MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS
WHICH TOOK
PLACE ON TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 2003,
AT 6:30 P.M.,
IN COUNCIL CHAMBERS, CITY HALL,
1.
ROLL CALL.
PRESENT:
Board Members – Lichtenwald,
Pelton, Sutton, Higgins, Holthof
ABSENT: None
OTHERS
PRESENT: Mark Ostgarden, secretary; and 16 people in the audience
2. APPROVAL OF MINUTES.
The minutes of August 19, 2003, were approved subject to the following corrections:
Petition 03-10: The minutes for this petition should include Jack Higgins has a family member that attends the church but that interest will not affect his objectivity.
Petition 03-11. Finding No. 5 should read: “There are many attached garages……”
The second paragraph on page four, third sentence should read “The variance would do justice in that there are many attached garages…..”
3.
PUBLIC HEARINGS AND CONSIDERATION.
Petition No.
03-12 – Home Depot for an area/dimension variance for an increase
in sign area square footage at 1100 Joe Mann Boulevard.
The secretary explained to the Board, it was determined that the Home
Depot did not need the sign area variance.
Petition
No. 03-13 – Ramada Inn for a use variance for construction of five (5) – ten
unit one and two bedroom apartment buildings at 1815 South Saginaw Road.
The secretary described the request and reviewed the property
details. The petitioner desires to use
the property for residential purposes.
The motel would be demolished and new apartment buildings would be
constructed. The existing bar and office building would remain. The property is
zoned BB-2 and this zoning does not permit the residential use. The Future Land Use Plan and zoning for the
area were reviewed. The secretary explained
the process that will require the Board to approve the site plan for the
development if it approves the use variance.
Ramsay Sadek spoke on behalf of the petitioners and described why the
property was not useable for commercial purposes. He explained how the property has been called
obsolete by an appraiser, which the visibility of the site from Saginaw Road
was not good for retail and that conditions have changed in that this part of
the community and use of the property for commercial activity was not feasible.
One letter in opposition was received and read into the record by Susan
Weitz during public comments.
Several rental property owners voiced opposition to the Board indicating
that additional apartments were not needed in the community. The speakers challenged the apartment vacancy
rate data used by the petitioner. One
adjacent property owner was opposed to the proposal stating that a two story
apartment building in her back yard would intrude on her privacy.
No one
else spoke in support of or in opposition to the request.
FINDING OF
FACTS – Petition 03-13
1.
The property is zoned BB-2.
2.
The property has frontage on Colorado Street.
3.
A Taco Bell Restaurant is proposed across the Street.
4.
One letter was presented in opposition of the
request.
5.
There were seven people who spoke in opposition.
1.
The petitioner purchased PI’s 13 years ago and the
motel property two years ago.
2.
The petitioner stated renovation, rezoning or razing
and rebuilding the motel were not feasible.
3.
A conference center and bar exists on the property.
4.
The motel and pool will be demolished.
5.
The motel owners also own the land.
6.
The last major
renovation was before 1998, but the exact date was not known.
7.
There is no access to Haley Street for the property.
8.
A retail use was the first option considered by the
petitioner, but determined to not be economically feasible.
9.
The motel has 80 guest rooms.
10.
Average daily
occupancy is 24 rooms.
11.
The property is very irregular in shape.
12.
Approximately one- half (1/2) of the property is part
of the medium density land use on the Future Land Use Map of the Master Plan.
13.
A parking easement on the motel property for 80 cars
was granted to PI’s.
A motion
was made by Jack Higgins and seconded by Sally Sutton to approve the use
variance based on the findings of fact, conditioned upon a site plan being
submitted and approved as per Section 25 of the Zoning Ordinance and a
technical review be provided by the city traffic consultant, the fire and
engineering departments and that public notification of the site plan review be
provided.
In the
Board’s deliberation, Jack Higgins acknowledged that a motel is not a
reasonable use but cited a similar situation on Eastman Avenue where retail
uses are not adjacent to the street. He
was not comfortable with the bar mixed with the residential use. He thought the proposed use would alter the
neighborhood character. The property is
unique in one sense and is not self created because of the property shape.
Jack
Higgins’ comments reflected the opinion of the Board. Sally Sutton offered she thought the property
could be put to a reasonable use. She
thought the neighborhood character would be affected and also cited traffic
safety concerns if apartments are built.
She questioned what was being done for children and pedestrians in terms
of play area and safety. She thought the
problem was self created due to the property division that occurred which
separated PI’s from the motel property.
Woody
Pelton did not think all possibilities for retail uses have been
exhausted. He was persuaded by the property
owner who lives behind the site that the neighborhood character would
change.
Tim
Lichtenwald thought other options needed to be explored. He also thought there was uniqueness to the
property, but that using the property for residential purposes would have a BIG
impact on the neighborhood and the problem was self created based on the
property division that occurred.
Hank
Holthof had difficulty accepting that other uses were not feasible. Expanding the bar was not addressed. He though all the other criteria were met.
Vote on
the motion
Yea: None
Nay: Higgins, Holthof, Lichtenwald, Pelton, Sutton
4. Public comments before the Zoning Board of
Appeals.
One person
expressed concern to the Board that the process being used by the applicant was
circumventing the approval process.
5. Old/New Business.
The Board
determined it will continue its meetings on the Third Tuesday of each month and
will continue to begin its meetings at
A brief update
on the Zoning Ordinance process was provided.
The secretary
explained that the board may want to consider a process to educate the public
in that some viewers that may be seeing a Board meeting for the first time when
its meetings begin airing live on MGTV in November. The Secretary suggested that, at the
beginning of each meeting, a brief review of the Board’s responsibilities and
process should be provided. The chairman
suggested looking into a trailer that goes across the bottom of the screen
during its meetings to explain what is happening. The secretary will look into the education
issue and report back.
The secretary
reported that Hank Holthof and Sally Sutton will be attending the October
Michigan Society of Planning Conference.
ADJOURN.
Respectfully submitted,
Mark Ostgarden, AICP, CFM
THESE MINUTES ARE NOT
OFFICIAL UNTIL APPROVED BY THE ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS.