HomeMy WebLinkAboutPLANNING MINUTES 2016-10-25 MINUTES OF THE 1,096TH PUBLIC HEARINGS AND REGULAR MEETING
HELD BY THE CITY PLANNING COMMISSION
OF THE CITY OF LIVONIA
On Tuesday, October 25, 2016, the City Planning Commission of the City of
Livonia held its 1,096th Public Hearings and Regular Meeting in the Livonia City
Hall, 33000 Civic Center Drive, Livonia, Michigan.
Mr. Ian Wilshaw, Chairman, called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.
Members present: Glen Long Betsy McCue Carol Smiley
Kevin Priddy Peter Ventura Ian Wilshaw
Members absent: Sam Caramagno
Mr. Mark Taormina, Planning Director, and Ms. Margie Watson, Program
Supervisor, were also present.
Chairman Wilshaw informed the audience that if a petition on tonight's agenda
involves a rezoning request, this Commission makes a recommendation to the City
Council who, in turn, will hold its own public hearing and make the final
determination as to whether a petition is approved or denied. The Planning
Commission holds the only public hearing on a request for preliminary plat and/or
vacating petition. The Commission's recommendation is forwarded to the City
Council for the final determination as to whether a plat is accepted or rejected. If a
petition requesting a waiver of use or site plan approval is denied tonight, the
petitioner has ten days in which to appeal the decision, in writing, to the City
Council. Resolutions adopted by the City Planning Commission become effective
seven (7) days after the date of adoption. The Planning Commission and the
professional staff have reviewed each of these petitions upon their filing. The staff
has furnished the Commission with both approving and denying resolutions, which
the Commission may, or may not, use depending on the outcome of the
proceedings tonight.
ITEM #1 PETITION 2016-09-02-18 Q MASSAGE
Ms. Smiley, Acting Secretary, announced the first item on the agenda, Petition
2016-09-02-18 submitted by Qing Lim requesting waiver use
approval pursuant to Section 11.03(u) of the City of Livonia
Zoning Ordinance #543, as amended, to operate a massage
establishment (Q Massage) within the multi-tenant
commercial/office center (Livonia Plymouth Plaza) at 28801 —
28851 Plymouth Road, located on the south side of Plymouth
Road between Harrison Avenue and Middlebelt Road in the
Northwest 1/4 of Section 36.
October 25, 2016
27888
Mr. Taormina: Livonia Plymouth Plaza is located on the south side of Plymouth
Road between Harrison and Middlebelt Roads. It is zoned C-2,
General Business. This is a multi-tenant commercial and office
center containing roughly 41,000 square feet of gross floor area.
The building has zero setback from Plymouth Road, and all of the
site's off-street parking is located at the rear of the property.
Presently, there are only three tenants within this complex,
including a hair salon, title company and a physical therapy
center. Massage establishments are allowed under waiver use
approval as set forth in Section 11.03(u) of the Zoning Ordinance.
This proposed massage establishment would occupy what is
referred to as Unit 8 within the complex, which is located along
Plymouth Road towards the west end of the building. This unit is
approximately 1,900 square feet in total size and has nearly 19
feet of building frontage and a depth of roughly 100 feet. The floor
plan submitted with the application shows how the unit would be
divided into four massage rooms as well as a kitchen and a main
lobby. They are not proposing any exterior modifications to the
building, just the interior layout as shown on the floor plan. They
would be allowed one wall sign not to exceed 19 square feet in
area. For general commercial, parking ranges between one
space for every 200 square feet of useable floor area for office
and one space for every 150 square feet of useable floor area for
commercial or retail. That would yield a total parking requirement
between 164 to 219 parking spaces. The plan only shows 78 off-
street parking spaces; however, given that this is a pre-existing
non-conforming condition and there is relatively low demand for
parking at the current time, the deficiency should not pose any
immediate problems. The ordinance requires that any proposed
massage establishment be located no closer than 400 feet to any
occupied or approved massage establishment, school, place of
worship, state licensed day care facilities, public library,
playground or public park. There are no such uses within 400 feet
of the subject premises. With that, I can read out the
correspondence. We have a number of items.
Mr. Wilshaw: Yes, please.
Mr. Taormina: There are seven items of correspondence. The first item is from
the Engineering Division, dated October 4, 2016, which reads as
follows: "In accordance with your request, the Engineering
Division has reviewed the above referenced petition. We have no
objections to the proposed waiver use at this time. The legal
description for parcel A on the drawings included with the petition
appears to be correct and should be used. The existing property
is assigned an address range of 28801 to 28851 Plymouth Road
for the units within the building, and an address of #28801
October 25, 2016
27889
Plymouth Road for the overall parcel. The existing building is
currently serviced by public water main and sanitary sewer.
Should renovations to the building require alterations to the
existing services, drawings will need to be submitted to this
department to determine if permits will be required."The letter is
signed by David W. Lear, P.E., Assistant City Engineer. The
second letter is from the Livonia Fire & Rescue Division, dated
October 17, 2016, which reads as follows: "This office has
reviewed the site plan submitted in connection with a request to
a massage establishment on property located at the above
referenced address. We have no objections to this proposal."
The letter is signed by Daniel Lee, Fire Marshal. The third letter
is from the Division of Police, dated October 18, 2016, which
reads as follows: "I have reviewed the plans in connection with
the petition. I have no objections to the proposal." The letter is
signed by Brian Leigh, Sergeant, Traffic Bureau. The fourth letter
is from the Inspection Department, dated October 18, 2016,
which reads as follows: "Pursuant to your request, the above-
referenced petition has been reviewed. (1) The parking spaces
provided for this site are limited but do not currently pose a
problem. Depending on future use and occupancy of vacant
tenant spaces, the number of parking spaces may need to be
addressed. (2) The parking lot shall be repaired and restriped as
necessary. Parking spaces shall be 10' wide and 20' deep and
double striped. This Department has no further objections to this
Petition." The letter is signed by Jerome Hanna, Director of
Inspection. The fifth letter is from the Treasurer's Department,
dated October 13, 2016, which reads as follows: "In accordance
with your request, the Treasurer's Office has reviewed the
address connected with the above noted petition. At this time,
there are no outstanding amounts receivable for taxes.
Therefore, I have no objections to the proposal." The letter is
signed by Lynda Scheel, Treasurer. The sixth letter is from the
Finance Department, dated October 5, 2016, which reads as
follows: "I have reviewed the addresses connected with the
above noted petition. As there are no outstanding amounts
receivable, general or water and sewer, I have no objections to
the proposal." The letter is signed by Coline Coleman, Chief
Accountant. We also received an email on October 12, 2016,
from Joe Mastrogiacomo, the owner of the building, which reads
as follows: To whom it may concern: I received your notice of
public hearing re: Q Massage. Unfortunately, we will not be able
to attend this Public Hearing. I have had two conversations with
my realtor to get his sense of the principals of Q Massage and he
has told me twice that he feels they are legitimate. However, we
would certainly defer to your due process in granting this waiver.
As much as we would like to have a new tenant, we would not
October 25, 2016
27890
want them to be disruptive to other tenants. Thanks for all you do
to keep Livonia a great place to work and live." That is the extent
of the correspondence.
Mr. Wilshaw: Are there any questions of the Planning Director? Seeing none,
is the petitioner here? We will need your name and address for
the record please.
Qing Liu, Q Massage, 3 Catalpa Court, Woodridge, Illinois 60517. Good evening
Mr. Wilshaw: What would you like to tell us about this petition? Can you please
tell us what you're planning on doing? Can you tell us a little bit
more about it?
Fang Fang Hu, 263 W. 23rd Street, Chicago, Illinois 60616. I can translate for her
and her massage business. It's called something like relax
massage. You work very hard on neck. It goes something like
that. Before sport, relax, or after sports to relax. If you have any
questions, you can ask her and I'll translate for her.
Mr. Wilshaw: Okay. Thank you. I appreciate you being here to help with that.
Are there any questions for the petitioner?
Ms. Smiley: Do you live locally?
Ms. Hu: No.
Ms. Smiley: No, you don't. You're from Chicago, but does your friend live in
Livonia?
Ms. Hu: No, I didn't live here because she had a meeting here, so I come
with her to translate for her.
Ms. Smiley: And she is from Chicago also?
Ms. Hu: Yes.
Ms. Smiley: Okay. How did you become interested in this particular
establishment? What brought you to Livonia?
Ms. Hu: Because she has a friend, a girlfriend, she's living here and when
she traveled here, she liked it here so well, she wants to move
here. Before move, we need to make sure of something before
move. She plan to open her business here and move here.
Ms. Smiley: How do you plan on getting business in Livonia?
October 25, 2016
27891
Ms. Hu: She wants to open a massage business here first. Because she
is very professional in massage and she has the massage license
for that, and she will pull some advertisers first and then we can
see the business and listen to our customers and what they need,
or if they feel like something else, we can go to the LA Fitness
and listen to the people who are sporting here and make sure
what peoples habit are interested in. Something like that.
Ms. Smiley: Does your girlfriend do massage?
Ms. Hu: No, she's no massage here because she has a husband and she
married here and she moved here,
Ms. Smiley: Okay. But she doesn't do massage?
Ms. Hu: Yeah.
Ms. Smiley: And she has nothing to do with that business? Okay.
Ms. McCue: First of all, how many massage therapists will you have at that
location, and where are you planning on finding the massage
therapists that you're using? How would you hire them?
Ms. Hu: She says she used to have friends work here in massage store.
She says she has a friend and he's working here. She says she
know a friend; he's working here about 6 years and the friend tell
him for this city, they have not a lot of massage places here so
she can open this business here because there are not a lot here
so we can start from here.
Ms. McCue: How many massage therapists will you have at this location?
Ms. Hu: Employee?
Ms. McCue: Yes.
Ms. Hu: About two.
Ms. McCue: Okay. Thank you.
Mr. Priddy: I just have a couple questions. What are the hours of operation
that you're looking to operate?
Ms. Hu: She is thinking about before 9 a.m. until 9 p.m. but if the City Hall
have any suggestions or some requirements, we will comply.
October 25, 2016
27892
Mr. Priddy: I was just looking over the application. The phone number on the
application, is that your phone number?
Ms. Hu: Yes. I know one month ago, her phone broke and we only check
with her contact with her only use . . . because she didn't know
her phones cannot call in or call out. The reason we just figured
out the problem.
Mr. Priddy: Oh, you just figured out the problem? How long have you had
the number?
Ms. Hu: About one year, but recently this have some problem on her
phone.
Mr. Priddy: Would you say you got it in 2015, last year? Has it been like
around 2015 you got the number? Do you know? A couple years
maybe?
Ms. Hu: She used this phone about one year.
Mr. Priddy: So it's a new number to her?
Ms. Hu: She always used this number about one year and the reason they
have some problem, she will continue use this number.
Mr. Priddy: The reason I ask is, it looks like the number is associated with an
escort service on backpage.com. Are you aware of that?
Ms. Hu: No.
Mr. Priddy: She has no knowledge of that?
Ms. Hu: She said she only use this one on back page. Her own cell phone.
Mr. Priddy: That's her cell phone though?
Ms. Hu: Yeah. It's a family phone. Isn't it?
Mr. Priddy: Oh, it's a family phone.
Ms. Hu: Yeah.
Mr. Priddy: Okay. Who gave that phone to you?
Ms. Hu: She's open this phone from AT&T.
October 25, 2016
27893
Mr. Priddy: Okay. I was looking around too. It looks like the mix of businesses
in the area, it seems like you have a market on one side and
there's some various office-type businesses. Does that seem like
that would fit in with what you're planning? It doesn't seem to
have like a massage or any gyms in the area. It doesn't really
seem to fit in that building. It seems to be an office building, I
guess.
Ms. Hu: She planning to open her business right here because she has
some reason. At first, the location is very good and we can see
very nearby, the Target. The second, we're finding the rental is
very low than other area. For the inside planning, they already
have some individual rooms. So we cannot put a lot of money to
make a room individually or put something else inside. That way
we save a lot of money. This is what her plan is to choose this
location.
Mr. Priddy: Okay.
Mr. Ventura: Can you tell me how long you've lived in Chicago?
Ms. Hu: About six years.
Mr. Ventura: Six years?
Ms. Hu: Yes.
Mr. Ventura: And I'm not clear why you're moving from Chicago to Livonia.
Because you have a friend here?
Ms. Hu: Because in the past, she's in Chicago doing some business and
making some money. Recently, her daughter from China going
to America. She wants to have her own business for making more
money to support her daughter for living and study. Her friends
told her this is a good place. Once she already traveled here and
see it is a beautiful place and that she plan to move here, give
her daughter better study environment and making more money.
Yeah, this were her way so she chose to move here because you
know in Chicago, they're very crowded.
Mr. Ventura: So does that mean that the petitioner and her daughter are going
to move in with her friend and her husband?
Ms. Hu: Yes. After we open this business and they keep balance, she will
be make her family all move here.
Mr. Ventura: So the family is going to stay in Chicago.
October 25, 2016
27894
III
Ms. Hu: Now she's living her girlfriend's house, and when the business
already all set, they will move here and rent a house in the future.
Mr. Ventura: Thank you.
Mr. Priddy: Is the name of your business Q Massage?
Ms. Hu: Yes.
Mr. Priddy: Is that a d/b/a? Is that what you registered with the State?
Ms. Hu: No. Because her name is Qing Lim from her name star wars. The
easy way.
Mr. Priddy: Okay. So will the business be called Q Massage?
Ms. Hu: Yes.
Mr. Priddy: Is that what that is?
Ms. Hu: Yeah.
Mr. Priddy: Okay.
Ms. Hu: It's star from her name for the wars.
Mr. Priddy: Thank you.
Ms. Smiley: Where did you go for instruction on massage? To get a license,
you have to go to a school to get training.
Ms. Hu: In Chicago, therapy massage therapy school.
Ms. Smiley: Thru the Chair, would that carry here in Michigan?
Mr. Taormina: I don't know the answer. She'll have to be licensed through the
State of Michigan to perform massage therapy. That will be a
prerequisite to her opening the establishment.
Ms. Smiley: Ladies, did you hear that one? You would have to go through
licensing in the State of Michigan in order to receive a license to
perform massage in the City of Livonia. Are you aware of that?
Ms. Hu: In the future, she will get the Michigan license, but at first, she is
a business owner and she will the employees who have the
Michigan license because at the start of the business, she have
October 25, 2016
27895
to go through between Michigan and Chicago. She have to do the
same. So she didn't do massage in her store. She will have the
employees who have massage license here.
Ms. Smiley: So she doesn't actually have a license. She's going to get one
but she's just going to run the business.
Ms. Hu: She already has the Chicago. In the future, she will apply for. But
at the start of the business, she didn't work at her store. She is
just as a business owner.
Ms. Smiley: So she is just going to be the owner of the business and not
actually do any of the actual massaging.
Ms. Hu: Yeah. She's just the manager something. The whole family will
move here so she has a lot of things to do.
