HomeMy WebLinkAboutPLANNING MINUTES 2015-09-22 ,
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MINUTES OF THE 1,076T" PUBLIC HEARINGS AND REGULAR MEETING
HELD BY THE CITY PLANNING COMMISSION
OF THE CITY OF LIVONIA
On Tuesday, September 22, 2015, the City Planning Commission of the City of
Livonia held its 1,076th Public Hearings and Regular Meeting in the Livonia City
Hall, 33000 Civic Center Drive, Livonia, Michigan
Mr Lee Morrow, Chairman, called the meeting to order at 7 00 p m
Members present. Scott P Bahr Kathleen Mclntyre R Lee Morrow
Carol A. Smiley Gerald Taylor lan Wilshaw
Members absent None
Mr Mark Taormina, Planning Director, and Ms Margie Watson, Program
Supervisor, were also present.
Chairman Morrow 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 re�ected 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.
Mr Morrow� Before I ask the Secretary to read the first item on the agenda, I
have a couple announcements to make The first one is that
`- �, anyone in the audience will have the opportunity to speak for or
�' against any of these petitions that are before us The other thing
� .-- �`•' I want to announce is that a couple weeks ago we tabled an
'�_- � item for Woodhaven Retirement Community where they were
�� _ � requesting to acquire some property from the city We have
;_,�— � received a letter regarding that. I'm going to ask the Planning
���� �_; Director, Mark Taormina, to read the letter as the audience here
�:�� �
� ; ,.-, tonight and the television audience may be interested in what
���-- � the final outcome is
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September 22, 2015
27098
Mr Taormina This was a letter that we sent out to the residents once we
learned that Woodhaven Retirement Community would be
withdrawing its petition before the Planning Commission The
letter reads "Dear Res�dent: Please be advised that the
petitioner, Woodhaven Retirement Community, has w�thdrawn
�ts request to purchase a portion of city-owned property at
Golfv�ew Park In rev�ewmg construction opt�ons w�th the C�ty, it
was determmed that expans�on of Woodhaven's facility can be
accompl�shed without ut�lizing any port�on of the park property
Thank you for your interest and expressing your concerns about
this pro�ect." The letter was dated September 16, 2015, and
signed by the Planning Director
ITEM #1 PETITION 2015-08-01-07 WASHINGTON SCHOOL
Ms Smiley, Secretary, announced the first item on the agenda, Petition 2015-08-
01-07 submitted by Kucyk Soave & Fernandes, P L L C
pursuant to Section 23 01 of the City of Livonia Zoning
Ordinance #543, as amended, requesting to rezone the
properties at 9449, 9447, 9445, 9443, 9441 and 9439 Hix Road
(the site of the former Washington Elementary School), located
on the southwest corner of Hix and Ann Arbor Roads in the
Southwest 1/4 of Section 31, from PL, Public Land to R-1, One
Family Residential - 60' x 120' Lots
Mr Taormina This rezoning request involves six ad�oining parcels that make
up the former Washington Elementary School site, which is
generally located at the southwest corner of Hix and Ann Arbor
Roads As you can see from the zoning map, except for the
northwest and northeast corners of this group of properties,
which abut commercially zoned properties along Ann Arbor
Road, the property is bordered by residential zoning as well as
single family homes The R-1 zoning would allow for the
development of single family homes on lots that would be no
less than 7,200 square feet in size with lot dimensions of 60 feet
by 120 feet. Alternatively, where certain conditions are met, the
City can approve a special waiver use pursuant to Section
20 02A of the ordinance that would allow for reduced lot sizes
and yard requirements This form of development is commonly
referred to as single family clustering, but in order to qualify for
the cluster option, there must be a showing that the land area
involved in the request possesses unique characteristics that
make developing under conventional standards impractical
Under the cluster option, this limits the overall density to 4 0
dwelling units or lots per acre All six of these properties are
currently vacant The largest of the group is 9449 Hix Road
September 22, 2015
27099
This is where the school was previously located It's a corner
parcel that contains roughly 575 feet of frontage along Ann
Arbor Road and has a depth of 612 feet along Hix Road The
total size of this one parcel is 35,129 square feet or
approximately 8 06 acres The remaining five parcels, 9447,
9445, 9443, 9441 and 9439 Hix Road are located directly south
of the larger parcel Situated between eight RUF zoned lots that
front along Hix Road and eleven R-1 lots that front along
Knolson Avenue, this group of parcels is roughly 300 feet by
650 feet for a total lot area of 19,500 square feet or 4 48 acres
When we add all of the properties together, we're looking at a
combined area of 54,600 square feet or roughly 12 5 acres We
have one item of correspondence that I will read at this time
Mr Morrow� Please
Mr Taormina There is one item of correspondence from the Engineering
Division, dated August 31, 2015, which reads as follows "In
accordance w�th your request, the Engineermg D�v�s�on has
rev�ewed the above referenced plann�ng pet�tion We have no
ob�ect�ons to the proposed �zoning] use pet�tion at this time,
although we do have the follow�ng comments m regards to the
proposal (1) The addresses shown for the sub�ect parcels are
�ncorrect. The correct addresses that should be used with the
pet�t�on are #9439, #9441, #9443, #9445, #9447 and #9449 (2)
Some of the legal descr�ptions for the parcels that were included
with the petit�on contain minor errors and do not close according
to current surveying standards In order to fix the errors, the
owner will need to complete a boundary survey for all of the lots
involved It is our op�n�on that the errors are small enough as to
not warrant a new survey at th�s time, and that the zoning
boundary can adequately be described by the current
descriptions. If the pet�t�on is approved and the owner moves
forward with the development, a new boundary survey w�ll be
required with the submittal of full engineering draw�ngs (3) The
petition does not �ndicate any potential utility layouts or
connections, so we are unable to comment on any potent�al
impacts to the ex�st�ng systems at this time We have been in
discussions w�th the owner regarding the existing util�ties
available to the parcels, and will rev�ew the proposed layouts
once they are submitted to this office The s�te is currently
serviced by water mam, storm and san�tary sewers owned by
mult►ple �ur�sd�ct�ons, so we cannot speculate as to wh�ch
systems will be impacted until we are able to view a proposed
layout of the util�ties " The letter is signed by David W Lear,
P E , Assistant City Engineer That is the extent of the
correspondence
September 22, 2015
27100
Mr Morrow� Are there any questions of the Planning Director?
Mr Bahr� Through the Chair to Mark Mark, when you talk about the 60 by
120 feet lots, is that the same size lots as what are in the
surrounding neighborhood here in general?
Mr Taormina That would be very similar in size to the lots that are along
Knolson Avenue, which have the same zoning that is proposed
for this property but smaller than the lots that front along Hix
Road, which are zoned Rural Urban Farm Those tend to be a
little bit larger lots
Mr Bahr� This doesn't appear to be a lot size that you could get a street
with houses on each side going down the narrow section of the
land there Why was this laid out this way in the beginning? Do
you know anything about the history of this?
Mr Taormina No I don't know the full history of how the parcels were
assembled to make up the overall school property You can see
that this was a portion of the site that contains some scattered
trees and open space In terms of your comment regarding the
width of the southerly portion of the land involved in this request,
you're correct. It would not be sufficient to allow for a single road
coming down the center of that area with lots on either side that
would meet all of the R-1 district requirements That's one of the
reasons why I mentioned the clustering option as a possibility
Again, it's premature at this time to really get into any plan
details, but it is something that might be considered should the
rezoning move forward There are a number of options we can
consider, but there is a limitation with respect to the width of that
part of the property
Mr Bahr� One more question related to that and it's another historical
question so you may not know But do you know, those homes
on the Rural Urban Farm lots, do you know what came first, the
homes or the school?
Mr Taormina I don't know that off the top of my head That would have to be
researched in terms of the age of those homes and when the
school was built.
Mr Bahr� The only reason I ask is I'm trying to figure out if it was a
situation where the school once had the property and then it
was sold to be developed It's �ust odd to me the way that's
shaped there That's all I'm all set.
September 22, 2015
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Mr Taormina I understand
Mr Morrow� Any other questions of the Planning Director? Before I ask the
petitioner to come forward, I'm going to amplify what Mr
Taormina said a little earlier Tonight we are looking at zoning
We will ask the petitioner to share some of this thoughts on how
we will develop this property However, should the zoning be
approved, at least the First Reading at the City Council level,
the petitioner will have to submit a plan showing exactly how he
is going to develop that property So we're here tonight for the
rezoning and not the development of the site per se With that,
I'll ask the representative to come forward We will need your
name and address for the record please
Enrico E Soave, Kucyk Soave & Fernandes, PLLC, 37771 Seven Mile Road,
Suite C, Livonia, Michigan 48152 Good evening, everyone I'm
here on behalf of the petitioner
Mr Morrow� Is there anything you want to add?
Mr Soave As everyone is aware, this is the rezoning stage of the
development, which is the infancy stage commencing
development. Right now it's premature to address any site plan
issues There is some engineering difficulty with this site,
namely with storm water We're not sure if we can get enough
volume for a storage pond abutting Ann Arbor Road or if we're
going to have to do two retention ponds, one abutting to Ann
Arbor Road and to the rear of the property I'm not sure if Mark
mentioned it, but we do have this property under contract to
purchase through the Livonia Public Schools So we're not the
legal owners
Mr Morrow� I'm assuming it's a conditional purchase
Mr Soave The sale was bid out to the public over a period of time Our
group ended up being the highest bidder and it is conditioned
under contract, due diligence period subject to successful
rezoning and site plan approval by this Board and the City
Council
Mr Morrow� Anything else? I'll see if the Commission has any questions
Mr Soave Nothing further but I'd love to address any questions you may
have
Mr Morrow� Are there any questions from the Commission?
September 22, 2015
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Mr Taylor� This is a rather odd piece of property Under normal
circumstances, we would have some kind of a plan to show it
might work I can understand that possibly it might be cluster
housing It might be something else It could be RUF on the east
side of the property I'm kind of reluctant to give an R-1 zoning
when I don't know exactly, and I don't think the petitioner knows
exactly, what he's got in mind I'm kind of in the dark as to
what's going on
Mr Morrow� Seeing no further questions, is there anybody in the audience
that wishes to speak for or against the granting of this petition?
Eric Cousino, 9331 Hix Road, Livonia, Michigan 48150 I've been involved in his
neighborhood since 1976, years ago First of all, I don't know
what's going on I thought they sold the property north of mine I
was always told that the land back there was public land I
thought that land was donated Our kids all play there People in
the neighborhood we've all been there Like I said, I've been
there over 40 years, or almost 40 years I do not think that land
should be listed as residential For one, it will take away from
the neighborhood and also, where are you going to build a
road? How much distance are you going to give us? How much
distance will you give the property owners off of Hix Road? How
much distance are you going to give the property owners off
Knolson Road? Our kids play there
Mr Morrow� As you heard earlier, some of your questions would have to be
answered at the next level should this go forward
Mr Cousino I understand
Mr Morrow� It is public land but it belongs to the school district.
Mr Cousino Right. So we already sold that or have conditions to sell that.
Why are we selling public land now?
Mr Morrow� The School Board is in charge of that and they decided, I guess,
to declare it surplus
Mr Cousino If they were in charge of it, they would have sold it with the
northern property, I suppose
Mr Morrow I assume that's the entire site that they own Thank you Anyone
else in the audience wishing to speak? If you would come up to
the podium so we can be ready to go
September 22, 2015
27103
Rosemary Hope, 9131 Knolson, Livonia, Michigan 48150 I was looking at this
layout of the property lines for the school property You've got it
sectioned off as 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 pieces of land for houses How
many houses are going to be in that section? It's a small section
bordered by Knolson, Northfield and Hix Is it just one house per
parcel there, or is it going to be more? You say one-family
houses Are these going to be two story houses or one story
houses? Are they going to be in value with our homes? If you
put a $250,000 home, that's not going to do us good It might do
us some good but not totally because we're in a bracket of
$150,000 to $180,000 homes depending on how they're taken
care of I'd like to know You've got that one big section of Hix,
Ann Arbor Road and Knolson, the big part. What are they going
to do with that? Are they going to be for homes or are they
going to be commercial? These are a lot of things that people in
our neighborhood, they are all friends They all keep their
houses up good and their question is the same thing What are
they going to put in and are they going to jam them up or are
they going to spread them out? Two thousand foot homes is a
pretty good size home out there Is it going to have a
basement? Is it going to have a cul-de-sac that they can get out
of, that one little section? There's a lot of questions you know I
don't want to see nothing commercial on Ann Arbor Road We
don't need another building You can go down Plymouth Road,
Ann Arbor Road and you can count at least 25, 30 buildings to
Merriman that are sitting empty We don't need another one We
don't need a low cost apartment building Definitely we don't
need that. Livonia l think has about five or six senior
apartments That's enough for a town of what, 80,000 people?
Mr Morrow� Ma'am, it definitely will not be commercial It will not be
apartments This is for a residential home site That rules out
anything else other than a residential site A lot of your
questions, as we �ust said, that should this initial approval go
forward to the City Council, at that time all of those questions
can be answered I think what the petitioner has said in his
opening remarks, it's a tenuous piece of property and there's
got to be a lot of investigation to see if it's even a viable pro�ect
to go forward on If it is viable, just how much of it can they build
and how much can't they build So all we're doing tonight is
looking at the zoning to see if it makes sense in the general
area where it's located Should this come back to us in the form
of some kind of development plan, all your questions will be
answered at that time
Ms Hope Well, okay Thank you
September 22, 2015
27104
Mr Morrow� Does anyone else want to come forward to speak? Yes, sir
Mark Jones, 9394 Knolson, Livonia, Michigan 48150 My property of course
backs up to what used to be the elementary school I, for one,
want residential homes in there I don't want no apartments
They've already destroyed the area on Joy and Hix It's not
even safe to go over there anymore I certainly don't want a
park back there where we have Harley Davison motorcycles
revving their engines and drinking beer But my only concern
about the residential, what hearing would there be where we
know �f they're going to put low income homes? They're not
going to put low income homes in there, are they? Or is there
another hearing for that after we zone it for residential, then we
decide whether we're going to be low income Because that
would �ust about finish off the area if we did
Mr Morrow� That would be more appropriate when they get back to the
development stage This is now �ust strictly zoning Is R-1
compatible to and in harmony with the surrounding area
Mr Jones So if it's zoned R-1, and I'm assuming it will be
Mr Morrow� It's either going to be rezoned R-1 or it won't be rezoned
There's no option
Mr Jones But then a builder comes to you says, okay, I'm going to build
homes I'm thinking about homes in here for $100,000 That's
not going to do no good for my property Is there another
hearing for that?
Mr Morrow� Absolutely
Mr Jones Okay Then I have one more question There's a walkway
between me and my neighbor's home that was used for the
elementary school And it makes perfectly good sense not for
the kids to be out on Ann Arbor Road to go to that school But
now that school is not there, and now it's an invasion of my
privacy because now we don't have kids going to school A
month ago I had a guy with a motorcycle �acket and long hair I
guess he probably was in Viet Nam at one time, but my
grandkids were in the backyard in broad daylight. He pulled it
out and urinated in between my house and my neighbor's
house I started to get really angry and go out there, and then I
said, I've been here three years That's never happened before
Maybe it will never happen again But the point I'm trying to
make is, what are we going to do with that walkway that's
invading my privacy? I mean I can get a lawyer and find out. I
September 22, 2015
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mean I know the walkway was put there and the city has the
right to do so if it's good for the community Of course, kids
going to school, that's good for the community so there's
nothing you can do about it, but now that school is gone And
now what that is, is not good for the community That's an
invas�on of my domain And I paid $200,000 to have privacy If I
come to your house and start peering over the fence every time
you come outside, you're going to say, who the hell is this guy?
Right?
Mr Morrow� I know where you're coming from I'm going to take a stab at
this and the Planning Director will correct me I assume there's
an easement there
Mr Jones Probably is
Mr Morrow� If that easement is determined to be no longer necessary,
whoever owns it, if it's the city or whoever owns that easement,
they usually let it attach to the abutting property owners Is that
correct, Mark?
Mr Taormina I don't have enough details
Mr Morrow� But generally that's the way it works
Mr Taormina It could actually be a public walkway that was provided on the
subdivis�on plat, in which case there is a process to have it
either vacated or abandoned That's something we can discuss
at a later date
Mr Jones I'd appreciate it if you take that into consideration because once
they start building the homes, I'll be back to find out about that
walkway
Mr Morrow� We will rely on you to bring that to our attention
Mr Jones Okay
Mr Taylor� Sir, I'm �ust wondering if the neighborhood is comfortable with
R-1 housing in that area I'd like to know that.
Mr Jones Oh, I am comfortable with it. What are you going to do with it?
You're either going to put a park there, or an apartment, or
condos or homes, and I'd rather have the homes
Mr Taylor� That's my question That's what I want to know from the
neighborhood if it is developed And as the Chairman said, it's
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kind of a long process First it comes to the Planning
Commission We recommend to the Council I don't know what
the Planning Commission is going to do, but it could be R-1 and
then the Council hears it, and they listen to it, but they won't
give a Second Reading R-1 is �ust asked for The Second
Reading they have to vote on and they will not vote on that untii
they have a plan ThaYs the normal procedure of the City
Council And that's the problem I have right now We normally
have sort of a plan of what they might want to do and how this
property might be developed Right now, I have no idea how it
could be developed
Mr Jones From my point of view, like I say my house backs up to that
property, and I don't want Harley Davidsons out there and guys
drinking beer, and I don't want no apartments because we've all
seen what happened on Joy at Hix and also on Joy and
Haggerty I mean these guys want you to let them build these
500 unit apartments and then they can't fill them So they got to
pay the taxes so they go from $900 00 a month down to
$300 00
Mr Taylor� You don't worry about apartments We're not talking about
apartments
Mr Jones I'm happy with the homes
Mr Morrow� Just for the record, you and everybody else in the audience on
this petition, you'll have the opportunity to do this all again at the
City Council level, whether we approve it or deny it, it will go
there and you will have an opportunity to do this all again in
front of your elected officials
Paul Knieriem, 8915 Pere Avenue, Livonia, Michigan 48150 I wasn't planning on
asking anything so I'll make it very, very brief As far as the
planning and making the transition, what would happen if this is
denied and it is kept as public land? What are the different
options? What actually would transpire if you guys say no? I'm
kind of in favor of housing there I like housing a lot better than
the other options, but I'm �ust trying to understand the process
If you guys deny the rezoning and it stays public land, what
would the normal process look like?
Mr Morrow� Whether we approve it or deny it, it will go to the City Council
and they will make the final determination as to whether the
zoning can begin its approving process through the site plan So
if the developer for whatever reason says this site can't be
developed, I don't know the terms of their agreement, it may go
September 22, 2015
27107
back to the school and wait for the next person to come by As
Mr Taylor indicated, it's not a quick process but we're trying to
give you an idea of how it's going to work from this night
forward Is there anyone else in the audience?
Jeffrey Nolte, 9386 Knolson, Livonia, Michigan 48150 I'm actually the other
resident on the other side of that sidewalk, which I'm glad my
neighbor asked that question because that's one of the
questions I was going to ask. The one thing that has not got
brought up, that we did talk to the public schools about multiple
times, was having a park there We do not have a park within
the next two or three neighborhoods Right now there is a play
structure on the school property that they left there, but there is
not a play structure anywhere within the neighborhood to the
north of us, to the east of us, within our whole subdivision So
that was one of the things that we were asking for was for them
to leave something there for the kids That's all I have I just
wasn't sure how that affects with R-1 if park is considered
Mr Morrow� It's part of the process but not tonight.
Mr Bahr� May I ask him a question?
Mr Morrow� Sure
Mr Bahr� Sir, can I ask you a question? Unfortunately, I did not get down
there to look at it to refresh my memory as I had intended Can
you specifically help me? Where is the nearest park? I was �ust
looking at my phone trying to find it
Mr Nolte Johnson School
Mr Bahr� Which is right down Hix, right?
Mr Nolte Right. But any of the kids that are younger now have to cross
Joy and Hix to get to it.
Mr Bahr� Thanks
Kim Balhorn, 9339 Patton, Livonia, Michigan 48150 The reason I'm on here is I
kind of started the process in regards to when I first heard that
the Washington site was going to be sold It really upset me
because one of the reasons my husband and I bought in that
area is because the school, Washington, was there at the time
Unfortunately, a year before my son went to school, they closed
it down, but I still am able to use that area for the kids to go to
the park and play and everything else What you put in there
September 22, 2015
27108
makes a difference in regards to our housing An investment in
housing is one of the biggest investments a consumer will ever
make in their life, and that's why I'm coming here One of the
main reasons is, we will not get people to buy houses if we don't
have things for the children to go The school that they go to is
across 96 is Randolph So they have to go across 96 to go to
school That's an issue, and if there's no park for the kids to
play, that's another issue The third issue is, again, if there is not
someplace for the kids to go to, they're going to make places
up We don't want that. We want some place the kids can go
en�oy and go play baseball and stuff One of the reasons, in the
very first meeting that I went to the School Board is, I said,
every other neighborhood has a park, has a place for kids to go
play baseball, soccer or something in there I said, why can't
you put like a little sports complex Everyone is looking for fields
to play in right now The Orioles rent out that field and they use
it. And the neighbors, I think, they like them there because it
brings liveliness to the neighborhood That's a big issue So I
really want you to think about that before you start the planning
I think the biggest reason that we're here tonight is because you
know the process We don't, and we want to make sure that our
words are heard and that you know that we're going to still be
here and we don't want to be left out of the loophole because
this affects our house and our biggest investment we'll probably
ever make as people That's why I'm here But the biggest thing
is that most of the people that live in that neighborhood and we
have a real estate person that sends flowers He can also come
here and tell you in regards to whose looking at this area, what
kind of people, because if you don't bring in families, again, you
don't bring in families the school goes down They want to raise
taxes or do something else or consolidate I told the school at
the time, you need to do something different. You can't do the
same thing and expect different results So please when you
think about it, you need to develop that to make sure it attracts
families because if we don't, it's not going to work for anyone
But the biggest thing is that we want to know what the developer
is going to do Now we know this is the early stages, but our
fear is, and we've seen it so many times, where this is protected
land Nothing is going to happen then all of a sudden so
again it changes We want to make sure that we have a say
because it affects our future and our kids and our generation
and the schooling and everything else So we want to know the
process We want to keep in the loop and then also we were
told that we would have a meeting with the developer for him to
talk to us in regards to what is his plans, what is our plans One
of the biggest things that the school said that they stipulated in
the contract when they went out for bids is green space We
September 22, 2015
27109
want to make sure there's still green space in there for the kids
So that is why I'm here tonight.
Mr Morrow� You are being heard Everything you've said tonight is being
recorded and will be forwarded to the City Council, and you'll
have the opportunity to even speak to the City Council
concerning this This is the �ust the first step as we've tried to
explain
Ms Balhorn So the next step would be the City Council?
Mr Morrow� Yes Tonight, we'll either approve it or deny it, and it will go to
the City Council who will make the final determination of
whether it goes forward or is rejected But the site plan, the
development plan, will come back and that seems to be where
most of the concern is tonight, is how it's going to be developed
We could put thumb screws on the developer here tonight, but
he couldn't tell you what it is because they really don't know
They have to do a lot of work to figure out how it's going to be
developed, if the City Council gives it First Reading
Ms Balhorn Okay I �ust want to make sure, and also for the developer to
know that.
Mr Morrow� Their attorney is here tonight listening to every word And he
represents one of the better builders in the area
Ms Balhorn In regards to the next step at City Council, would that be this
month?
Mr Morrow� Will they be notified of the date, Mark?
Mr Taormina They will receive the same type of notification they had for this
meeting The same process is followed for the City Council
hearing on this
Mr Morrow� They will determine their next meeting for this item, and you'll
get a notice
Ms Balhorn Okay The reason I ask that is because the people that got the
notice is the people that mostly �ust surround that area, but the
whole neighborhood — to let you know that this neighborhood is
a close neighborhood, like once a year we have a block party
where we have like 200 or 300 people come together This is
like an old fashioned neighborhood where we care about people
and we watch out for each other So that's why I �ust wanted to
let you know
September 22, 2015
27110
Mr Morrow� The agenda will be published in the paper and if you know some
neighbors who weren't notified outside of the limits that we're
required to notify, you can get the word out.
Ms Balhorn Okay Great. Thank you
Mr Taylor� Again, the next meeting, whatever we do here, they can appeal
it to the City Council if we deny it, or if we approve it, it goes to
the City Council You're welcome there except the only thing
they will do is g�ve it a First Reading There is no discussion on
it. It's �ust a First Reading They won't give it an approval
actually until the Planning Commission approves the site plan
and they approve the site plan That's when you will all have a
chance to speak to the site plan Thank you
Cynthia Dempsey, 9228 Knolson, Livonia, Michigan 48150 Basically, I didn't
know what this meeting was actually going to be about. I mean,
I know the course of what it's going to be about, but you really
don't want to hear our pros and cons
Mr Morrow� I'm sorry What did you say? We didn't want to hear that?
Ms Dempsey� Well, you're saying that will be the next stage, but how can we
say yes, we like that, when we have no idea how many homes
are going to go into that subdivision? Something about water
retention ponds I mean could the attorney for the developer
give us some more information on that?
Mr Morrow� Let me make one more stab at it. In other words, before they
can even think about building anything on any piece of property,
they have to have the correct zoning So this is the first step In
other words, if they get the zoning for residential, they will put
residential in there Then at that time, once that's overcome,
they will come back and then all these questions we've had
tonight can be addressed and answered because you'll have a
site plan to look at. You'll see how it's going to lay out, where
the open space is, where the retention pond is or whatever goes
into that site It's not that we don't want to discuss it. Really, all
we have to consider is, is the zoning in that area appropriate for
that piece of property in that neighborhood That's our mission
tonight. Everything else you want to know will come back later
That's as good as I can do
Ms Dempsey� But after this meeting tonight, you're going to decide whether or
not it's going to be residential or not?
September 22, 2015
27111
Mr Taormina Mr Chairman, if I may
Mr Morrow� Yes Go ahead
Mr Taormina Maybe a better way to understand the process is, this evening
the Planning Commission is acting in an advisory capacity to the
City Council on deciding whether or not the zoning of the land
should be changed to a classification that is essentially the
same classification as the homes located along Knolson and
Marie Avenues With a change of zoning, the development can
take various shapes, forms, sizes, but the minimums that are
prescribed under that zoning would be the same house sizes
that you see in the ad�acent neighborhood At this stage, we
don't know what the actual design will look like, so the question
this evening is whether or not the R-1 zoning is appropriate for
this land as the first step If that is answered affirmatively by the
City Council by giving First Reading on the rezoning, then the
plan comes back and we look at all the details of the plan —
where the roads are located, where the lots are located, how do
they relate to the surrounding homes in the area That's really
how the process works So tonight, iYs �ust the question of
zoning Should that move forward, then it will be the question of
the actual design of the subdivision or form of development that
is proposed, whether it's a subdivision or some type of
condominium home That's the distinction that I think the
Chairman was trying to make between this step and the next
step in the process I hope I made that clear
Mr Morrow� Well, I think you did well
Ms Dempsey� So at that time, we won't know if it will be colonials, or ranches
We don't know that.
Mr Taormina No Again, it's probably safe to assume that what will ultimately
be presented in the form of a development would include homes
that are consistent with the new home construction that you see
in the area You see homes being built along the west side of
Newburgh Road across from Churchill High School That's
really what the market is bringing right now in terms of home
construction So while they may be a little different sizes and
configurations and maybe more or less ranches, I don't know
But I think it's the intention with the R-1 zoning is to develop
something along similar lines
Ms Dempsey� So in other words, somebody could be in their bedroom looking
right down into my house That's what it boils down to It's sad I
came to this meeting tonight. Drove by and that field is �ust
September 22, 2015
27112
loaded with children The Orioles, the pom pom giris, the
cheerleaders It's really sad I don't understand why we couldn't
make it into some kind of a sports I mean first of all, right away,
boom, they ripped down that baseball fence You know So now
you can't even play a little bit of baseball there A car could veer
off and right into the field Like I said, I went by there and it's like
there's all these football players and cheerleaders and pom
poms And then all these people that are going to be in these
homes, if they have kids, you got to get on a bus and go all the
way over to Randolph, and then I hear through the grapevine,
that Randolph could be closing
Mr Morrow� Ma'am, we appreciate your comments and we think we know
where you're coming from
Ms Dempsey� I don't understand I don't want retention ponds back there, and
stuff like that
Mr Morrow� Okay Well, we appreciate your comments It's part of the
record Is there anyone else that would like to speak for or
against the granting of this petition?
Mr Cousino I kind of got off into the public land thing, but you say RUF is
Rural Urban Farm? Is that right? Will that change if that land is
voted residential?
Mr Morrow� You mean the RUF? No, that's not part of the petition
Mr Cousino I know, but once you start something It's public land up front,
now they're trying to get the back half
Mr Morrow� That's private property It's up to whoever owns that property
They could buy it, I guess, if they were offered and they wanted
to sell it, but that's private property
Mr Cousino So that will stay Rural Urban Farm?
Mr Morrow� That will stay private property in the current zoning district.
Mr Cousino Rural Urban Farm?
Mr Morrow� Correct.
Mr Cousino Thank you
Mr Morrow� If there is no one else coming forward, I'm going to close the
public hearing
September 22, 2015
27113
Mr Bahr� Can I ask a question of the Planning Director?
Mr Taormina Absolutely
Mr Bahr� Mark, help me understand the process I don't know the answer
to this question Let's say that down the line a portion of this
land did become park land Right now it's currently owned by
the schools What is the process by which that happens? Does
the City have to buy it from the schools? I don't know how that's
happened with other parks in the city
Mr Taormina That could take a number of courses, quite frankly I mean there
is at least one property in the city that is owned by the school
district and leased by the aty There are certainly school
properties that are used for park purposes, most of which are
connected to an existing school facility or other school-owned
building The City could - whether it would be an outright
purchase, I can't say - but there could be some sort of
arrangement between the city and the school district as has
been the case several years ago for Mies Park on West
Chicago
Mr Bahr� What I'm ultimately getting at is, if this were to be approved as
R-1 zoning, does that rule out that whole discussion? I mean
does what we do tonight have any impact as to whether that
would even be under consideration in the future?
Mr Taormina Does it rule it out? No Your recommendation this evening as
forwarded to the City Council, and any additional offerings or
suggestions that you want to make, would be up to the Council
to ultimately make those decisions If this body wants to make
any recommendations to that extent, you can modify the
proposal any way you see fit. Again, this is a recommendation
that goes on to the City Council
Mr Bahr� So if the R-1 zoning is approved, then when site plans come in
the future, we would still have an opportunity to designate
certain portions of it as park land?
Mr Taormina I �ust want to say that, and this kind of goes back to what the
Chairman was saying earlier, or actually Mr Taylor regarding
the process, is that the actual zoning is not finalized until a site
plan is reviewed by this body and goes to the City Council for
approval Once they're happy with the plan, they will approve
the rezoning �ust prior to approval of the site plan to protect their
September 22, 2015
27114
options It could change between this point and when the plan
ultimately gets to them for action
Mr Bahr� Thanks I'm �ust going to say a few words now�ust to keep from
having to ask for the floor again later to keep things moving
Where I grew up, where we moved when I was 10 years old,
had a large field partially wooded behind us We played
baseball, football, etc , back there The old man that owned it
mowed it for us It was great But we always knew eventually it
was going to be built on, and it was Today there is a
neighborhood that's been there for probably 15 or 20 years,
however long it's been It's the pace It's the way things go
Frankly, probably every single one of us lives in a neighborhood
that at one point was a field in somebody's backyard So I'm
sensitive to that It's always frustrating when you're the neighbor
living there, and yet you have land that is owned by the schools
It's not being used by the schools and we can foresee that it is
not going to be used by the schools They have a right to sell it
and try to get some market value out of I can see how the only
way you're going to get market value out of this is to make it
residential So it's a tough thing but I think the concern about the
open space is a good one, especially in this area where there is
not a lot of that. I don't know what ultimately would happen with
that, but I want to make sure we stilt have some flexibility to talk
about that in the future if this does move forward
Mr Taormina Yes, absolutely I concur with everything you've said The
zoning doesn't preclude the development of this property to
include a play area or open space It doesn't necessarily have to
be zoned PL, Public Land It could still be under the R-1 zoning
and, in fact, there again we have many examples of privately
owned park space that is zoned for residential purposes, or park
space that is under R-1 or R-2 or residential zoning
Mr Bahr� Great. Thanks
Mr Taylor� Just one question to Mr Soave Is it your dad or your brother
that is building these homes?
Mr Soave Yes, it's a partnership within the family that are developing and
putting the homes in here Correct.
Mr Taylor� Well, I �ust want to tell the audience that if the zoning does go
through, you've got one of the best builders in Livonia because
he's very conscientious of what he does, what he builds, and
tries his best to satisfy the neighbors as far as a little bit of open
space As far as the retention pond goes, we have no control
September 22, 2015
27115
over that. That is Wayne County They make us put in a
retention pond in a certain spot in that area for so many homes
I �ust wanted to clarify that. Thank you
Mr Morrow� Thank you, Mr Taylor If there are no other questions, I will
close the public hearing and ask for a motion
Ms Mclntyre Will you permit me to make a comment before offering the
motion?
Mr Morrow� Go ahead
Ms Mcintyre I'd like to thank everybody who came out tonight I think there's
nothing better than concerned and involved citizens, and I wish
that we could take your concern and your willingness to come
out and ask questions and make your voice heard and
understand the process and spread that to every single
neighborhood in Livonia So thank you for that. And it's
frustrating sometimes when you don't know the process, but as
the Chair pointed out, there are legal requirements for us to
notify neighbors within so many feet of a proposed rezoning It's
always published in the paper and it's always posted at City
Hall So the information is there, and thank you for acting on it.
