator-sized new video boxes (known as U-verse boxes) throughout Dearborn on lawns, easements and curbs as it races to upgrade its services to offer video for the first time.
In the case of Seifeddine, the boxes were simply plopped right smack in the middle of his planned parking lot driveway entrance of the family’s new building, a design already approved by the city.
AT&T plopped its large boxes along the sidewalk of Cherry Hill, right in the middle of planned driveway. AT&T says it will cost as much as $200,000 to move them less than 10 feet.
Seifeddine has asked AT&T to move one of the boxes just less than 10 feet so he can construct his driveway. AT&T said unless Seifeddine is willing to pay between $150,000 and $200,000 for the move, the box isn’t budging.
Cleverly, AT&T installed its tan-colored monster boxes less than four inches off of Seifeddine’s property line, so technically the boxes are on a city easement. But had AT&T contacted Seifeddine prior to installing their boxes, the two could have worked out a better location. AT&T also could have installed the boxes underground but chose above ground as a cost save and because no one from AT&T has to live near these noisy eyesores.
“We were never contacted about the installation,” Seifeddine said. “We could have tucked the boxes on another part of the property and then hidden them with some nice landscaping.”
Seifeddine said demolition of the current vacant building could begin in less than a month. But what happens after that really hinges on what AT&T decides to do. The family has contacted Dearborn Mayor John B. O’Reilly, Jr., who told Seifeddine he will contact AT&T to see if this is something that can be resolved.
This isn’t the first time AT&T has pulled such a stunt. All across America, AT&T is installing these unsightly boxes and angering, residents, city officials and businesses along the way. A few years ago in Geneva, Ill., city officials passed a 180-day moratorium that effectively stopped installations of AT&T’s boxy cabinets. AT&T sued Geneva and six other Illinois municipalities for restricting its plans, claiming it had the right to use public rights of way for its telecom network.
In Tulsa, an AT&T employee is even leading protests against the above-ground boxes, rightly arguing that these large, ugly boxes lower the aesthetic appeal of a neighborhood.
The boxes can be dangerous, too, as some have caught fire and even exploded, according to some news accounts. AT&T has said it has fixed those earlier problems.
If you’re a homeowner and wondering whether a box will appear in front of your home or in your yard, Dearborn city officials should be able to provide a map of all box locations. It’s worth looking into because if you don’t have one now that doesn’t mean you are in the clear.