Ms. Smiley: Do you have any licensed therapists at this time?
Ms. Hu: Do you mean for her or her employees?
Ms. Smiley: Does she have any employees that would actually work at this
site?
Ms. Hu: Yes, she did.
Ms. Smiley: Yes, she does?
Ms. Hu: Yeah. If you need, we will get the information for you later,
probably tomorrow.
Ms. Smiley: Okay. Thank you.
Mr. Wilshaw: Just a quick question. How many years has Ms. Lim been
practicing massage?
Ms. Hu: About three years.
Mr. Wilshaw: Three years she has been practicing massage. Okay. This
business is just a single business. This isn't part of a franchise or
national chain of massage places. This is just a single business
with her and a couple employees performing massage. Correct?
Ms. Hu: No, just a single one.
October 25, 2016
27896
Mr. Wilshaw: And they will be performing full service massage in terms of full
body massage, feet, hands or is it just specialized to a certain
part of the body?
Ms. Hu: She said it's about feet and the body and the head.
Mr. Wilshaw: Okay. That's all I have. If there are no other questions for the
petitioner, is there anybody in the audience that wishes to speak
on this item? Seeing no one coming forward, I will entertain a
motion at this time.
On a motion by Priddy, seconded by McCue, and unanimously adopted, it was
#10-101-2016 RESOLVED, that pursuant to a Public Hearing having been held
by the City Planning Commission on October 25, 2016, on
Petition 2016-09-02-18 submitted by Qing Lim requesting waiver
use approval pursuant to Section 11.03(u) of the City of Livonia
Zoning Ordinance #543, as amended, to operate a massage
establishment (Q Massage) within the multi-tenant
commercial/office center (Livonia Plymouth Plaza) at 28801 —
28851 Plymouth Road, located on the south side of Plymouth
Road between Harrison Avenue and Middlebelt Road in the
Northwest 1/4 of Section 36, which property is zoned C-2, the
Planning Commission does hereby deny Petition 2016-09-02-18
for the following reasons:
1. That the petitioner has failed to affirmatively show that the
proposed use is in compliance with all of the special and
general waiver use standards and requirements as set forth
in Sections 11.03 and 19.06 of the Zoning Ordinance #543;
2. That the petitioner has not adequately established that there
is a need for the proposed use in this section of the City;
3. That the petitioner has not sufficiently demonstrated that the
proposed use would be compatible to and in harmony with
the surrounding uses in the area; and
4. That the proposed use is contrary to the goals and
objectives of the Zoning Ordinance which, among other
things, are intended to insure suitability and appropriateness
of uses.
FURTHER RESOLVED, that notice of the above hearing was
given in accordance with the provisions of Section 19.05 of
Zoning Ordinance #543, as amended.
October 25, 2016
27897
Mr. Wilshaw, Chairman, declared the motion is carried and the foregoing resolution
adopted. You will have 10 days in which to appeal this decision
in writing to the City Council. That will be your option. We're
recommending a denial of this item. Thank you for coming.
ITEM #2 PETITION 2016-10-SN-05 DEARBORN FEDERAL
Ms. Smiley, Acting Secretary, announced the next item on the agenda, Petition
2016-10-SN-05 submitted by Graph-X Lettering, Inc. requesting
approval for a wall sign pursuant to Section 18.47 of the City of
Livonia Zoning Ordinance#543, as amended, at DFCU Financial,
37373 Seven Mile Road, located on the southeast corner of
Seven Mile and Newburgh Roads in the Northwest 1/4 of Section
8.
Mr. Taormina: This is request for a wall sign at the DFCU Financial building
which is located at the southeast corner of Newburgh and Seven
Mile Roads. The site is zoned OS, Office Services. Signage in
this district is regulated under Section 18.50 of the Zoning
Ordinance. Office developments that consists of a single tenant
occupying a single building are permitted one identification wall
sign either in the form of a wall sign or a ground sign but not both.
The wall or ground sign cannot exceed 16 square feet. In 1994,
the Zoning Board of Appeals reviewed this site at a time when the
property was only allowed one sign at 10 square feet. The Zoning
Board of Appeals granted permission for two monument signs,
each 12 square feet, one located in the front yard along Seven
Mile Road and then a second sign located in the side yard
adjacent to Newburgh Road. In addition, the site was allowed a 5
square foot ground sign next to the facility's rear entrance. So
right now, this site contains two identification signs — one along
Newburgh, one along Seven Mile Road and then one smaller
directional sign, which is closer to the building. Because this site
is in one of the city's designated Control Zones, it does require
Planning Commission and City Council approval. The proposed
new wall sign would be located on the west elevation of the
building which faces Newburgh Road, and it would measure 40
square feet. The rendering shows what the proposed wall sign
would look like. The graphics on the sign would say "DFCU
Livonia." In exchange for this new sign, the existing ground sign,
which is next to the credit union, the smaller sign, would be
removed. If approved, DFCU would have a total of three
identification signs that would be visible to passerby traffic - this
sign, again located on the west elevation of the building and then
the two existing monument signs. Because of the amount of
signage, this would require a variance from the Zoning Board of
October 25, 2016
27898
Appeals. In our staff report, we provided some comparison
information relative to office versus commercial, as well as what
is located on one of the neighboring properties. It is interesting to
note that this signage is still well below what would be allowed in
a commercial district and is still below even that which exists for
the Lake Michigan Credit Union that is located almost directly
across the street. Lake Michigan Credit Union currently has two
wall signs and a ground sign. Both the wall signs are 18 square
feet while the ground sign is 24 square feet. So with that, Mr.