So I really appreciate everything that was asked tonight. With
that, I'd like to go ahead and offering an approving resolution
On a motion by Mclntyre, seconded by Smiley, and unanimously adopted, it was
#09-62-2015 RESOLVED, that pursuant to a Public Hearing having been
held by the City Planning Commission on September 22, 2015,
on Petition 2015-08-01-07 submitted by Kucyk Soave &
Fernandes, P L L C pursuant to Section 23 01 of the City of
Livonia Zoning Ordinance #543, as amended, requesting to
rezone the properties at 9449, 9447, 9445, 9443, 9441 and
9439 Hix Road (site of the former Washington Elementary
School), located on the southwest corner of Hix and Ann Arbor
Roads in the Southwest 1/4 of Section 31, from PL (Public
Land) to R-1 (One Family Residential - 60' x 120' Lots), the
Planning Commission does hereby recommend to the City
Council that Petition 2015-08-01-07 be approved for the
following reasons
1 That the proposed change of zoning is compatible to and in
harmony with the surrounding zoning districts and land
uses in the area,
September 22, 2015
27116
2 That the proposed change of zoning would provide for the
development of the subject property in a manner that is
consistent with its size and location, and
3 That the proposed zoning change does not obstruct the
goals, policies, and ob�ectives of the Future Land Use
Plan
FURTHER RESOLVED, that notice of the above heanng was
given in accordance with the provisions of Section 23 05 of
Zoning Ordinance #543, as amended
Mr Morrow� Is there any discussion?
Mr Wilshaw� I know we've said this a number of times here tonight, and I
know some of the residents are still not exactly clear of what this
process is So I'm going to try to take one quick stab at it again
�ust, hopefully, one more person will understand kind of what's
going on if my words are slightly different than everyone else's
What's before us today is the issue of zoning, which is the land
itself, not to the buildings that may be on that land, and the land
is currently Public Land owned by the school system The
school system is choosing to sell this property We have no
control over their choice to sell this property or if they want to
keep it and build another school or park or whatever they want
to do with it. They've chosen to put this up for sale, and as a
result, the person who is the potential buyer of this property who
is under contract to buy this would like residential development.
We have this choice versus apartments or commercial or office
or any of the other things you've seen throughout the city This
particular developer wants to do residential This is probably the
least intensive use of this property ne� to it being Public Land
as opposed to a commercial development or a high rise
apartment or something that would be much more intensive
With that, I support the motion but also realize that this is the
beginning of a long process, and once this process goes
through, you're going to see this all come back again under
what's called the site plan The site plan approval is where we
get into the buildings themselves that are going to be on the
property This is where we can look at, is the building brick? Is it
one story or two story? What's the square footage? What's the
size of the lots? Where is the road going to be? All of the things
you're really the most concerned about is going to be in that site
plan approval process We have a lot of control over that
process and how these things work. So we want you to continue
to be involved We want you to come back and let us know
about your concerns and the things that you would like to see
September 22, 2015
27117
The developer, as Mr Taylor pointed out, is very proactive and
willing to listen and modify plans to work with the neighbors in
the area So hopefully we can come up with a plan that will not
only satisfy the petitioner, but also the people who live around it
that are going to have to look at this on a daily basis and live
behind it. Ms Mclntyre pointed out that this is an opportunity to
add new families to the city One of the concerns that one of the
speakers raised was the enrollment within the schools in that
area This will bring potentially more families to this area
because there's going to be more homes, more residents, and
they're going to have kids and they're going to send their kids to
the school system Of course, tax dollars and other things that
come with that. So there's a number of benefits to developing
this property, but doing it in a responsible manner That's all I
wanted to say Thank you
Mr Morrow, Chairman, declared the motion is carried and the foregoing
resolution adopted It will go on to City Council with an
approving resolution for R-1 If you were notified for this meeting
tonight, you will also receive a notification and you will have the
opportunity to speak directly with the same concerns you have
here tonight, which would be another step in the ultimate
development of the property If they give a First Reading, it will
then come back to the Planning Commission, and all your
questions will be addressed that night with the developer or his
representatives The Planning Commission will make a
recommendation to the City Council, and City Council will make
the final determination as to whether the site plan is approved,
modified or whatever So it's a long process but it gives the
neighborhood and residents the opportunity to speak or be
aware at every level of the process So we're not trying to keep
you out of the process As a matter of fact, it's geared to make
you part of the process I appreciate you coming out and
sharing your thoughts with us If it goes through, we'll see you
again when we start developing the plan, and then we can get
an idea of what's going to go in there Thank you for coming
ITEM #2 PETITION 2015-09-02-14 MERRI-BOWL LANES
Ms Smiley, Secretary, announced the next item on the agenda, Petition 2015-
09-02-14 submitted by Joseph Philips Architect, L L C , on
behalf of Merri-Bowl Lanes, requesting waiver use approval
pursuant to Section 19 06 of the City of Livonia Zoning
Ordinance #543, as amended, to expand the existing food
service operation and Class C liquor license of the bowling alley
September 22, 2015
27118
to include an outdoor dining patio at 30950 Five Mile Road,
located on the north side of Five Mile Road between Henry Ruff
Road and Merriman Road in the Southwest 1/4 of Section 14
Mr Taormina This is a request by Merri-Bowl Lanes to expand the facility's
food service and Class C Liquor operation by adding an outdoor
patio As you know, Merri-Bowl Lanes is located on the north
side of Five Mile Road between Henry Ruff Road and Merriman
Road The size of the property is roughly 3 4 acres It includes
300 feet of frontage on Five Mile Road and has a parcel depth
of roughly 500 feet. The zoning of the property is C-2, General
Business There is an existing 35,880 square foot bowling alley
on the site It contains 40 lanes, and the building itself is setback
about 300 feet from Five Mile Road The majority of the area
between the building and Five Mile Road is utilized for off-street
parking Immediately to the west of this site is the Merri-Five
Plaza, which is a group commercial center also zoned C-2 To
the east and to the north are subdivisions zoned R-1, and then
to the south across Five Mile Road are a variety of commercial
uses The proposed patio is located in front of the building in an
area that is �ust east of the main entrance to the building The
patio is about 1,540 square feet in area measuring 55 feet by
28 5 feet. It's been designed with tables and chairs to
accommodate approximately 36 patrons Encroaching into the
parking lot to build the patio will necessitate refiguring some of
the parking For a bowling alley with this many lanes, the Zoning
Ordinance requires 280 parking spaces The site previously
contained roughly 243 spaces The reconfigured parking lot
reduces the total number to 230, but the loss wasn't strictly due
to the proposed patio, it was a decision made between the
owner of this facility and the city to provide additional 10 foot
wide spaces All of the striping before was at 9 feet. When we
discussed this with the petitioner, we thought that the 10 foot
spaces made better sense since this is an underutilized parking
lot to begin with It does increase the deficiency slightly, and as
a result, they will have to get approval by the Zoning Board of
Appeals, but everyone is confident that there is still more than
adequate parking to serve the expanded facility with the outdoor
seating The patio itself would be enclosed with a powder-
coated aluminum fence that would be supported by 42 inch high
stone clad masonry piers with limestone caps This elevation
shows the stone piers between each section of fencing
supporting a wood trellis that would be constructed over the
patio primarily for minor shelter but mostly for decorative
purposes Access to the patio would be provided through an
existing door that is located in the restaurant and lounge within
the bowling alley almost in the center of the patio The plan also
September 22, 2015
27119
shows additional landscape material in the area around the
perimeter of the site One of the things they want to do to better
separate the outdoor dining patio from the ad�oining drive aisle
and parking is not only the piers and fencing but also install
landscaping in the area both for aesthetic purposes and to
increase the safety factor in that area I'll let the architect
descr�be the additional improvements but they are continuing
some of those same features a little bit further to the west on the
property where you'll see the trellis extending towards the main
entrance That would also be supported by stone-clad columns
similar to what they're doing for the piers along the upper patio
They are going to match that. Above that where the Merri-Bowl
Lane sign is, currently there is an awning there that will be
removed and replaced with either an E I F S or a metal canopy
that will contain the new signage With that, Mr Chairman, I can
read out the departmental correspondence
Mr Morrow� Please
Mr Taormina There are several items of correspondence The first item is
from the Engineering Division, dated September 8, 2015, which
reads as follows "In accordance w�th your request, the
Engineering Div�s�on has reviewed the above referenced
petit�on We have no ob�ections to the proposed pro�ect at this
time The legal descript�on included w�th the package of petition
appears to be correct and should be used in conjunct�on w�th
th�s petition The parcel address of #30950 Five Mile Road �s
correct for the sub�ect property The existing building is currently
serviced by public utilities wh�ch are not mdicated for alterat�ons
under the proposed remodelmg Should the owner need to alter
the existing serv�ce leads to the buildmg, plans w�ll need to be
submitted to this department to determine if Engineering permits
w�ll be required Also, should the owner to do any work withm
the F�ve M�le Road right-of-way, they will need to contact the
Wayne County Department of Publ�c Serv�ces for perm�t
requirements " The letter is signed by David W Lear, P E ,
Assistant City Engineer The second letter is from the Livonia
Fire & Rescue Division, dated September 15, 2015, which reads
as follows "This office has reviewed the site plan submitted in
connection with a request to expand the exist�ng food service
operation of the bowlmg alley to include an outdoor dining pat�o
on property located at the above referenced address We have
no ob�ections to th�s proposal " The letter is signed by Daniel
Lee, Fire Marshal The third letter is from the Division of Police,
dated September 9, 2015, which reads as follows "1 have
rev�ewed the plans in connection w�th the petition 1 have no
ob�ect�ons to the proposal The parking lot is large enough to
September 22, 2015
27120
accommodate th�s expansion Patron no�se may be an �ssue in
respect to res�dent�al ne�ghbors to the east." The letter is signed
by Joseph Boitos, Sergeant, Traffic Bureau We also received
letters, dated September 16, 2015, from 135 bowlers all
indicating their support for the project. Thank you
Mr Morrow� Are there any questions of the Planning Director? Seeing none,
I will go directly to the petitioner Is the petitioner here this
evening? We will need your name and address for the record
please
Rich Glomb, AHD-GW Entertainment, 30950 Five Mile Road, Livonia, Michigan
48154 I'm one of the proprietors of Merri-Bowl Lanes Thank
you having us
Joseph Philips, Joseph Philips Architect, L L C , 921 Wing Street, Plymouth,
Michigan 48170 I am the architect working on the pro�ect. I
think what we had hoped to do is have Mr Glomb explain what
he's done already and what's prompted what's before you this
evening
Mr Morrow� Okay We will start with that. You can add whatever you'd like to
add
Mr Glomb Thank you Seventeen and half months ago my partner and I
purchased Merri-Bowl Lanes from Community Bowling Centers
and Roger Robinson In that 17 5 months time, we've virtually
completely renovated the inside of the center We have a
beautiful facility We received a six page spread in the
International Bowling Industry magazine on what we've
accomplished thus far at Merri-Bowl Lanes Our goal is to turn
Merri-Bowl Lanes into an upscale family fun center where
people who are even non-bowlers would love to come and just
be a part of our facility If you've not been into the facility, you're
greeted in very warm colors We have beautiful leather chairs
and a nice wood floor, granite countertops, and a warm
fireplace That's our reception area The colors are very inviting
It's like being in your own living room We've added beautiful
electric fireplaces in our lounge as well Our goal is to create a
really, really nice, unique atmosphere for the recreational
person and non-recreational person We realize that we're in a
community that's been well established, and Merri-Bowl Lanes
has been here for 54 years We're just trying to change in a
good way an upscale appearance and atmosphere for our
community
September 22, 2015
27121
Mr Morrow� Thank you That's a very nice presentation Do you have any
comments, sir?
