EUREKA TOWNSHIP If a proposal for a brand new housing growth of greater than 100 single-family properties is to undergo, metropolis officers must accommodate it by amending zoning legal guidelines.

Throughout Wednesday’s common month-to-month assembly of the Eureka Township Planning Fee, the commissioners continued to debate a preliminary housing growth proposal they acquired final month from Grand Rapids-based Visser Brothers Inc., which goals to rework the previous sandpit and 63-acre Rydahl Industries gravel at 8116 Journey All Drive now owned by Jay Carll of 57 Growth LLC in Saginaw, situated off W. Carson Metropolis Highway (M-57) roughly one mile west of town limits of Greenville (Satterlee Highway).

Whereas Visser Brothers Vice-President Heath Baxter requested the Fee in February to redevelop the properties (5 tons in whole) from agricultural and suburban residential (AG/SR) to city residential (UR) within the hope that they may meet a proposed 123 Stick-built single-family properties, Wednesday’s dialog revealed that the method may not be so simple as rezoning the property to permit for high-density growth.

Eureka Planning Fee Chair Duane Putnam, left, and Secretary Linda Weger assessment zoning data throughout the fee’s common month-to-month Wednesday assembly. DN Picture | Cory Smith

As Cities Planner Andy Moore of Williams & Works in Grand Rapids has revealed, there’s presently no approach such a growth may exist given present city planning restrictions.

Visser has a need to place quite a lot of properties on the property, however proper now the way in which your zoning ordinance is written, there is no approach for them to get there, he stated. Whether or not it is stick constructed properties or the property is zoned utilizing a PUD (Deliberate Unit Growth), there’s nothing right here proper now that enables them to get the density they need.

Final month, Visser proposed constructing a growth that might supply water and septic companies to all properties by a public properly and septic system, utilizing three current water wells on the property and constructing a big septic system together with a septic system. backup.

By providing these neighborhood infrastructure programs, the commissioners have been extra receptive to permitting for larger density housing on smaller lot sizes than is presently permitted within the township.

Nevertheless, to do this, Moore stated the fee would first must amend its zoning ordinance.

If the fee’s purpose is to facilitate this undertaking, then you are going to have to vary one thing in your zoning ordinance, he stated.

In line with Moore, one choice for the fee is to vary SR or UR zoning districts (or each) to permit for a smaller lot measurement in case public water and sewer is by some means supplied.

City of Eureka Supervisor and Zoning Administrator Darcia Kelley speaks throughout the common Wednesday month-to-month assembly of the City of Eureka Planning Fee as regards to a proposed high-density housing undertaking for the 63-acre sand and gravel pit acres of former Rydahl Industries. DN Picture | Cory Smith

You can provide them that flexibility, she stated. One choice could be to look into altering the UR or SR district to permit for smaller lot sizes if water and sewer is provided ultimately, that means you possibly can outline the lot measurement based mostly on whether or not they provide or not such companies.

Andy added, nevertheless, that such a system would require approval from quite a few businesses.

If water and septic tanks had been licensed by EGLE (Michigan Division of the Setting, Nice Lakes and Power), the Division of Well being (Mid-Michigan District), and town, you possibly can doubtlessly have smaller tons with workable water and sewer programs, he stated. You simply haven’t got the mechanism in your ordinance proper now to make that occur.

Even with a PUD, Moore stated that as a result of the underlying zoning districts do not permit parcel sizes sufficiently small to fulfill Visser Bros. demand (13,500 sq. ft), utilizing such a zoning wouldn’t presently be an choice.

As to your path ahead, it will be useful to listen to from them (Visser), hear what the well being division stated, Moore stated. If it is viable, that could be an choice and so they can come ahead with one thing.

In line with city supervisor and zoning administrator Darcia Kelley, well being division officers had been anticipated to tour the property with Visser Bros. on Wednesday.

Nevertheless, Kelley stated Visser Bros. can also be making an attempt to arrange a preliminary website plan proposal if the neighborhood water and septic idea is not possible.

They’re trying into each choices, he stated. So do not make your whole resolution on the concept that they’ve the neighborhood sane and septic, as a result of there is a good likelihood it must be accomplished with out that choice.

In exploring additional choices, Fee Chair Duane Putnam stated it was his need to see the property re-zoned into Manufactured Residential District (MHR) residential zones.

The Eureka Township Planning Fee is seeking to doubtlessly change its zoning legal guidelines, which might permit building of a proposed high-density housing undertaking by Visser Brothers Inc. of Grand Rapids on the former Rydahl’s 63-acre sand and gravel pit Industries at 8116 Journey All Drive now owned by Jay Carll of 57 Growth LLC in Saginaw situated off W. Carson Metropolis Highway (M-57) roughly one mile west of the Greenville metropolis limits (Satterlee Highway). DN Picture | Cory Smith

Whereas the Visser Bros. undertaking doesn’t require the development of prefab properties, Putnam stated he believes zoning would nonetheless present the developer with the density he desires.

My thesis is, what is the distinction when you transfer right into a manufactured house or when you have stick-built properties constructed on that property? she requested overtly. A home manufactured from sticks is a dwelling. A prefab home is a dwelling. The whole premise of this neighborhood is predicated on the truth that it has public sewer and sanitation programs. That is precisely what they need to do utilizing inside wells, three of them, and having a sanitary sewer. It would not matter if the homes are manufactured or not. It’s a dwelling on rather a lot. The one distinction is the way it’s finished.

Nevertheless, Moore cautioned in opposition to zoning a property to MHR and, in flip, not utilizing it for the development of properties for which the zoning was meant.

As a compromise, Moore agreed with Putnam {that a} new district known as Excessive Density Housing (HDH) could possibly be created, utilizing primarily the identical or comparable language as MHR.

My solely hesitation about utilizing MHR is that the district is meant to deal with manufactured properties, he stated. I do not essentially need to use it as a instrument to make one thing utterly completely different. So that you’re proper, we may tweak the MHR, give it a distinct identify (HDH), give completely different sizes for stick constructed homes to be constructed on smaller tons. It is all doable, the method, nevertheless, continues to be the identical. You continue to want to vary the zoning ordinance and relocate the property. If you wish to make a change to MHR, I feel it is positive. That is one other option to do it, however procedurally, you are not saving time.

Moore pressured, whichever route the fee chooses to go, it’s going to primarily contain the identical quantity of steps.

The method would be the identical, you simply need to determine amongst yourselves what’s the easiest way to get there, he stated.

Fee Vice Chair Marty Posekany stated it’s his desire to discover a answer that doesn’t use the MHR district.

My two cents is, depart mhr out of this, he stated. That housing constructing identify leaves it alone to face by itself.

Having reached a consensus that the zoning modifications might want to occur by some means, the committee members agreed to revisit the dialog at their subsequent assembly on April 19, when Visser Bros. is predicted to offer a second presentation with updates on the standing of the undertaking.