Chair, I have one item of correspondence.
Mr. Wilshaw: Yes.
Mr. Taormina: There is one item of correspondence from the Inspection
Department, dated October 18, 2016, which reads as follows:
"Pursuant to your request, the above-referenced petition has
been reviewed. The following is noted: A variance from the
Zoning Board of Appeals would be required to maintain the
excess signage proposed. This Department has no further
objections to this petition." The letter is signed by Jerome Hanna,
Assistant Director of Inspection. That is the extent of the
correspondence.
Mr. Wilshaw: Are there any questions for the Planning staff? Seeing none,
would the petitioner please come forward? We will need your
name and address for the record please. Would you like to add
anything to what you've heard so far?
Mark Winnik, DFCU Financial, 400 Town Center, Dearborn, Michigan 48126. What
we're just trying to do is get a little more identification of our
building on that corner. The two ground signs that we have are
20 square feet each, one on each of the main roads. Our thought
is, if we had one in that northwest corner of the building, we'd be
able to catch anyone coming up Newburgh Road or at the corner
that might miss our ground sign as they're approaching the
corner.
Mr. Wilshaw: Are there any questions from the Commissioners?
Mr. Long: There is no need to put any lighting on this sign. It won't be lit?
Ms. Winnik: It would be a non-illuminated sign. That's kind of our brand going
forward. The ground signs are illuminated. That corner is pretty
well lit even at night time. Parking lot lighting. Not that there's a
whole lot of transient lighting, but it is a fairly well lit site. I think
even in the evening it might be visible because of the white
letters. So we've chosen not to have any illumination behind it.
October 25, 2016
27899
Mr. Long: Thank you.
Mr. Wilshaw: Are there any other questions. I don't believe there is anybody in
the audience that wishes to speak for or against this. This is a
fairly simple request. Is there a motion?
On a motion by Ventura, seconded by Smiley, and unanimously adopted, it was
#10-102-2016 RESOLVED, that the City Planning Commission does hereby
recommend to the City Council that Petition 2016-10-SN-05
submitted by Graph-X Lettering, Inc. requesting approval for a
wall sign pursuant to Section 18.47 of the City of Livonia Zoning
Ordinance #543, as amended, at DFCU Financial, 37373 Seven
Mile Road, located on the southeast corner of Seven Mile and
Newburgh Roads in the Northwest 1/4 of Section 8, be approved
subject to the following conditions:
1. That the wall sign shall be installed in accordance with the
Sign Plan submitted by Graph-X Lettering, Inc., as received
by the Planning Commission on October 10, 2016;
2. That the existing ground sign next to the credit union's rear
entrance shall be removed;
3. That this approval is subject to the petitioner being granted
variances from the Zoning Board of Appeals for excessive
signage and any conditions related thereto; and
4. That any additional signage for this location shall only
require Zoning Board review and approval.
Mr.Wilshaw, Chairman, declared the motion is carried and the foregoing resolution
adopted. It will go on to City Council with an approving resolution.
ITEM #3 PETITION 2016-08-08-09 MICHIGAN FUELS
Ms. Smiley, Acting Secretary, announced the next item on the agenda, Petition
2016-08-08-09 submitted by N.C. Designers & Contracting, on
behalf of Michigan Fuels, requesting approval of all plans
required by Section 18.58 of the City of Livonia Zoning Ordinance
#543, as amended, in connection with a proposal to renovate the
existing Mobil gas station, including demolition of the existing
building and construction of a new gas station, at 33430
October 25, 2016
27900
Schoolcraft Road, located on the northwest corner of Schoolcraft
and Farmington Roads in the Southeast 1/4 of Section 21.
Mr. Taormina: This item received Planning Commission approval on August 30,
2016. Following the approval, it was determined that a utility
easement that runs along the rear of the property would prevent
the location of the building as it was originally shown. The
petitioner has submitted revised plans for your consideration.
This project involves removing the existing gas station building
and then constructing a new convenience store, plus
reconfiguring several other site elements including the parking lot
lighting, landscaping, etc. The existing gas station building is
about 400 square feet in size. It's about 60 feet from Schoolcraft
Road and 100 feet from Farmington Road. The new convenience
store would be about 3,100 square feet in size. It would result in
a substantially larger building. The plan shows where the new
building would be located. It is a little bit larger than the building
you approved previously. That building was about 3,080 square
feet, so roughly the same size but with a different configuration.
That one was rectangular. This is more of an L-shaped building.