Mr Philips I do In addition to that, what you see on the outside, you see no
indicat�on from the outside What you see in the inside, no
indication on the outside Again, I would highly recommend you
take a look and see what's been done there It really is pretty
fantastic But having said that, the outside is a little tired I don't
know that it's really been touched for many, many years The
awning that is over the current entrance is a synthetic canvas It
kind of lights up at night. It's what a lot of stores and a lot of
businesses did over the years, but it really doesn't speak to
anything different or unique So that's one thing that we're trying
to take a look at upfront, �ust updating the entrance a little bit
and making it a little bit more inviting, especially it is
approximately 300 feet back from the street. It's really back
there Part of the thought towards the entrance was also to do
something with the food service Obviously, it's very in vogue
now to have some outdoor dining There's only a few months
that you can en�oy that but you do enjoy that. I was telling Mr
Glomb, I know that there's an establishment in Florida that I
used to visit. It was in the middle of a parking lot and it was
something that once you got inside and the atmosphere locally,
you were kind of in a little Shangri-la there So we're trying to
�ust create a nice outdoor dining experience that goes along,
again, with the owner's plan for kind of inviting people there to
spend the evening for some entertainment. The front of the
building right now has some stone that was there when the
building was constructed in about the `50's It's kind of an asher
stone It's coming back in style now So our desire is to kind of
take off on what was once new and make it new again and kind
of accentuate it a little bit with the stone piers and stone
columns as you come in Then also the trellis is something that
Mr Glomb saw in his travels that kind of ties it in, maybe a little
southwest flavor Trellis overhead �ust to create, again, a little
atmosphere while you're outside Right now, you're in the
middle of the parking lot and we're hoping to �ust kind of create
an area there where you would en�oy sitting down, having a
drink, having a meal and just be able to relax a little bit, a little
oasis as it were So with that, if there's any questions or any
other comments that you have, I'd be glad to field them
Mr Morrow� We`II start with the Commission and see if they have any
questions or comments
Ms Mclntyre I have many, many fond memories of Merri-Bowl My mom was
in a bowling league there when I was a kid I have not been in
September 22, 2015
27122
since you've redone it. So you made me really excited to come
in and en�oy some fun there When you did the remodeling, did
you do some things to upgrade the kitchen facilities because
part of what makes it enticing to go somewhere and sit, and I
think this is going to be beautiful, is the ability to have, not
upscale good, right, we're not looking for a steak dinner, but
enjoy some nice appetizers or something like that to go along
with the ambiance So I'm �ust curious what the food service is,
but I think this looks fantastic
Mr Glomb When we took over, the first thing we did is brought all of our
league officers together and we surveyed them and asked them
what their top five concerns were in the bowling center The
number one concern were the restrooms, and I would argue to
say that there's not a bowling center in Michigan that would
have a nicer restroom that what we have Number two, was the
automatic scoring Automatic scoring is very costly and I'm very
proud to say that this year we put the most state-of-the-art
scoring system in our center As a matter of fact, the scoring
system and all of its components are made right here in
Michigan The company is New Center Consulting in Rochester,
Michigan Number three was the parking lot. One of the issues
that we saw last year, as our first year with the center, is that all
of our downspouts in the front of the building drained right out
onto the parking lot and created this beautiful ice rink It was not
very fun We have a lot of elderly folks that bowl with us So this
year we tore out 27,000 square feet of our parking lot and
trenched all of our downspouts underground to our catch
basins So we eliminated that and our parking lot is beautifully
striped and it's very safe The fourth thing that we addressed
was �ust the aesthetics of the building Much of the building was
just concrete block painted over, four shades of purple We took
all of that away We reskinned all the walls It is absolutely
gorgeous inside The carpet is state of the art, upgraded
seating To answer your question about the food and beverage,
in the initial plans we have is to expand the front portion of our
kitchen area, the service area, and that is to be able to add
some additional dining My background is from Palm Beach
where I was a captain in the main dining room of the Breakers
Hotel and an Assistant Maitre 'd at the Pointe Sienna Club,
which is a part of the Pointe Sienna Playhouse Fine dining and
tableside dining is what I did through college I completely
understand the service package Our goal is to completely
exceed all expectations each and every time our customers
come into our building We want them to forget about outside
and �ust be able to en�oy their time with us
September 22, 2015
27123
Ms Mclntyre Fantastic Thank you That answered my question
Mr Wilshaw� My question was sort of along the similar lines, Mr Glomb, but
you addressed most of it for me because as I think of a bowling
center, at least Merri-Bowl in the past, I think of going there
primarily to bowl and be on a league or for open bowling But
you're dining options are limited to a snack bar basically that
maybe makes some burgers and hot dogs, real basic food The
thought of an outdoor patio and nice oasis, which it really does
sounds like it will be, is sort of unique This is my question It
reminds me more of places like say Lucky Strike or a bowling
center like that where bowling is more of the secondary aspect
of it. The reason that people go there is because they want to
get together with people They want to socialize They want to
en�oy a nice meal, good food, things like that. Is that kind of the
direction your headed? I don't expect you to be Lucky Strike
obviously but is that sort of the thought process?
Mr Glomb Sure I've been in the bowling industry 36 years I've seen it in
its heyday when it was �ust that, a bowling alley where it had a
very negative stigma of smoking and drinking and it was just not
a nice place to be Bowling is changing Bowling is becoming an
upscale thought. You mentioned Lucky Strike You should also
look at the Emagine concept which is out in Royal Oak. Very
upscale in feel, and why can't we do that in Livonia? And to
answer your question, in one respect, yes I want people to
come in that are non-bowlers and en�oy themselves and say,
wow, why don't we go bowl a game afterwards as well For
those bowlers that are there, they need a place to go too, and
I'd love to keep them right here in Livonia and �ust en�oy a nice
burger There are great places in Florida — Cheeseburger in
Paradise — they have gourmet burgers So although we are
primarily a snack bar, we do have a full catering menu We can
do everything from the barbeque buffet to tacos to chicken
cacciatore and we do baked chicken as well It's just a really
nice atmosphere We can do quite a few things with what we
have
Mr Wilshaw� It actually makes sense to me because I know one of the things
that happens when people go bowling with their pals or
whatever and they'd say, okay, now that we're done bowling,
let's go out to eat somewhere else Let's go to the restaurant
down the road or whatever it may be What you're saying is,
hey, I want you to stay here I want you to bowl but then you can
also go sit down in the outdoor dining or in the restaurant or
whatever and en�oy that time as well It's a very compelling
concept that you're bringing the money and effort that you're
September 22, 2015
27124
putting into the property to address not only the needs of dining
patrons, which is what we're talking about today, but also the
needs of the bowlers in terms of safety in the parking lot, score
keeping systems that you've upgraded, all those things are just
amazing that you've done that much in so little time I think it
speaks to the commitment that you have to this center, which
like Ms Mclntyre, I've also had a long history of going there
when I was a little kid and things like that. That's where I
learned how to bowl, taking lessons at Merri-Bowl So this
particular center has a warm place in many of our hearts, I'm
sure One other question �ust about the design, because we
have to ask something about planning here, is the trellis going
to go over the main entrance as well or are you going to leave
some sort of solid canopy over the main entrance in the event
that it's raining or snowing or whatever?
Mr Ph�lips The existing canopy will remain and the dining area is off to the
side and that's where it will be open trellis, but exactly what is
under cover now remains that way If you can see in the plan
developed, there's like a smokers alcove off to the side as well,
which is also under cover
Mr Wilshaw� Okay Thank you
Mr Taylor� Just a comment. I've been in Livonia 50 years I've gone by that
bowling establishment so many times It's always nice to see
somebody come in and renovate and do something and try to
make it a little different. I know the bowling industry kind of went
down a little bit, so I know you have to do something to make
people come back and en�oy that sport. I wish you all the luck in
the world It's a nice looking pro�ect
Mr Glomb Thank you
Mr Wilshaw� As a result of these changes, are you going to change your
hours of operation at all?
Mr Glomb The hours of operation do change depending on the time of the
year For instance, summertime, we typically open up a little bit
later than 9 00 a m and we close a little bit earlier Last year it
was 2 00 a m This year we're open currently to midnight. We
do have a business that is growing on Saturday night and we
may be considering only on Saturday night to be open until 1 00
a m , but we have reduced our hours We're cognizant of the
fact that we have neighbors next door to us and we're very
concerned that we don't want to have any kind of a negative
impact on them The outdoor patio, we will certainly talk about
September 22, 2015
27125
the hours We have no plans for outside entertainment in the
evening time, no band or loud sound systems If anything, it
might be a couple rock speakers �ust for ambiance to create a
�azz feel or a light classical feel It's�ust a fun atmosphere where
it's low key
Mr Wilshaw� Maybe some soft lighting along the trellis or something for the
evening
Mr Glomb Yes We're anticipating four wall sconces, outdoor sconces, on
the building itself which would add that flavor of lighting
Mr Wilshaw� Okay Thank you
Mr Morrow� I might have missed it, but what are the hours of operation of
the outdoor dining?
Mr Glomb Right now I'm anticipating that on Friday and Saturday night it
would be until 11 00 p m During the week, again, it depends on
what the business is and if I'm allowed to be open until 11 00 to
serve, I would like to do that. I don't want to go into the late
night. I'm cognizant of my neighbors and in the winter time,
maybe the middle to end of October, would be the last that I
could use the patio until maybe the first or second week of May
So we're talking about the summer hours Kids are out of
school I know I have a lot of children and they're up later
anyways So I'm cognizant still of the fact that we have
neighbors and we want to keep it a reasonable time I would go
off of the guidance of what is recommended
Mr Morrow� I think the key thing is that you're cognizant of the neighbors A
lot depends on how you monitor the decibel level of your guests
and what goes on If it gets too loud too late, it's going on too
long If it's moderated, not so concerned about the hours
Mr Glomb Yes Although the bowling center has been there 54 years, my
neighbors have been there a lot longer than I have, and I have
to respect all of that
Mr Morrow� I'm �ust saying I think we're introducing something that is going
to be outside of the establishment and we have a few different
concerns relative to noise, but your cognizant of it and I'm sure
you'll do a good �ob of policing that situation
Mr Glomb Thank you
September 22, 2015
27126
Mr Morrow� Any other questions or comments? Is there anybody in the
audience that wishes to speak for or against the granting of this
petition? Please come forward and give us your name and
address
Linda Strauch, 30929 Roycroft, Livonia, Michigan 48154 I live right at the
northeast corner of the back of his property Mr Glomb, I'd like
to thank you for what you have done with the property We do
appreciate that as neighbors I've lived there now for 25 years
and I've grown accustomed to hearing the sounds of the
bowling alley, the pins going, when they open the door in the
summertime and what have you Even the calls out for a sweep
on nine It's�ust stuff that you kind of get used to listening to and
I kind of en�oy it In my earlier years, I was an avid bowler and I
bowled many leagues over at Merri-Bowl With that being said,
there's a lot of things that are being addressed but one thing
that I haven't seen addressed is the fencing around the
perimeter of the property I have pictures here of the fence when
we have partitions that have fallen down If you walk the
property now, I took pictures of it last night, it's an issue If we're
going to have more crowded people out there out on the
property, I think we need to secure it It's been grandfathered in
that they can have the wooden fence and just replace the posts
and the panels as needed, but when is it going to be time to say
that's it time to bring it up to code and get the concrete barrier
there between the residential and the business? We love it. We
love being where we're at. Like I said, when the fence is down,
and even when not, we have people that come across the
fence, cut through our yards to get to the street and sidewalks
It's �ust something that if we're going to have more crowds of
people and they're going to have an outside area where there's
going to be more people, crowd, traffic, walking about and that, I
think that it's time to address what we're doing with the
perimeter of the building and the wooden fence We'd like it to
be safer l don't want a car coming through there Just by the
grace of God that that hasn't happened, that we haven't had a
car end up in our backyard yet. I have a family, kids were out
there I don't want that If iYs going to be a little bit noisier, we
need something that is going to kind of break that down for the
rest of the residents as well So anything to take into
consideration to move that along, we would appreciate it as
neighbors to get that finally addressed It's been going on ever
since it was built, and like I said, every year we're replacing
panels Every year he's replacing posts When they fall, they fall
on our garden, on our bushes and things We prop them up
sometimes We tie them up We know that he has things that
he's doing, and he's doing a beautiful �ob on the inside of the
September 22, 2015
27127
building, starting to work toward the curb appeal of it, but let's
not forget the rest of us that are around the perimeter of the
building that would like to get our issues addressed and liven
that up as well and straighten that up Thank you for your time I
really appreaate it.
