MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE MIDLAND CITY PLANNING COMMISSION,

WHICH TOOK PLACE ON TUESDAY,

APRIL 22, 2008, 7:00 P.M.,

COUNCIL CHAMBERS, CITY HALL, MIDLAND, MICHIGAN

1. Roll Call

PRESENT: Brown, Eyre, Gaynor, Hanna, King, Kozakiewicz, Mead, Senesac and Svenson

ABSENT: (none)

OTHERS PRESENT: Keith Baker, Planning Director; Daryl Poprave, Deputy Planning Director; Cheri King, Community Development Specialist and 24 others.

2. Approval of Minutes

Moved by Hanna, seconded by Brown, to approve the minutes of the regular meeting of April 8, 2008 as presented. Motion passed unanimously.

3. Public Hearing

a. Conditional Use Permit No. 29, the request of Renee Johnson for a group child day care home located at 6112 Partridge Lane.

The property is currently zoned RA-1 residential. Group day care is a conditional use within that district. The aerial photograph shows the home is on the east side of Partridge Lane, approximately a block south of W. Wackerly Street. The entire area around this site is zoned RA-1 residential. Existing land uses within the proximity of the site is all single family except for Midland Christian School. The north side of Wackerly is zoned medium density residential. A “group day care home” is defined in Section 2.02 of the Zoning Code as “a private home in which more than six but not more than twelve minor children are given care and supervision for periods of less than twenty-four hours a day unattended by a parent or legal guardian.

The property is single family residential with residential all the way around it except for Midland Christian School to the east. The petitioner has submitted a letter describing their request. The discretionary standards are what are to be determined by the Planning Commission during their deliberation on this request. Mr. Baker stated the non-discretionary standards have been met by the petitioner. The discretionary standards include the general health, safety and welfare, that the use will not cause any detrimental effects on the area, that it would not have a negative impact on traffic generation, that the property be maintained in its current set of characteristics, that the proposed use is compatible with the natural environment and that the proposed use is compatible with the master plan. The Planning Department recommends approval of this with the following contingencies:

1) That no on-premise signs be permitted.

2) That the hours of operation not extend past 6:00 p.m. Monday through Friday.

3) That no exterior or interior alterations to the building be permitted that would otherwise change the character or nature of the dwelling as a residential use.

4) That no more than one additional non-resident adult employee be present at any given time.

To date, no public comments have been received.

Ms. Brown stated that the petitioner is a friend of hers, but she has no fiduciary interest in this petition so she is not asking to be excused from this petition.

Renee Johnson, of 6112 Partridge Lane, stated she is requesting to open a daycare for 10 weeks during the summer and the children she would have, have been in her programs before. The children and their families are very familiar with her program. She has an assistant who is an experienced teaching assistant. The only time they can care for school-aged children is during the summer as they both work during the school year. The program would be from 7:30 a.m. until 5:30 p.m. and the children would be picked up by 6:00 p.m. The children will not be allowed outside without an adult nor in any neighbor’s yards. They have playgrounds in the neighborhood. Cook School is an easy walk from the home and Midland Christian School has a basketball court outside. She has been doing this for 20 years. Ms. Hanna asked if Mrs. Johnson has a verbal or written agreement with Midland Christian School for liability purposes. Mrs. Johnson stated she has a verbal agreement with the school and she does carry liability insurance for the children she cares for in the summer.

No one spoke either in favor of or in opposition to this request. Commissioner Brown asked if this conditional use permit would carry forward to future summers. Mr. Baker stated that, since this is a conditional use permit, she could have this year-around, if she chose to do that.

No one else spoke in favor or opposition to this site plan. The public hearing was closed.

b. Zoning Petition No. 550 initiated by Wolverine Bank for property located at 1618 Dilloway Drive from Residential A-1 to Office Service.

This property is on the northeast corner of Eastman Avenue and Dilloway Drive. It was formerly the site of a single family home, which the bank purchased and demolished. This would be considered a spot-zone as it is surrounded by office service uses. It is Office Service to the north and the south and residential to the east and west. The property is now vacant, and was formerly a residence. There is a church on Eastman Avenue, across the street from the bank. The future land use map shows this area being compatible with office service uses. With the rest of the bank property, it could be used for a number of banking purposes.

The petition is consistent with the city’s Master Plan. Goal #9 states “utilize office uses between residential and higher intensity uses”. This is the only residential piece of property north of Dilloway and east of Eastman Avenue north to Wackerly. This petition is consistent with the master plan and the surrounding uses. It would consolidate all the land in this area under one zoning classification.