The new building has been moved outside of the easement. It's
closer to Schoolcraft Road as well as the northwest corner of the
property. Again, it's required to be at least 60 feet from the right-
of-way of either Farmington or Schoolcraft Roads. While it's far
enough away from Farmington Road, it's only 36 feet now from
Schoolcraft and this deficiency will require a variance from the
Zoning Board of Appeals. The new building would contain a retail
area, cashier, counter, office and restrooms. The east elevation
facing Farmington Road as well as the south elevation facing
Schoolcraft Road and the west side of the building would be
constructed out of a combination of brick and a stone material.
These are the same materials that you looked at with the original
plan, but as you can see, this is a different design. The rooflines
meet at different angles. It does still contain the same general
architectural features. One of the elements that was added is the
landscaping in the front with the addition of a planter box. That
was one of the items that was discussed at the study meeting.
That is shown on the revised site plan as well as on the latest
rendering. Going back to the site plan, there would be a total of
eight gas pumps. This is a reduction of two from the previous
design. The existing overhead canopy would remain to cover all
of the gasoline pumps. That canopy is about 25 feet in width by
143 feet in length. In terms of parking for gas stations, one space
for every 150 square feet of useable floor area is required. Based
on the size of this building, it would require 17 parking spaces.
The plan shows 13 parking spaces and thus would require
approval by the Zoning Board of Appeals. The three drive
October 25, 2016
27901
approaches would remain. That was how it was shown on the
previously approved site plan configuration. Landscaping on the
site would constitute about 27 percent of the total site area, which
does exceed our minimum requirement of 15 percent. Another
change on this plan from the study session was the notation and
the location on this plan showing where the air pump would be,
just on the opposite side of the loading zone. With that, I can read
out the correspondence.
Mr. Wilshaw: Yes, please.
Mr. Taormina: There are five items of correspondence. The first item is from the
Engineering Division, received by the Planning Department on
October 13, 2016, which reads as follows: "In accordance with
your request, the Engineering Division has reviewed the above-
referenced petition. We have no objections to the proposed
project at this time. Although the owner has submitted revised
plans, they have not made any of the corrections or provided any
additional information as previously requested in our letter of
August 8, 2016. The following notes are from our previous letter,
and still are appropriate for the revised plan submittal. The legal
description submitted with the petition and the legal description
shown on the submitted plans do not match. The description
submitted with the petition indicates that property includes the
24.72 foot wide vacated alley on the west end of the site, while
the description on the plan set does not. The owner should verify
whether or not the property includes the vacated alley and adjust
the legal description as necessary. For purposes of this petition,
we would recommend using the description included with the
petition paperwork. The existing parcel is assigned the address
of 33430 Schoolcraft Road. The lot is currently serviced with
public storm and sanitary sewer, as well as water main. The
submitted drawings do not indicate proposed locations, or
relocations of the exiting service leads, so we are unable to
determine any effects to the existing systems at this time. The
proposed plans do not contain calculations for the proposed
drainage system or any storm water detention, as required by the
City of Livonia Site Design Standards. The owner should submit
drawings to this department to obtain permits for the proposed
utility work and soil erosion from the City of Livonia, as well as
provide storm water detention per the Wayne County Storm
Water Ordinance. Should the owner need to enter the Farmington
Road right-of-way to revise utility service leads or alter driveway
approaches, they will need to obtain permits from the Wayne
County Department of Public Services." The letter is signed by
David Lear, P.E., Assistant City Engineer. The second letter is
from the Livonia Fire & Rescue Division, dated October 12, 2016,
October 25, 2016
27902
which reads as follows: "This office has reviewed the site plan
submitted in connection with a request to demolish the existing
gas station and construct a new fueling facility on property located
at the above referenced address. We have no objections to this
proposal with the following stipulation: We recommend removal
of one (1) exit/entrance on Schoolcraft Road due to corner and
traffic flow. This has been asked for and approved in the past for
at least two other facilities." The letter is signed by Daniel Lee,
Fire Marshal. The third letter is from the Division of Police, dated
October 18, 2016, which reads as follows: "I have reviewed the
plans in connection with the petition. I have no objections to the
proposal." The letter is signed by Brian Leigh, Sergeant, Traffic
Bureau. The fourth letter is from the Inspection Department,
dated October 18, 2016, which reads as follows: "Pursuant to
your request, the above-referenced petition has been reviewed.
(1) The petitioner only shows 13 parking spaces provided, 17
parking spaces are required. A variance from the Zoning Board
of Appeals would be required to maintain the deficient number of
spaces. (2) A variance from the Zoning Board of Appeals would
be required for the deficient setback of the building from the
Schoolcraft Road right-of-way. (3) The barrier free parking space
shall be van accessible per the 2012 MBC and ANSI 117.1. The
barrier free parking space shall be 11 feet wide with a 5 feet
accessible hashed space. (4) The Commission and/or Council
may wish to address free air at this site and add the following
statement: That free air shall be provided at all times this station
is open for business. The free air shall be dispensed at the point
of service without having to enter the station or the performance
of any extra action in order to obtain the air without charge. (5)
Signage has not been reviewed at this time. This Department has
no further objections to this Petition." The letter is signed by
Jerome Hanna, Director of Inspection. The fifth letter is from the
Finance Department, dated October 11, 2016, which reads as
follows: "I have reviewed the addresses connected with the
above noted petition. As there are no outstanding amounts
receivable, general or water and sewer, I have no objections to
the proposal." The letter is signed by Coline Coleman, Chief
Accountant. That is the extent of the correspondence.