Mr Morrow� Mr Taormina, is there any reference to that in the Inspection
report?
Mr Taormina No, there was none I think it's recognized, as she indicated, the
grandfathered condition I did not research, prior to this meeting,
whether or not that is by virtue of a variance that may have been
granted many years ago, or whether it predated the ordinance
requirement for a wall at this location since the bowling alley is
over 50 years old I suspect it may not appear anywhere in the
records We can check prior to when this goes to the City
Council There is a board-on-board or maybe in some cases a
stockade-type fence that runs along both the east and north
property lines Today, we would require a masonry wall This
particular site, because of its age and history, contains what
appears to be a six foot high wooden fence You can tell that
sections have fallen and have been replaced It looks like
maybe even Mr Glomb has, in fact, fixed it. Some sections look
like they were fairly recently repaired Maybe he can respond to
that in terms of how he addresses that issue
Mr Morrow� The owner and the architect sprung up I think you want to
respond to that.
Mr Glomb I'd like to thank you for the opportunity to respond to this The
exterior of the building is an issue It was in a shambles This
summer, we took off the sides of the dome and replaced the
sides of the dome We insulated them and we put vinyl siding on
it in a similar color to what we're painting the exterior of the
building We also replaced all of the cross ventilation systems in
the dome itself On the exterior of the building, we pressure
cleaned the building and we're actually doing the masonry work
on the building right now, and within the next couple days, you'll
see the painting begin on the building So it will be brand new
once again The perimeter fence, in the last year and half, I've
replaced over 300 feet of that fence When I came into the
picture, I found out right away that it was my responsibility and I
replaced over 300 feet of sections It is a six foot high, board-on-
board fence It's standard 10 foot by 8 foot pieces that you can
find at Home Depot. It's supported by 4 by 4 beams that are in
the ground So we have diligently replaced those I would be
September 22, 2015
27128
glad to meet with any homeowner if there is a concern and
replace those immediately
Mr Morrow� We appreciate that input. I think the lady standing next to you
there appreciates that too Thank you Is there anybody in the
audience that wishes to speak? I see no one coming forward
I'm going to close the public hearing and ask for a motion
On a motion by Bahr, seconded by Taylor, and unanimously adopted, it was
#09-63-2015 RESOLVED, that pursuant to a Public Hearing having been
held by the City Planning Commission on September 22, 2015,
on Petition 2015-09-02-14 submitted by Joseph Philips
Architect, L L C , on behalf of Merri-Bowl Lanes, requesting
waiver use approval pursuant to Section 19 06 of the City of
Livonia Zoning Ordinance #543, as amended, to expand the
existing food service operation and Class C liquor license of the
bowling alley to include an outdoor dining patio at 30950 Five
Mile Road, located on the north side of Five Mile Road between
Henry Ruff Road and Merriman Road in the Southwest 1/4 of
Section 14, which property is zoned C-2, the Planning
Commission does hereby recommend to the City Council that
Petition 2015-09-02-14 be approved sub�ect to the following
conditions
1 That the plan labeled Existing & Proposed Site Plans
marked Sheet No 1 dated August 31, 2015, as revised,
prepared by Joseph Philips Architect, L L C , is hereby
approved and shall be adhered to,
2 That the maximum number of outdoor patio seats shall not
exceed a total of thirty-six (36) seats,
3 That this approval is subject to the petitioner being granted
a variance from the Zoning Board of Appeals for deficient
parking and any conditions related thereto,
4 That all light fixtures shall be aimed and shielded so as to
minimize stray light trespassing across property lines and
glaring into ad�acent roadways,
5 That the plan labeled Proposed Entry Area Plan &
Elevation marked Sheet No 4 dated August 31, 2015, as
revised, prepared by Joseph Philips Architect, L L C , is
hereby approved and shall be adhered to,
September 22, 2015
27129
6 That the type, size or quantity of the plant materials to be
planted along the outside edge of the patio shall be
installed to the satisfaction of the Planning and Inspection
Departments and thereafter permanently maintained in a
healthy condition,
7 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,
and
8 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
Sub�ect to the preceding conditions, this petition is approved for
the following reasons
1 That the proposed use complies with all of the general
waiver use standards and requirements as set forth in
Section 19 06 of the Zoning Ordinance #543, and
2 That the proposed use is compatible to and in harmony
with the surrounding uses in the area
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
Mr Morrow� Is there any discussion?
Mr Bahr� I've got four kids that beg me all the time to go to Merri-Bowl It's
been a while since we've been there We don't get there often,
but I can tell you, I don't know how long you said it's been since
you took ownership, but I can tell you that even before all these
renovations, the feeling in there was different. It's a very
pleasurable place to go and your presentation tonight has been
tremendous Up until 10 months ago, I lived about a mile from
there, and the civic association in our neighborhood had an
annual business citizen award that we give out. I was sitting
here listening to you thinking this is a Livonia business citizen
right here So thank you for your service to our community Both
you and the resident tonight represents the best of Livonia We
really appreciate what you're doing
Mr Morrow� Thank you, Mr Bahr
September 22, 2015
27130
Mr Morrow, Chairman, declared the motion is carried and the foregoing
resolution adopted It will go on to City Council with an
approving resolution Congratulations on securing the business,
and it sounds like you've done a wonderful�ob
ITEM #3 PETITION 2015-09-08-13 MID-8 PLAZA
Ms Smiley, Secretary, announced the next item on the agenda, Petition 2015-
09-08-13 submitted by Michigan Fuel Properties, L L C
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 remodel the exterior of the
existing commercial center (Mid-8 Plaza) at 29107-29131 Eight
Mile Road, located on the south side of Eight Mile Road
between Brentwood Avenue and Middlebelt Road in the
Northwest 1/4 of Section 1
Mr Taormina This is a proposal that would upgrade and update the Mid-8
shopping plaza which is located on Eight Mile Road just east of
Middlebelt Road This plaza contains about 22,400 square feet
of gross leasable area Its anchor tenant currently is Dollar
General, which leases about 11,000 square feet on the west
end of the plaza Other tenants include a barber shop, K&S
Bowling & Trophy Sales, a dry cleaning establishment and
another hair business The zoning of the property is C-2,
General Business The existing center is dated It contains
peaked features along the front of the building facing Eight Mile
along the fa�ade Those would be replaced with rectangular
shaped tower elements that are lighter beige in color They
would be topped with a cornice treatment. This part of the
building is all E I F S The design includes aesthetic grooves
that would be etched into the E I F S The cornice treatment
runs not only along the top of the rectangular features but also
on the lower part That feature was added to the design
following comments at the study meeting The columns that
support the upper part of the fa�ade would be clad using brick
The same brick would be used beneath the storefront windows,
and that's a complete change over what exists today, which I
think is a combination of some type of vinyl siding or metal
siding on the face of the store front. In addition, the petitioner is
proposing to update the landscaping This slide shows the
before and after rendering, although it's very conceptual in
nature to give you an idea that it matches up where the peak
features are with the proposed rectangular features Going back
to the landscape plan, you'll see that there's a proposal that
would add landscaping to the site as well as repair the parking
September 22, 2015
27131
lot and restripe it. With that, Mr Chairman, I can read out the
departmental correspondence
Mr Morrow� Please
Mr Taormina There are three items of correspondence The first item is from
the Engineering Division, dated September 4, 2015, which
reads as follows "In accordance with your request, the
Eng�neer�ng D�v�s�on has reviewed the above referenced
petit�on We have no ob�ect�ons to the proposed pro�ect at this
time The legal description included with the petition appears to
be correct and should be used �n con�unct�on w�th th�s pet►t�on
The exist�ng plaza �s ass�gned an address range of #29105 to
#29131 E�ght Mile Road, w�th a parcel address of#29107 E�ght
M�le Road which should be used for th�s petit�on The ex�sting
build�ng is currently serviced by public ut�lit�es wh�ch are not
�nd�cated for alterations under the proposed remodeling Should
the owner need to alter the ex�sting serv�ce leads to the build�ng,
plans will need to be submitted to this department to determine
if Engineermg permits w�ll be required Also, should the owner to
do any work w�thin the Eight Mile Road or Middlebelt Road r�ght-
of-way, they w�ll need to contact the Wayne County Department
of Publ�c Serv�ces for perm�t requ�rements " The letter is signed
by David W Lear, P E , Assistant City Engineer The second
letter is from the Livonia Fire & Rescue Division, dated
September 15, 2015, which reads as follows "Th�s office has
rev�ewed the s�te plan subm�tted �n connection w�th a request to
remodel the exterior of the ex►stmg commerc�al center on
property located at the above referenced address We have no
ob�ections to this proposal w�th the following st�pulation A
ladder port to be installed on the plaza to ass�st with roof access
�s requested The letter is signed by Keith Bo, Senior Fire
Inspector The third letter is from the Division of Police, dated
September 9, 2015, which reads as follows "1 have reviewed
the plans in connect�on w�th the petition 1 have no objections to
the proposal " The letter is signed by Joseph Boitos, Sergeant,
Traffic Bureau That is the extent of the correspondence
Mr Morrow� Are there any questions of the Planning Director? Seeing none,
would the petitioner please come forward? We will need your
name and address for the record please
Nasser Choucair, N C Designers & Contracting, 3241 S Telegraph, Dearborn,
Michigan 48124
Mr Morrow� Would you like to add anything to the presentation?
September 22, 2015
27132
Mr Choucair� When the owner bought the property, he called me eight months
ago He told me to look at the property so if he can do the
purchase and buy it. Then I gave him a budget on the
construction He went and bought the property He simply told
me he wanted to enhance it and put some money in it so it
would be more appealing to the area The existing building has
a fa�ade over a fa�ade, material over material We can see
some siding, then they put some kind of vinyl, striped stuff over
there The central column is the real column The two other
ones are fake They wrapped them in aluminum We designed it
so it would last longer We did the columns out of brick so if
people bump into them, they won't have the same issues that
they are now having We change a little bit the peaks Instead of
having a peak, we did a square look and we're using a brick
limestone and dryvit on this fa�ade Also, we are changing
some sidewalk, approximately about half of the other side of the
building is going to be all brand new sidewalk, under where they
walk The other half it was done a couple years ago The
landscaping is going to be updated and the parking lot is going
to be resealed and striped Other than that, I guess this is going
to bring more tenants into the strip mall We have probably 30
percent vacant spots We have good tenants now This is going
to look very nice after we're done with it.
Mr Morrow� I see you brought some building materials You might want to
explain to the Commission what they are and where they'll be
Mr Choucair� This is the brick we're going to be using on the columns, and
this is the E I F S color where it looks like limestone The brown
is also going to be E I F S
Mr Morrow� Did I understand correctly that below the windows you're going
to add brick there?
Mr Choucair� Yes, sir
Mr Morrow� In addition to the columns
Mr Choucair� Yes
Mr Morrow� Everything above that is E I F S ?
Mr Choucair� It's going to be approximately about 10 feet up and everything
EIFS
Mr Morrow� Any other questions?
September 22, 2015
27133
Ms Smiley� You said the columns are stone?
Mr Choucair� Yes Brick and limestone The stripes are going to be limestone
and brick
Ms Smiley� So the white band is limestone?