Rick Rosinski – Wolverine Bank – They intend to keep this as green space. The property is definitely isolated. The lady who used to live there stated it was her desire that, upon her demise, Wolverine Bank would have the right to purchase this property. She passed away about a year ago and her family has made this property available to the bank. They have no proposals as yet for the property. They just want to have the zoning consistent with the rest of their property. It will not cause an increase in traffic.

Tom Wilford, 1504 Bitler, asked how they plan to access this property. He will speak on the next petition.

No one else spoke inn favor or opposition to this site plan. The public hearing was closed.

c. Zoning Petition No. 551 initiated by Wolverine Bank for property located at 1600 Denver Street from Residential A-1 to Office Service.

Mr. Senesac stated he owns property in this neighborhood and showed the location of his home. Mr. Mead’s dental office is also in this area. No one on the Planning Commission felt there would be a conflict of interest for Mr. Senesac or Mr. Mead.

This petition is for 0.9 acres of land from Residential A-1 to Office Service. It is located on the north side of Denver Street, which is a private street and a gravel road. The zoning map shows this is a dual zoned parcel. The west 59 feet is already zoned office service. The remaining portion of the property, 127 feet wide, is zoned RA-1 and is vacant at this time. There is single-family residential to the east and the west. Woodpark Drive dead-ends just to the east of the property. There is a church across Eastman Avenue and a variety of office uses along Eastman Avenue. The Master Plan identifies this area as being utilized as Office Service. The parcel is 127 wide by 310 feet north to south.

Properties to the west are zoned Office Service. Properties north, east and south are zoned Residential A-1. The master plan describes utilizing Office Service as a buffer between residential and more intensive uses. This petition is consistent with the Master Plan. This rezoning is consistent with the future land use map. It could act as a buffer between properties to the north, south and east. A portion of the property is already zoned Office Service. The property is of a sufficient size to construct numerous Office Service land uses.

Ms. Brown asked if Wolverine Bank already owns this parcel. Mr. Poprave suggested that this is a question for the petitioner.

Rick Rosinski, Chief Operating Officer of Wolverine Bank, spoke on behalf of the petitioner. They have no current plans for this parcel. They do not plan to construct any buildings here and they just want to have the property all zoned the same. The bank owns the property to the south, as well. There is a single-family home to the east of this parcel. It has been abandoned and for sale for quite some time. They would like to have all their land zoned the same, as Office Service. If at some point in the future, they want to do something with this property, they would have to bring in a site plan for public approval. They have not developed the land to the east of their existing building. They have kept the trees and grassy areas in this area. Since they are not currently planning to use this property, there will not be any affect on traffic in this area. The property has access off Denver Street at the present time. The property goes right to the road. Denver Street is paved and snow is plowed by the city. They did construct a nice white fence to the east of their existing developed property as a buffer for the surrounding neighbors.

Mr. Wilford Thomas lives on 1504 Bitler Street. He wants to know how they plan to access this property. They gave permission to the bank for them to go out Denver Street rather than Bitler Street. That street belongs to the property owners until it is developed to city standards.

Steve Jorgenson, 5910 Woodpark Drive, stated he has one letter in opposition to this zoning petition and a petition signed by some of the neighbors. He stated people bought their homes in this area because of the residential nature of this area. To the west, there is a private residence. To the east is a residence that is currently vacant. There is another occupied residence to the north. It would be nearly impossible to sell these structures if there were an office service use in this area. New homes would be the best use of that piece of land. Along Eastman from Denver to Wackerly, the line between office service and residential is fairly consistent. However, if this property is rezoned, it would protrude 127 feet into the residentially zoned property. This is not consistent with the goals of the Master Plan and the Zoning Ordinance. The use on all four sides is residential. Any rezoning from RA-1 to Office Service use between three residences would be spot zoning. The northeast corner of this parcel is 30 feet from the Wallace home to the north. This area does not have a park for the children to play in so they use that adjacent land as a play area. Area residents also use this area for walking, biking and jogging. They just learned that this is a private road. There are six homes in the immediate area. Any parking lot or office building here would create an unacceptable amount of traffic trying to get out onto Eastman Avenue, off Denver Avenue. The additional traffic, noise and lighting would be a detriment to the surrounding residential areas. Wolverine Bank already owns an entire city block. This should be enough property for any business in this area. People have worked too many years to purchase homes at the end of Woodpark Drive, to have office service placed in their back yard. There are 46 signatures on the petition from everyone who lives in this area.

Lorna Miller, 5909 Woodpark Drive, brought a letter regarding this petition. They do not want another “piece of cement” pushed into their neighborhood. Wolverine Bank is a very successful business in this community and is perfectly capable of building something somewhere else in the community.