Mr. Wilshaw: Are there any questions for the Planning Department?
Ms. Smiley: Through the Chair to Mr. Taormina, if they close that first exit or
the most eastern exit on Schoolcraft Road, would they still be able
to take the second exit to go to the turnaround to get on the
expressway?
Mr. Taormina: Yes, it would be possible.
October 25, 2016
27903
Ms. Smiley: So they could actually do the most east. It was the Fire
Department that wanted that closed?
Mr. Taormina: The Fire Department indicated one or the other. They just said
one of the two located on Schoolcraft. When we evaluate these
and make those decisions, it usually depends on how the fuel
trucks are able to maneuver the site. So oftentimes on smaller
sites, in particular, we're constrained by the truck movement. We
might have the advantage here that it's a little bit larger site that
would enable them to do that, but I would probably want to study
that a little bit further with the petitioner this evening to see what
the possibility of that would be.
Ms. Smiley: Thank you.
Mr. Wilshaw: Would the petitioner please come forward? We will need your
name and address for the record please. Is there anything you
would like to add?
Nasser Choucair, NC Designers and Contracting, 3241 S. Telegraph, Dearborn,
Michigan 48124. What we mentioned at the study meeting
regarding the planter, we put in front of the glass to give it some
green at the front elevation. We did talk about the loading zone.
So I heard something about the approach. What was the
question?
Ms. Smiley: The Fire Department had recommended that you close one of the
two approaches on Schoolcraft Road.
Mr. Choucair: This is not a square site. It's a little bit long and the reason we
had the problem before is because it's narrow. You see it wide
but it's not wide enough because we have an easement in the
back. The reason I would like to keep this is for the semi to be
able to better maneuver when he comes in. He can go in straight
and then he can come out, or he has to come from Farmington to
dump his fuel. I was depending on Schoolcraft. The semi can park
where the two parking spots were added to dump his fuel. There
isn't traffic. But I would like him to maneuver in fast, not take his
time backing up. I would like to have the nice circulation for him
when he comes into the site. So that approach, I would like to
leave for certain technicality that we have. We can put some signs
that we don't like to see cars exiting from there.
Ms. Smiley: Not to exit from there but just to enter from there?
Mr. Choucair: Yeah.
October 25, 2016
27904
Ms. Smiley: I see what you're saying. Thank you.
Mr. Long: Following up on that, as you go through these discussions about
whether or not to close an approach, also keep in mind, I
appreciate where you put the air pump. That was out of our study
session. I think you could also have the backup at that western
most entrance where the air pump is located as well if we close
the other one. So as you're going through all the discussions,
keep that in mind as well if it does come down that you decide or
you are asked to close one of them. Just consider the location of
the air pump as well.
Mr. Ventura: Will the additional planter in front of the building right up against
the building be live plants?
Mr. Choucair: Yes.
Mr. Ventura: Will it be irrigated?
Mr. Choucair: Yes.
Mr. Ventura: Thank you.
Mr. Wilshaw: Any other questions? I just make one quick observation. When I
look at the plans, it looks like the fuel storage tanks are on the
north end of the property. Is that correct, Nasser?
Mr. Choucair: Let me check.
Mr. Wilshaw: I'm thinking that the traffic pattern for your fuel tanker that comes
in is probably not the way you described it.
Mr. Choucair: Yeah, for the time being, where the parking is.
Mr. Wilshaw: It's not like you're going to move them.
Mr. Choucair: We might. It depends on how old the tanks are. When we start
digging over there, sometimes owners get crazy and they want to
change everything underground and clean up and all that. So it
depends on how old the tanks are, but for the time being, they did
not mention anything. Always we leave these approaches as
much as we can for maneuvering traffic, not only the tank.
Anything. Delivery, cars come in now. I want to mention
something that we had in the previous approval. We had five
islands, not four. We eliminated one to get the building in the
corner.
October 25, 2016
27905
Mr. Wilshaw: Okay. That's a good observation. The concern that we normally
have over having curb cuts near the intersections stems more
from intersections that have two-way traffic than one-way traffic.
Of course, Schoolcraft is strictly a one-way street so that does
change the dynamic here slightly as we think about this. It's not a
situation where you necessarily are going to have people coming
out of that approach trying to cross several lanes to go
eastbound. Just a comment. If there are no other questions for
the petitioner, there's no one in the audience so I won't even
bother asking. A motion would be in order.