Mr Choucair� Yes, that's the limestone
Ms Smiley� Thank you
Mr Wilshaw� The brown portions, it's kind of hard to tell from our rendering
but the brown portions look like they're horizontally scored
Mr Choucair� I did get a hard copy
Mr Wilshaw� It's similar to the rendering we have So there is some kind of
scoring in the dryvit so it's not�ust plain
Mr Choucair� Yes It gives it some shadows and lines
Mr Wilshaw� Is it standard E I F S texture or is it going to look woodgrain or
something like that. So it's a standard E I F S or popcorn
looking texture Okay Then the capping on the top of the
limestone, is that
Mr Choucair� It's going to be a brown color
Mr Wilshaw� So the cornice pieces, are those also E I F S ?
Mr Choucair� Which one?
Mr Wilshaw� On the tops
Mr Choucair� Everything above 10 feet, it's going to be E I F S
Mr Wilshaw� No marble up there?
Mr Choucair� Engineering-wise, we cannot put heavy stuff on the fascia up
high because it's all the framing
Mr Wilshaw� You've done some magic things for us in the past, so I didn't
know if you were going to go fancy on us All right. Thank you
Ms Smiley When you go around the building, down the sides
Mr Choucair� Not really It's going to go about 15 or 20 feet to the side
September 22, 2015
27134
Ms Smiley� How deep would the side be?
Mr Choucair� Fifteen to 20 feet.
Ms Smiley� So it will go all the way down the side?
Mr Choucair� The side is like 80 feet. That building is really deep, about 60 or
80 feet.
Ms Smiley� So if you were looking at it from the side,
Mr Choucair� Yes, we're wrapping the front wood I'm not cutting it off�ust like
that.
Ms Smiley� Okay Thank you
Mr Morrow� It came up at the study session as to where you were going to
put the gas pumps
Mr Choucair� We'll talk later
Mr Morrow� Is there anybody in the audience that wishes to speak for or
against the granting of this petition? Seeing no one coming
forward, I will close the public hearing and ask for a motion
On a motion by Mclntyre, seconded by Wilshaw, and unanimously adopted, it
was
#09-64-2015 RESOLVED, that the City Planning Commission does hereby
recommend to the City Council that Petition 2015-09-08-13
submitted by Michigan Fuel Properties, L L C 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 remodel the exterior of the existing commercial
center (Mid-8 Plaza) at 29107-29131 Eight Mile Road, located
on the south side of Eight Mile Road between Brentwood
Avenue and Middlebelt Road in the Northwest 1/4 of Section 1,
be approved subject to the following conditions
1 That the Site and Landscape Plan marked SP-1 dated
August 31, 2015, as received by the Planning Commission
on September 17, 2015, prepared by N C Designers &
Contracting Inc is hereby approved and shall be adhered
to,
September 22, 2015
27135
2 That all disturbed lawn areas shall be sodded in lieu of
hydroseeding,
3 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,
4 That the parking lot shall be repaired, resealed and
restriped as necessary to the satisfaction of the Inspection
Department, parking spaces shall be doubled striped at ten
feet (10') wide by twenty feet (20') in length,
5 That the Elevations Plan marked A-1 dated August 31,
2015, as received by the Planning Commission on
September 17, 2015, prepared by N C Designers &
Contracting Inc is hereby approved and shall be adhered
to,
6 That all rooftop mechanical equipment shall be concealed
from public view on all sides by either the parapet wall or
screening that shall be of a compatible character, material
and color to other exterior materials on the building,
7 That the issue as outlined in the correspondence dated
September 15, 2015, from the Fire Marshal requesting a
ladder port be installed on the plaza shall be resolved to
the satisfaction of the Fire Department and/or Inspection
Department;
8 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,
9 That no LED lightband or exposed neon shall be permitted
on this site including, but not limited to, the building or
around the windows,
10 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
11 Pursuant to Section 1910 of Ordinance No 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 the City Council, and unless a building permit is
September 22, 2015
27136
obtained and construction is commenced, this approval
shall be null and void at the expiration of said period
Mr Morrow� Is there any discussion?
Ms Mclntyre Should we add the requirement for the ladder port.
Mr Morrow� It won't hurt.
Mr Morrow, Chairman, declared the motion is carried and the foregoing
resolution adopted It will go on to City Council with an
approving resolution
ITEM #4 PETITION 2015-09-08-14 HOLIDAY INN
Ms Smiley, Secretary, announced the next item on the agenda, Petition 2015-
09-08-14 submitted by Longe+Enright Architecture requesting
approval of all plans required by Section 18 47 of the City of
Livonia Zoning Ordinance #543, as amended, in connection with
a proposal to demolish an existing hotel and restaurant and
construct a new six-story hotel (Holiday Inn) at 17123 Laurel
Park Drive, located on the west side of Laurel Park Drive
between Six Mile Road and University Drive in the Southeast
1/4 of Section 7
Mr Taormina This proposal seeks to demolish the existing Holiday Inn hotel
and restaurant on Six Mile Road �ust east of I-275 and construct
a new six-story, full service Holiday Inn including an accessory
restaurant and banquet facilities The zoning of the property is
C-4 II, which stands for high rise commercial allowing for up to
eight stories The size of the property is 10 28 acres
approximately Looking to the north of the property is a high rise
office district containing four-story office buildings Across Laurel
Park Drive is the Laurel Park Place mall zoned C-2, General
Business There is a bank building immediately to the south and
southeast of this property, and then immediately to the west is
the I-275/96 expressway The existing three-story hotel was
originally constructed as a Holidome back in 1979 and 1980
Then about 10 years ago, the flag was changed to a Radisson
which lasted only a few years Following another change of
ownership, the hotel converted back to a Holiday Inn Today the
hotel is out of date with the brand's current standards, and it is
the owner's intention to replace it with the latest prototype of a
full service Holiday Inn The new hotel would be built in the
northwest quarter of the property in such a way that would allow
for the existing hotel to remain open during construction
September 22, 2015
27137
Parking ultimately would be provided on the east and south
sides of the new hotel once the old hotel is razed The smaller
footprint of the hotel will allow for the future commercial
development in the southeast corner of the property The future
building area is roughly two acres in size and would be
developed for either one or two full service restaurants
depending on parking availability The outline of the existing
hotel building has been overlayed on the proposed site plan to
illustrate that the placement of the new building has been
positioned such that the construction could be undertaken while
maintaining the existing hotel, which would then be demolished
upon completion of the new hotel Looking at the new hotel, it
would contain a total of 141 guest rooms and that compares to
the current hotel which has over 200 guest rooms The main
entrance and hotel lobby are near the southwest corner of the
building where the plan shows a porte cochere and a covered
valet. On the east end of the building is the banquet facility
which would measure roughly 10,000 square feet in area This
area includes a main banquet hall, which is roughly 5,300
square feet, two salons, each about 850 square feet; as well as
a pre-function hall and two meeting rooms The hotel fully
complies with the C-4 district yard and setback requirements In
terms of parking, for a facility of this nature as well as the
anallary uses associated with it, those are computed based on
a ratio of one parking space for every guest room, one parking
space for each employee, one space for every two seats in the
restaurant, and then one space for every 50 square feet of
useable floor area within the banquet facility Based on the
number of guest rooms (141), plus the approximate number of
employees (20), the number of seats in the restaurant (127),
and the size of the banquet faality with a net useable area of
about 6,220 square feet, there would be a total of 350 parking
spaces needed to satisfy the zoning ordinance This plan shows
a total of 363 parking spaces all of which would be 10 feet by 20
feet. It does comply with the ordinance, in fact, there would be a
slight surplus as part of the initial phase of construction for the
hotel There is a service area that is located on the north side of
the hotel This includes two side-by-side trash enclosures, as
well as a designated loading zone Site access would be
provided from the two driveways currently located off of Laurel
Park Drive There would be a slight shift and they would be
widen slightly to accommodate the new development, but
essentially they are located in the same approximate locations
as the existing driveways This provides for a nice access fully
around the new hotel building and the parking available on
either side of that driveway The southerly portion of the ring
road would provide access to the future commercial
September 22, 2015
27138
development in the southeast corner of the property All of the
development's storm water runoff would be detained
underground so it's not something that you will notice as part of
this plan It would have to comply with all of the city's and
Wayne County's requirements in terms of storm water
detention, and all that would be done structurally beneath the
parking lot and landscaped areas of the site A fully detailed
landscape plan has been submitted with the application It
shows landscaping around the perimeter of the site, as well as
within the parking lot aisles and along the foundation of the
building Overall it represents about 41 percent of the total site
area There is a note on the plan that all sod and lawn areas
would be irngated In addition, the petitioner submitted a
photometric detail All the exterior light poles would be limited to
a height of 20 feet. We have a series of renderings that were
provided with the application showing the exterior of the
building You'll note that this building is not entirely six stories
throughout. It has portions of the building, including the banquet
center, that are single story in height, but the building materials
by and large for all of the structure are masonry These would
be various sized units There would be 12 inch brick or masonry
units, 8 inch as well as 4 inch brick, either "rocked" or
sandblasted I'll let the architect describe that in greater detail
Hopefully, he's brought some samples to give you an idea, but
probably the best example is a photograph of a similar hotel that
was recently constructed in Romulus As I understand it, all of
the features that you see on this photograph are identical to
what would be provided for this Livonia Holiday Inn, including
the covered valet service, the masonry used for the columns,
and all the accent materials which are a combination of stone,
aluminum There also some glass fiber reinforced concrete or
what is identified on the plan on GFRC Very minor amounts of
E I F S are shown along the corners of the building The height
of the building, from finished grade to the highest point of the
parapet, is roughly 76 feet In terms of signage, this hotel will be
allowed one wall sign not to exceed 125 square feet based on
the length of the building, as well as a ground sign at six feet in
height and 30 square feet in area We have not reviewed the
petition in terms of signage With that, Mr Chairman, I can read
out the departmental correspondence
Mr Morrow� Yes, please
Mr Taormina There are three items of correspondence The first item is from
the Engineering Division, dated September 8, 2015, which
reads as follows "In accordance w�th your request, the
Engineermg Div�sion has reviewed the above referenced
September 22, 2015
27139
plannmg petit�on The legal descr�pt�on subm�tted w�th the
petit►on appears to be correct and shou/d be used in connect�on
with th�s petit�on The address of #17123 Laure/ Park Drive is
correct for the sub�ect parcel The plans submitted w�th the
petition do not show sizes or locat�ons of proposed utilities, so
we cannot comment on any impacts to the existing systems at
th�s t�me It should be noted that the site is currently serv�ced by
storm and san�tary sewer, as well as water ma�n Depend�ng on
the locat�ons of the proposed utility connections, the owner may
be required to obta�n perm�ts from not only the City of Livonia,
but also Wayne County and MDOT The owner has been �n
contact with th�s department regard�ng site plan requirements,
and we will address util�ty concerns when the owner submits
plans to th�s department for construction perm�ts It shou/d be
noted that the existing hotel is serv�ced by an on-s�te, publ�c
water ma�n inside of recorded easements The owner w�ll need
to petition the C�ty Council to have these easements vacated in
connection with the removal and/or relocation of the water ma�n
for the new building layout. S�nce only one property w�ll be
serviced by the water ma�n, it will be cons�dered a private lead
and no easements 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 September 16,
2015, which reads as follows "This office has rev�ewed the site
plan subm�tted in connect�on w�th a request to demolish an
ex�stmg hotel and restaurant and construct a new s�x-story hotel
(Holiday Inn) on the property located at the above referenced
address We have no ob�ect�ons to this proposal w�th the
following stipulat�ons (1) Fire Department access roads shall be
mamtamed for the existmg hotel and proposed hotel durmg
construction (2) A fire hydrant shall be located 50-100 ft. from
the F�re Department Connection (FDC) (3) FDC to be
determined " The letter is signed by Keith Bo, Senior Fire
Inspector The third letter is from the Division of Police, dated
September 9, 2015, which reads as follows "1 have reviewed
