Dorr Township Planning Commission Chairman and Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) member Dan Beute Tuesday night submitted his resignation from all township offices, effective immediately.
Vice Chairman Bob Wagner read the letter at the start of Tuesday’s Planning Commission meeting.
Beute had served on the Planning Commission since 2015 and on the ZBA since 2020. He took over as chairman a little less than two years ago when longtime Chairman Bob Wagner missed many meetings for health reasons.
In his letter, Beute wrote that a recent health scare caused him to re-evaluate the time he was spending with his family, his job and the township. He said his health scare was brought on by stress, and he decided he needed to step away from his township roles for the sake of his health.
The Dorr Township Planning Commission in recent times has been under intense pressure from “torches and pitchforks” style crowds regarding a possible data center in Dorr. The technology giant Microsoft purchased land in the township in 2024 with the stated purpose of building a data center, though no site plan has yet been presented.
During the public hearing portion of the planning meeting, members of the community again expressed concerns about the potential data center, including possible health impacts, water usage and noise. They also alleged that employees of Professional Code Inspections (PCI) had a conflict of interest in their work for the township and Microsoft. PCI was criticized for being a for-profit company, and employee Lori Castello was called out for being too “welcoming” to Microsoft.
Castello explained that PCI is a for-profit company of private contractors that serves only townships, cities and villages; they do not work for private companies. She noted that business owners come to PCI with plans for their property, and PCI determines what needs to be done for those plans to comply with township ordinances. Castello explained that she must remain professional in her dealings, which members of the public have interpreted as being “too welcoming.”
Conflict of interest allegations were also leveled at Planning Commissioners. Jody Schaendorf was singled out because he owns the asphalt company Black Gold Transport. It was alleged that Schaendorf might seek to obtain paving contracts from Microsoft should a data center be built.
Schaendorf dismissed the allegations, stating that his business would be one of many required to bid on the paving projects, with no guarantee that his firm would be selected.