On a motion by McCue, seconded by Ventura, and unanimously adopted, it was
#10-103-2016 RESOLVED, that the City Planning Commission does hereby
recommend to the City Council that Petition 2016-08-08-09
submitted by N.C. Designers & Contracting, on behalf of
Michigan Fuels, requesting approval of all plans required by
Section 18.58 of the City of Livonia Zoning Ordinance #543, as
amended, in connection with a proposal to renovate the existing
Mobil gas station, including demolition of the existing building and
construction of a new gas station, at 33430 Schoolcraft Road,
located on the northwest corner of Schoolcraft and Farmington
Roads in the Southeast 1/4 of Section 21, be approved subject to
the following conditions:
1. That the Site Plan marked Sheet SP-2, dated October 21,
2016, as revised, prepared by N.C. Designers & Contracting
Inc., is hereby approved and shall be adhered to;
2. That all on-site parking shall be properly sized and marked,
including any barrier-free space(s) as may be required by
the State of Michigan;
3. That this approval is subject to the petitioner being granted
variances from the Zoning Board of Appeals for deficient
parking and building setback and any conditions related
thereto;
4. That the Landscape Planting Plan marked Sheet LP-1,
dated September 22, 2016, as revised, prepared by Nagy
Devlin Land Design, is hereby approved and shall be
adhered to;
5. That all disturbed lawn areas, including road right-of-way,
shall be sodded in lieu of hydro-seeding;
October 25, 2016
27906
6. That underground sprinklers are to be provided for all
landscaped and sodded areas, and all planted materials
shall be installed to the satisfaction of the Inspection
Department and thereafter permanently maintained in a
healthy condition;
7. That the Elevation Plans marked Sheets A-2 and A-3,
prepared by N.C. Designers & Contracting Inc., both dated
October 21, 2016, as revised, are hereby approved and
shall be adhered to;
8. That the three walls of the trash dumpster area shall be
constructed out of the same brick used in the construction
of the building or in the event a poured wall is substituted,
the wall's design, texture and color shall match that of the
building. The enclosure gates shall be of solid panel steel
construction or durable, long-lasting solid panel fiberglass.
The trash dumpster area shall be maintained and when not
in use closed at all times;
9. That all rooftop mechanical equipment shall be concealed
from public view on all sides by screening that shall be of a
compatible character, material and color to other exterior
materials on the building;
10. That any illumination of the pump island canopy shall be
restricted to the undercarriage, and all light fixtures shall be
recessed and made flush with the established ceiling;
provided, however, that this section shall not apply to those
specified signs which are expressly allowed by the district
regulations of the Zoning Ordinance;
11. That all light fixtures shall not exceed twenty feet (20') in
height and shall be aimed and shielded to minimize stray
light trespassing across property lines and glaring into
adjacent roadway;
12. No outside storage, placement or display of merchandise
shall be permitted at any time on this site; however, the
foregoing prohibition shall not apply to the display, on the
pump islands only, of oil based products as permitted in
Section 11.03(a)(12) of the Zoning Ordinance;
13. That free air shall be provided at all times this station is open
for business. The free air shall be dispensed at the point of
service without having to enter the station or perform any
extra action to obtain the air without charge;
October 25, 2016
27907
14. That there shall be no vehicle vacuum equipment or outdoor
placement/storage of propane cylinder storage units on the
site;
15. That the sale of ice shall be restricted to the inside of the
building;
16. That only conforming signage is approved with this petition,
and any additional signage shall be separately submitted for
review and approval by the Zoning Board of Appeals;
17. That no part of the pump island canopy fascia, except for
signage, shall be illuminated;
18. That no LED lightband or exposed neon shall be permitted
on this site including, but not limited to, the pump island
canopy, building or around the windows;
19. That the specific plans referenced in this approving
resolution shall be submitted to the Inspection Department
at the time the building permits are applied for; and,
20. Pursuant to Section 19.10 of Ordinance #543, the Zoning
Ordinance of the City of Livonia, this approval is valid for a
period of ONE YEAR ONLY from the date of approval by
City Council, and unless a building permit is obtained, this
approval shall be null and void at the expiration of said
period.
Mr.Wilshaw, Chairman, declared the motion is carried and the foregoing resolution
adopted. It will go on to City Council with an approving resolution.
ITEM #4 APPROVAL OF MINUTES 1,095th Public Hearings and
Regular Meeting
Ms. Smiley, Acting Secretary, announced the next item on the agenda, Approval
of the Minutes of the 1,095th Public Hearings and Regular
Meeting held on September 27, 2016.
On a motion by Smiley, seconded by McCue, and unanimously adopted, it was
#10-104-2016 RESOLVED, that the Minutes of 1,095th Public Hearings and
Regular Meeting held by the Planning Commission on September
27, 2016, are hereby approved.
October 25, 2016
27908
A roll call vote on the foregoing resolution resulted in the following:
AYES: Smiley, McCue, Long, Priddy
NAYS: None
ABSENT: Caramagno
ABSTAIN: Ventura, Wilshaw
Mr.Wilshaw, Chairman, declared the motion is carried and the foregoing resolution
adopted.
On a motion duly made, seconded and unanimously adopted, the 1,096th Public
Hearings and Regular Meeting held on October 25, 2016, was adjourned at 8:00
p.m.
CITY PLANNING COM vA SSION
aeU)AJ U-AleAr/
Carol Smiley, Acti • Secret
ATTEST:
Ian Wilshaw, Chairman