the plans in connect�on with the pet�tion 1 have no objections to
the proposal " The letter is signed by Joseph Boitos, Sergeant,
Traffic Bureau That is the extent of the correspondence
Mr Morrow� Are there any questions of the Planning Director? Is the
petitioner here this evening? We will need your name and
address for the record please
Christopher Enright, Longe+Enright Architecture, 124 Peabody Street,
Birmingham, Michigan 48009 Good evening I'm here
representing Longe+Enright Architects Also with us this
evening is Mr Ken Koza, the owner of the property, as well as
September 22, 2015
27140
John Dell'Isola of PEA, the engineers, to answer any
engineering questions you may have this evening We've been
working with Mark and his staff for the last six to seven months
on this project. Some of the members of the Planning
Commission were kind enough to attend a meeting Informally
we went over our proposals several months ago The site has
changed from what we had originally intended for a variety of
reasons First we had looked at doing a variety of buildings and
outlots on Six Mile Road, which we still intend on doing, but as
we went around and around with the different types of uses for
each one of those parcels, it just became obvious that it was too
flexible at this particular time In order to get this process rolling
and getting it approved at the Planning Commission level, we
went ahead and did just what we considered to be a buy rights
plan, which shows the adequate amount of parking,
landscaping, etc , for the entire parcel The owners were in the
discussion with the parcel to the north for some sort of a shared
parking agreement. It �ust got bogged down and got a little bit
complicated It was still within the realm of possibility but they
weren't able to strike a deal straight away We intend to build
that plan that's shown there, but in the meantime, in the future
when it's completed or near completion, we'll be marketing
those parcels We've been looking at other hotels, restaurants,
things of that nature, but it is the owner's intention to have those
parcels developed in the very near future Everyone is obviously
very familiar with the existing building As Mark indicated, it's
tired and worn and it's past its service The Holiday Inn is
excited to see that building gone We want to move as quickly
as we can to facilitate that. In doing this pro�ect, I'm very
surprised at how many people actually did attend Tremors
nightclub at that particular location, including myself I thought it
was �ust me, but it was very popular at one time So it will be a
memory The new building that we're proposing in the same in
the photograph that Mark showed and is in fact in Romulus It
was a building that was built a couple years ago It is �ust north
of Metro Airport Our building will be very, very similar to that
building All of the exterior materials that you're looking at there
will be, in essence, replicated The materials that are shown on
the document indicate various sizes of brick, as they did in the
original construction documents for that building that is actually
what we call cast stone, which is essentially a simulated
limestone It's very popular in high end developments You can
see on the column in the porte cochere that the base level has
that rusticated rock face finish to give it some detail and some
depth at the base All the materials above that will be a variety
of brick that you see in the middle portion that extended above
the porte cochere and every other element at the base, all the
September 22, 2015
27141
bands, all those colors, those are all the limestone-like materials
in a sandblasted or smooth type finish So every material that's
at the first level or at the pedestrian level is that very high quality
product. There is very limited E I F S Even the cornice pieces
that you're looking at up there are actually cast concrete - that's
the glass reinforced concrete that we've indicated on the plans
There are �ust some very minor detail cornices at the very top
portion of the building that are E I F S , but near 100 percent of
this building is masonry except for the glass We are downsizing
the banquet facility by approximately 50 percent or more I know
that I sent that email to Mark or to Scott indicating the exact
numbers, but it is a significant decrease in the existing size of
the banquet meeting facilities So we're very confident that there
is going to be more than adequate parking Our decision to not
build the other two buildings or develop the other two sites right
now will also help us in studying through the cycles of the
building the adequacy of the parking that is there, and it will give
the Planning Commission at some point a good foothold in
indicating when we do go in to look for some sort of a parking
agreement, whether next door or a variance or something to
that affect, how the site actually functions when it's been fully
completed The banquet facility will share the kitchen space,
which is to the left on the plan, with a restaurant. It's an
independent restaurant owned by Holiday Inn The Sporting
News restaurant is what is in Romulus right now That concept
is no longer available and even if it was available, Mr Koza is
not certain about that particular use because we want to have
something higher end in that location because as we sell the
banquet facility for weddings, we wanted to have a better
association with a better level of restaurant rather than a sports
bar type operation That's our goal at this point, is to have
something somewhat more higher end than that particular
element, as nice as the restaurant is and as good as the
restaurant functions, we �ust wanted a slightly different market.
There are 141 rooms down from 226 I �ust asked Mr Koza
Anyway, there's a significant reduction in the number of rooms,
which is consistent with Holiday Inn's concept, less rooms to
manage We think the occupancy will be much higher on a
general basis, not �ust because of the rooms but also obviously
because of the quality of the development as well So we are
very excited to move forward and we're looking to do so
hopefully this year still in some fashion
Mr Morrow� Thank you for your very fine presentation Before I go to the
Commission, at the study session I had to confess that I voted
for the design of Tremors
September 22, 2015
27142
Mr Enright. No offense at Tremors I was �ust surprised at how many people
there were That's how people remember that place
Mr Morrow� It left its mark on Livonia With that, we'll move forward to see if
there are any questions
Ms Mclntyre First of all, I think this is just phenomenal and top notch and
really befitting that location I also appreciate the sufficient
parking because the concern is, if you are short, you can have a
sharing agreement with an ad�acent office building, but then
sometimes people are going to look to park over in the shopping
center and it is very difficult to cross that road for pedestrians
So I think that's great. And this is probably a little bit of an
unusual question, but I wonder if in Holiday Inn's plans if there's
ever consideration given to having some permanent residences,
condominiums, on the top floor I know that's an unusual
question, but we were kicking it around after the study session
It may be a very, very peculiar question, but along the lines of
some long terms, this is a very desirable area as you know and
very convenient to a lot of businesses and people that come
back and forth and maybe maintain a permanent residence in
another part of the country I understand it may not be feasible
and completely impractical, but I wanted to ask the question
Mr Enright. Sure Well, that's a very interesting question because we do
multi-use buildings and we're planning several buildings right
now that have that dual use with transient stay, with a
condominium type or private owners The Book Cadillac
downtown is an excellent example of that process I know that in
those types of developments, we try to have dual lobbies where
we separate those out, and that becomes, with the vertical
circulation, and those aspects, that becomes part of the more
complicated aspect of doing something like that. In this
particular building at this time, I don't know if that would be
terribly feasible because of that primary function I'm not even
sure if Holiday Inn has that type of use Yes, resort areas I'm
not sure if Livonia qualifies as a resort area There may be a
marketing possibility there though
Ms Mclntyre You heard about Merri-Bowl We like to think of ourselves as a
resort community even if the rest of the country hasn't quite
caught on yet. But thank you very much I know it was an odd
question
Mr Enright. Not at all
September 22, 2015
27143
Ms Smiley I've had the opportunity to go to a couple weddings in the last
couple years where the reception was right at the hotel, and I
can't tell you how wonderful that is I'm sure that's going to
become very, very popular if you have a lovely facility there
Just recently I was at the Marriott. I'm doing a commercial for
them, but the Dearborn Inn The service wasn't there but the
whole reception was there, and it was very good food and it's
nice to just walk down to the elevator and to your room at the
end of the evening I think that's a real trend now I'm excited for
you to be doing that.
Mr Enright I agree
Mr Wilshaw� You had an excellent presentation The plans look like a very
high quality product that you're bringing to us Mr Koza is
clearly willing to make a significant investment into this property
to not only benefit himself as a business owner but also the
community So he is really setting the bar high and you are with
this particular plan I wish you much success as it goes forward
because I think it's�ust going to be stellar
Mr Enright. Thank you very much I appreciate that.
Mr Morrow� Anyone else? Is there anybody in the audience that wishes to
speak for or against the granting of this petition? Seeing no one
coming forward, I will close the hearing and ask for a motion
On a motion by Smiley, seconded by Taylor, and unanimously adopted, it was
#09-65-2015 RESOLVED, that the City Planning Commission does hereby
recommend to the City Council that Petition 2015-09-08-14
submitted by Longe+Enright Architecture requesting approval of
all plans required by Section 18 47 of the City of Livonia Zoning
Ordinance #543, as amended, in connection with a proposal to
demolish an existing hotel and restaurant and construct a new
six-story hotel (Holiday Inn) at 17123 Laurel Park Drive, located
on the west side of Laurel Park Drive between Six Mile Road
and University Drive in the Southeast 1/4 of Section 7, be
approved sub�ect to the following conditions
1 That the Site Plan marked Drawing Number C-3 0 dated
August 25, 2015, prepared by Professional Engineering
Associates, is hereby approved and shall be adhered to,
2 That all parking spaces shall be doubled striped at ten feet
(10') wide by twenty feet (20') in length,
September 22, 2015
27144
3 That the Landscape Plan marked Drawing Number L-1 0
dated August 25, 2015, prepared by Professional
Engineering Associates, is hereby approved and shall be
adhered to,
4 That all disturbed lawn areas shall be sodded in lieu of
hydroseeding,
5 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,
6 That the Building Elevation Plans marked Sheets A-201, A-
201 a, A-201 b and A-202, all dated August 25, 2015,
prepared by Longe+Enright AIA Architecture Interiors, are
hereby approved and shall be adhered to,
7 That all rooftop mechanical equipment visible to the public
shall be concealed on all sides by screening that shall be
of a compatible character, material and color to other
exterior materials on the building,
8 That all light fixtures shall not exceed twenty feet (20') in
height and shall be aimed and shielded so as to minimize
stray light trespassing across property lines and glaring
into ad�acent roadways,
9 That the issue as outlined in the correspondence dated
September 16, 2015, from the Fire Marshal requesting that
a fire hydrant be located 50-100 feet from the Fire
Department Connection, shall be resolved to the
satisfaction of the Fire Department and/or Inspection
Department;
10 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,
11 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
12 Pursuant to Section 1910 of Ordinance No 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
September 22, 2015
27145
by the City Council, and unless a building permit is
obtained and construction is commenced, this approval
shall be null and void at the expiration of said period
Mr Morrow� Is there any discussion?
Ms Mclntyre Do we need to add the fire hydrant language?
Mr Morrow� Yes, would you add that to the approving?
Ms Smiley Is that okay, Mr Taylor?
Mr Taylor� Yes
Mr Morrow, Chairman, declared the motion is carried and the foregoing
resolution adopted It will go on to City Council with an
approving resolution It was a nice presentation Thank you very
much for coming We always welcome new people to Livonia,
but when someone decides that they're going to upgrade their
site, it always is something special Good luck at the Council
level
ITEM #5 APPROVAL OF MINUTES 1,075T" Public Hearings and
Regular Meeting
Ms Smiley, Secretary, announced the next item on the agenda, Approval of the
Minutes of the 1,075t" Public Hearings and Regular Meet�ng
held on September 1, 2015
On a motion by Mclntyre, seconded by Taylor, and adopted, it was
#09-66-2015 RESOLVED, that the Minutes of 1,075th Public Hearings and
Regular Meeting held by the Planning Commission on
September 1, 2015, are hereby approved
A roll call vote on the foregoing resolution resulted in the following
AYES Mclntyre, Taylor, Bahr, Smiley, Morrow
NAYS None
ABSENT None
ABSTAIN Wilshaw
Mr Morrow, Chairman, declared the motion is carried and the foregoing
resolution adopted
September 22, 2015
27946
On a motion duly made, seconded and unanimousiy adopted, the 1,076t" Publ�c
Hearings and Regular Meeting held on September 22, 2015, was adjourned at
913pm
CITY PLANNING COMMISSION
� �'�'�� . c��"� .
rol A. Smiley, Secretary
ATTEST \` .,
R Lee M rrow, C airman