John Dick 5905 Woodpark Drive, stated he lives next to the Wallace’s. He appreciates that the bank has stated they have no plans for use of this property in the near future. However, if the use is changed, it could be developed in the future. He submitted a letter stating that he and his wife are in opposition to this rezoning. As most of this property is already residential, it would make sense to rezone the rest of the property to residential. When they purchased their home, they thought they were purchasing into a neighborhood, not into a business district. They are confident that a zoning change will affect the value of their property. This change will bring additional traffic to this area. There are too many children in this area to increase the amount of traffic here. Currently, the adjacent property is used as a play area for children in the neighborhood. If this parcel were rezoned, it would pose a safety hazard for the children in this neighborhood.

Mark Farley, 5902 Woodpark Drive. He lives on the opposite side of the dead end. His children use the green space routinely to play ball, etc. They purchased their residence three years ago because of the privacy of this area and the convenience of this area of the city. It is convenient to shopping. His concerns are predicated on the development of this property. Eastman Avenue already has a significant traffic problem. There is no city park in this general vicinity and most neighborhoods do have a neighborhood park of some sort. Much of the adjacent vacant property is used as a recreation area. A bank would require significant commercial-grade lighting, as well as noise that would be generated by the development of this property. This parcel is surrounded by residential parcels. He cannot see how this could not be considered spot zoning.

Roland Wallace, 5901 Woodpark Drive. They live right next to what will be an encroachment on his property. They have lived there for 22 years. They are good neighborhood and this rezoning would impact all their properties in a negative manner.

Randy Elliott, 6105 Woodpark Drive. They are a little further down Woodpark Drive, but they have 46 neighbors in that community. It is a very special neighborhood as they are very close to commercial and office sites. However, they still maintain a residential character to their neighborhood. Wolverine Bank is a good neighbor where they are currently located. Looking past that, he thinks the potential exists to build something here that will have a negative impact on the neighborhood. There is a clear line of sight where the zoning is Office Service to the west and residential to the east. This would encroach into the residentially zoned properties to the east. It is not that this rezoning would pose a problem, but the potential exists to change the line of sight and the current use of this property.

Mr. Kajjaria, 5906 Woodpark. He is the second house from the end. They have lived here about 23 years. They thought this was one of the best areas of Midland at the time. They decided to build their house there. It is a nice safe, quiet neighborhood. They respect Wolverine Bank and their employees. However, he hopes the current buildings they have will meet their needs. If this becomes a parking lot, there will be lights and noise at night. He can see Wolverine Bank from his window. He does not wish to see any other buildings from his window. He strongly feels property values will go down. The property values are already down and taxes are going up. He is concerned about the safety and security and he now locks his doors when he is at home. People will not want to sit at the stop light at Wackerly and Eastman. They will cut through down Harcrest and Woodpark to get to Wackerly and they will have a lot of additional traffic on their street. He requests that this petition be denied because it is not consistent with the master plan.

Tina Killebrew, 6121 Woodpark Drive. She lives on Woodpark. They moved there because it is a dead end street. There have been vehicles going through at rather high speeds. They have already contacted the police department and asked them to patrol this area for speeders. If Woodpark is extended, there would be a lot of traffic cutting through there.

Chris Bloom, 6112 Woodpark Drive. He has several questions for the board. Has a formal assessment of office and commercial space in the city of Midland been done? Is there a need for additional office service and commercial zoning needed? He has concerns about the safety of the residents, the noise and lighting from any structure that might be erected on this property, and the traffic that would be brought into this area.

Rick Rosinski stated he appreciates the comments of the neighbors in the area. They are a bank, they are not an industrial facility. They do not have a lot of noise or lights. They like that their traffic now comes out to Dilloway Drive, to a light onto Eastman Avenue. His office at the bank is right on the very tip so he has a pretty good view of this property. The bank closes at 7:00 p.m. He sees very little traffic and very few walkers or children in this area. The future land use is designated as Office Service here. Other businesses in this area go beyond the requested depth of this property. The current building is their main office and they have 50 employees. If there will be heavier traffic patterns, they try to get them into the areas that are closest to the road. The employees generally go back out onto Dilloway if they are going out to lunch. They have no desire to block Denver Street. They would like this area to remain open. Their existing site is landscaped very nicely and is well maintained. They will also maintain the proposed site so it will actually be in a better condition than it is now. There is not a lot of activity during the evening hours. Most employees leave at 5:00 p.m., although some employees stay until 7:00 p.m. Most employees come in between 7:30 and 8:30 a.m. They do have some ATM activity, but not as much activity as the ATM down the road further.

