Springfield Township Appears in 2025 RCOC Strategic Planning Report

A recent FOIA request submitted by Springfield Township resident Amber Keydel to the Road Commission for Oakland County (RCOC) produced a document that offers an interesting look at how Springfield Township’s road-related concerns were discussed during RCOC’s 2025 Strategic Planning process. The report, 2025 Strategic Planning Report: Volume II – Community Details, is a countywide planning document that summarizes meetings RCOC held with local communities across Oakland County from May through September 2025. According to the report, this strategic planning process has been in place since 1985 and is intended to help RCOC understand community transportation needs, identify priorities, and shape future road planning and resource decisions.

In broad terms, the report is not a mining review document. It is a transportation planning document. It discusses countywide road needs such as surface restoration, gravel-road paving, capacity improvements, bridge and culvert conditions, signal systems, safety improvements, and maintenance concerns. It also notes that community officials use these meetings to raise local concerns, discuss future needs, and request assistance or follow-up from RCOC.

In the 2025 Strategic Planning Report, the summary of a July 9, 2025 meeting between Springfield Township and the Road Commission for Oakland County includes specific references to the proposed Levy/Burroughs mine on Ormond Road.

Attendees for July 9, 2025 Meeting:

• Springfield Township
  • Ric Davis, Supervisor
  • Christine Rogers, Executive Assistant to the Supervisor
  • Matt Covey, Fire Chief
• Rose Township
  • Brad Stilwell, Supervisor
  • Matt Weil, Fire Chief
• Road Commission for Oakland County
  • Dennis Kolar, Managing Director
  • Gary Piotrowicz, Deputy Managing Director/County Highway Engineer
  • Brad Knight, Director of Planning & Environmental Concerns/I.T.
  • T.J. Connolly, Planner III

In that section, township officials stated that the Planning Commission was considering a proposal to mine approximately 213 acres of a 422-acre parcel on the west side of Ormond Road between Big Lake Road and Scott Road. The summary also states that township officials were looking into possible mitigation measures such as limiting hours of operation, reducing speeds, and possibly installing solar-flashing speed limit signs. It further states that, if approved, the truck route would follow Ormond Road north to Davisburg Road and then west.

The Springfield section goes beyond simply acknowledging the proposal. It also ties the proposed mine to township road maintenance discussions. The report says township officials described Springfield’s 24 miles of gravel roads and the township’s current schedule of adding about 4,800 tons of gravel to 3.1 miles of road each year on an eight-year cycle. It then states that the township is developing a plan to double annual gravel maintenance to move toward a four-year cycle, and that if the mine proposal passed, Levy/Burroughs Materials Corporation may donate 9,600 tons of gravel.

That is one reason this document matters. It shows that the proposed mine was already being discussed in a road-planning context during 2025, not just as a land use issue but as a project with expected traffic, mitigation needs, truck routing implications, and possible road material discussions. It also shows that Springfield’s discussion with RCOC was framed around how township roads might be affected and what changes might follow if the mine moved ahead.

The report also identifies Springfield Township transportation priorities that help add context. In the Springfield summary, the township listed improving road drainage as a general priority and asked to continue and expand cooperative maintenance programs. It also identified specific non-federal-aid road priorities including paving Tindall Road from Davisburg Road to Rattalee Lake Road and paving Hillsboro Road from Nielson Road to the Big Lake DNR boat launch, both of which also appear in the countywide gravel-road paving appendix.

Specific quotes from the document:

• “[Springfield] Township officials stated that the Planning Commission is currently considering a sand and gravel mine proposal from the Levy/Burroughs Material Corporation to mine approximately 213 acres of a 422-acre parcel…” – pg 191
• “Township officials are investigating potential mitigation efforts, including restricting hours of operation, implementing speed reductions, and possibly installing a solar-flashing speed limit signs. If the proposal is approved, the truck route would follow Ormond Road north to Davisburg west.” – pg 191
• “The township is developing a plan to double the annual gravel maintenance, aiming for a four-year cycle, which would reduce maintenance costs over time and help preserve the township’s new firefighting equipment. If the mine proposal passes, the Levy/Burroughs Materials Corporation may donate 9,600 tons of gravel.” – pg 191

Taken together, these FOIA records show that the proposed mine was discussed in official transportation planning conversations in 2025, with specific attention to truck routing, road conditions, mitigation measures, and gravel maintenance. While the RCOC strategic planning report is not a permit decision document, it does provide a useful public record showing that Springfield Township officials were already considering how the Levy/Burroughs proposal could affect local roads and infrastructure.

Access Report here -> 2025 Strategic Planning Report: Volume II – Community Details

Special thanks to Springfield Township resident Amber Keydel for submitting the FOIA request that helped bring this record to light and for sharing it with Oko Environmental in service of the community.