Mr. Mead stated he has his offices in this area and he will abstain from voting on this issue. No one on the Planning Commission had a problem with this decision.

The public hearing was closed.

d. Site Plan No. 278 from Wolgast Corporation on behalf of Central Property Development for site plan review and approval for a 50,000 square foot building located at 2837 Schuette Road.

The property is located on the north side of Schuette Road, to the west of Waldo Avenue. It is zoned Industrial A and it abuts Industrial A to the west, east and south, and it abuts Residential A to the north and Residential B to the northwest. There are residential uses to the north and northwest. The Future Land Use map identifies this property as Industrial, as are properties to the east, west and south. There is a lower density residential to the north and a higher density residential to the northwest.

The site plan shows a warehouse facility which would encompass approximately 50,000 sq. ft. The applicants have provided an adequate site plan packet. The land is relatively flat and predominantly wooded. The petitioner has designed the project so that it can be expanded either to the north or east so, depending on future business activity, there would be room for expansion. Required landscaping is met on the site plan. A total of 11 trees and 61 shrubs are required and have been identified on the site plan. The site is wooded. Only the portion of the site needed for development has been proposed for clearing. The building and site development has been designed so as not to interfere with surrounding properties. There is a 100 ft. building setback required on the north side. The fire department has reviewed the plan for adequacy. There will be a 20 foot wide gravel access road around the property to accommodate fire apparatus. The proposed project meets the requirements defined in the ordinance. They are required to provide an additional 11 parking stalls and the plan does identify 14 parking stalls. Drainage will be handled through the Engineering Department. A photometric plan has been provided that meets the requirements of the ordinance. The city can provide adequate public services to this site. Staff has not identified any health or safety issues relative to this site. The project will be developed in a single construction phase. The building is oriented to face the public street, Schuette Road. The building is being constructed so that it has the potential to be expanded either to the north or to the east.

Staff recommends a favorable recommendation to City Council with the following six contingencies:

1. The stormwater detention system is designed and constructed in accordance with the City of Midland Engineering Department specifications.

2. All landscaping shall comply with Article 6 of the Zoning Ordinance.

3. All exterior lighting shall comply with Section 3.12 of the Zoning Ordinance.

4. All exterior signage shall comply with Article 8 of the Zoning Ordinance.

5. All parking spaces shall comply with Section 5.01D of the Zoning Ordinance and be delineated by the “box” style striping.

6. The location, access and flow of the proposed fire

hydrants shall be in accordance with the city of Midland

Fire Department specifications.

Rob Komyathy, 4835 Towne Center, Saginaw, Michigan. Their customer has several other locations in the Midland community. They are proposing this for site plan approval. The setback requirement and the clearing area is approximately 100 feet. There is a 40 foot easement for a sanitary/storm sewer even if they were to expand to the north. All of the trees are not being proposed to be cleared.

Terri Huebner, 2727 West, Saginaw, Michigan. They will be building this warehouse for a client here in Midland. They have several other warehouses in this area and they feel they are a good neighbor in this area.

No one else spoke in favor or in opposition to this site plan. The public hearing was closed.

4. Public Comments (not related to agenda items)

None

5. New Business

None

6. Old Business

a. Site Plan No. 275 from Mid-Michigan Real Estate/Century 21 Central, a request for site plan review and approval for a 3,743 square foot office building located at 609 East Wackerly Street on 0.77 acres.

Mr. Baker showed an aerial photograph of this area. There are several projects occurring along W. Wackerly Street in this area. Salon Magnifique is being developed just to the west of this site and a fitness center being developed just to the west of that. The subject property is between E. Wackerly, US-10 and the soccer complex. The property is zoned Regional Commercial with Community to the north, Community to the southeast, and residential to the south and southwest. The Future Land Use map identifies this as commercial along the north side of E. Wackerly. There is a 3743 sq. ft. office building proposed. There are 48 parking stalls proposed. There will be a joint drive approach shared with Salon Magnifique. The petitioner has submitted a photometric plan and a calculation of parking on the site. The proposed site plan shows 48 parking stalls. Thirty parking stalls would be the maximum allowed by the Zoning Ordinance. If the Planning Commission were to decide to allow the additional parking stalls, it would take a special action by the Commission to allow the additional spaces. There are the typical five contingencies.

Bill Keeney, 2581 Wilder Road, Midland. The 37 parking spaces includes 25 agents and the potential for additional spaces in the center of the building. There are three office staff and Mr. Keeney, there could be 29 people parking there right now without any customers coming in. They would also have to have two handicapped parking places in addition. They are also projecting an additional 10 agents with offices in the basement. This will be developed as phase II and be completed at a later date.

Mr. Senesac stated that, if they reach the capacity of agents that they are anticipating, they will not have enough parking within the confines of the ordinance. Their total number of proposed spaces is probably right on, but this is contingent upon the expansion of their business. He would support additional parking up to 37 spaces.

Mr. Senesac moved we allow additional parking up to 37 spaces. The motion was seconded by Ms. Brown. Mr. Gaynor stated the Zoning Ordinance states one space per 300 sq. ft. If he takes the first floor, that brings the parking to 25 spaces. If he adds in half of the basement, that brings them to 37 spaces. He would be hard pressed to imagine a real estate office that has everyone in the office at the same time.

Mr. Kozakiewicz stated he is in favor of the 37 spaces. Mr. Gaynor and Ms. Svenson stated they are having a problem knowing that these parking spaces would only be utilized once a week for a few hours. Ms. Hanna stated she agrees that they have a need but she cannot quite determine how much additional parking they will need. She feels the 37 spaces should be adequate. Ms. Brown and Mr. Mead stated they could also support the 37 spaces. Mr. Eyre stated that 30 spaces were predicated upon the entire building being finished. It is based upon floor space. However, he is in favor of 37 spaces.

The motion passed unanimously by voice vote.

It was moved by Mead and seconded by Hanna to recommend City Council approval of Site Plan No. 275 with the following contingencies:

1. The stormwater detention system is designed and constructed in accordance with the City of Midland Engineering Department specifications.

2. All landscaping shall comply with Article 6 of the Zoning Ordinance.

3. All exterior lighting shall comply with Section 3.12 of the Zoning Ordinance.

4. All exterior signage shall comply with Article 8 of the Zoning Ordinance.

5. All parking spaces shall comply with Section 5.01D of the Zoning Ordinance and be delineated by the “box” style striping.

6. That the total calculation for permitted parking shall not exceed 37 parking stalls, as approved by the Planning Commission in accordance with Section 5.01 ( C ) (3) of the Zoning Ordinance.

All the Planning Commissioners agreed that this is a good site plan and they are in support.

Vote on the motion:

YEAS: Brown, Eyre, Gaynor, Hanna, King, Kozakiewicz, Mead, Senesac and Svenson

NAYS: None

ABSENT: None

The motion was approved 9-0.

b. Site Plan No. 276 from Wilcox Professional Services, LLC on behalf of Members First Credit Union a request for site plan review and approval for an expanded parking lot and an additional curb cut located at 400 Dartmouth Drive on 0.9 acres.

Mr. Baker showed an aerial photograph of the site. The property is located at the intersection of Dartmouth and Bayliss, approximately one block south of S. Saginaw Road, running northwest to southeast. Jefferson Avenue runs north and south to the west of the photograph. There are two lots owned by Members’ First Credit Union located on the east side of Bayliss Street. Both properties are zoned Office Service which would allow a parking lot as a permitted use. The site plan shows the removal of a building located to the east. The traffic pattern shows a drive through off Bayliss Street onto Dartmouth Drive, going through the drive up windows.

Mr. Barringer stated he represented the petitioner and would attempt to answer any questions the Planning Commission may have. Right now there is a walk-up ATM. It is located by the driveway that is going to be reconstructed. There are 12 employees at peak time. Thursdays and Fridays are their peak times and at the present time, all the spaces are currently used.

It was moved by Senesac and seconded by Eyre to recommend City Council approval of Site Plan No. 276 with the following contingencies:

1. The stormwater detention system is designed and constructed in accordance with the City of Midland Engineering Department specifications.

2. All landscaping shall comply with Article 6 of the Zoning Ordinance.

3. All exterior lighting shall comply with Section 3.12 of the Zoning Ordinance.

4. All exterior signage shall comply with Article 8 of the Zoning Ordinance.

5. All parking spaces shall comply with Section 5.01D of the Zoning Ordinance and be delineated by the “box” style striping.

6. That the total calculation for permitted parking shall

not exceed twenty-seven (27) stalls as approved by the Planning Commission.

Mr. Gaynor stated that neighbors stated in the public hearing that traffic on the street was congested and that the additional parking was needed. The neighbors will be disappointed if additional parking is not provided.

Mr. Eyre stated it looks like a good site plan and the neighbors are in support of it. Ms. Brown and Mr. Mead agree. Mr. Mead thinks we need to review the ordinance requirements for Office Service parking. Mr. Gaynor stated he likes the one-way flow of traffic through the site.

Ms. Svenson watched at a peak time and they parked across the street because it is more convenient and the parking lot wasn’t at capacity. They do have enough parking now and an extra curb cut and expanded parking is a lot of extra asphalt that is really not warranted.