Aug 10, 2026 Planning Commission

[1. CALL MEETING TO ORDER]

[00:00:33]

[MUSIC].

2026 MEETING OF THE MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP PLANNING COMMISSION TO ORDER AT 6:30 COMMISSIONER.

NAHUM. SORRY. ROLL CALL. I'LL MOVE TO ROLL CALL REAL FAST.

COMMISSIONER NAHUM AND SPECIAL GUEST. YES. AWESOME.

COMMISSIONER BROOKS. YES. VICE CHAIRMAN MCCURTIS.

HERE. COMMISSIONER SHREWSBURY. HERE. COMMISSIONER MCCONNELL. AND THE CHAIR IS HERE.

AND WITH THAT, WE CAN MOVE TO ITEM 3 ON THE AGENDA, WHICH IS PUBLIC REMARKS.

MR. SHORKEY, DO WE HAVE ANY PUBLIC REMARKS? WE HAVE NONE TODAY.

WE HAVE NONE TODAY. THESE ARE BOTH APPLICANT REPRESENTATIVES.

MOVING ON. WE CAN MOVE ON TO APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA.

[4. APPROVAL OF AGENDA]

DO WE HAVE ANY ADDITIONS, DELETIONS OR CHANGES TO THE AGENDA? MOTION TO APPROVE. WE HAVE A MOTION BY VICE CHAIR MCCURTIS AND SUPPORT FROM COMMISSIONER MCCONNELL.

WE DON'T NEED TO DO COMMENTARY ON THAT, RIGHT? WE CAN JUST MOVE TO VOTE. YEAH. UNLESS SOMEBODY. IS THERE SOME CHANGES? ANYBODY HAVE ANY CHANGES? COMPLAINED ABOUT ONE OF THE. VERY WELL.

WE HAVE A. THEN WE CAN GO. ALL IN FAVOR, AYE.

AYE. AYE. ANY OPPOSED? WITH THAT, THE AGENDA IS APPROVED.

WITH THAT, WE MOVE TO ITEM 5 ON THE AGENDA. APPROVAL OF THE JULY 27TH, 2026 MINUTES.

[5. APPROVAL OF MINUTES]

SECOND. SECOND BY COMMISSIONER NAHUM. DO WE HAVE ANY CHANGES, ADDITIONS, DELETIONS TO THE MINUTES FROM JULY 27TH, 2026? TO A FEW. COMMISSIONER MCCONNELL. ON THE SECOND PAGE, FIRST FULL PARAGRAPH BEGINS, VICE CHAIR MCCURTIS CALLED THE APPLICANT TO THE PODIUM. I WISH THAT SAID INVITED.

I'M SORRY. VICE CHAIR MCCURTIS CALLED THE APPLICANT.

OH, INVITED. OKAY. AND THE LAST SENTENCE IN THAT PARAGRAPH.

I DIDN'T. IT SHOULD BE REAR YARD. I THINK THAT SHOULD BE REAR YARD.

YES. THERE WAS NO NO DISCUSSION ABOUT FRONT YARD.

NO. AND IN SECTION B ON THAT SAME PAGE, I HOPE I DIDN'T IMPLY THAT I WAS FAMILIAR WITH THE SCIENTIFIC LITERATURE ON THAT MASS TIMBER, BUT THE LITERATURE THAT I'VE READ. OH, LITERATURE.

OKAY. THANK YOU. SOUNDS LIKE WE HAVE THREE FRIENDLY AMENDMENTS TO THE.

WITH THE LITERATURE THAT HE HAD READ ON THE SUBJECT.

OKAY. I APOLOGIZE. THAT WAS GRETA'S LAST DAY AND. WELL, THEY'RE EXCELLENT MINUTES. I PUSHED THEM.

I PUSHED EVERYTHING OUT BECAUSE I WAS GONE LAST WEEK. SO IF WE HAD SOME OVERSIGHTS, APOLOGIES.

AND WE HAVE THOSE THREE CHANGES, I ASSUME WE'LL WE'LL MAKE THOSE AGAIN.

ANY OTHER ADDITIONS, CHANGES, DELETIONS? WE HAVE A MOTION.

WE HAVE A SECOND. ALL IN FAVOR TO APPROVE THE JULY 27TH, 2026 MINUTES? AYE. AYE. ANY OPPOSED? OKAY. I SHOULD ALSO NOTE THANK YOU, VICE CHAIRMAN MCCURTIS, FOR FILLING IN FOR ME.

I WAS ON VACATION ON THE 27TH. SMOOTH AS SILK, SMOOTH MEETING.

MOVING ON TO ITEM 6 ON THE AGENDA, THERE ARE COMMUNICATIONS. WE HAVE NO COMMUNICATIONS. I DO HAVE A HANDOUT IN FRONT OF YOU FROM COMMISSIONER NAHUM REGARDING

[6. COMMUNICATIONS ]

OKAY. SO SEEING NO FURTHER COMMUNICATIONS, WE CAN MOVE TO ITEM 7 ON THE AGENDA.

PUBLIC HEARINGS. WE HAVE NO PUBLIC HEARINGS. AND WITH THAT, WE CAN MOVE TO ITEM 8 ON THE AGENDA,

[8.A. SUP #26018 - 7Eleven ]

7ELEVEN. OKAY. ZOOM IN A LITTLE BIT. SPECIAL USE PERMIT NUMBER 26018. 7ELEVEN.

TO CONSTRUCT A 7ELEVEN GAS STATION AND CONVENIENCE STORE AT 2736 GRAND RIVER AVENUE.

[00:05:03]

YOU DID HAVE A PUBLIC HEARING ON JUNE 22ND. YOU ASKED SOME QUESTIONS.

THERE WAS A FOLLOW UP CONVERSATION ON JULY 13TH.

AT THAT TIME, YOU ASKED FOR SOME MORE INFORMATION ABOUT POTENTIAL ENVIRONMENTAL EFFECTS.

WE DID RECEIVE A WRITE UP ON MITIGATION MEASURES FOR VAPOR AND SPILLS.

AND THE POINTS WERE SUMMARIZED IN THE MEMO HERE.

AND THESE FIVE BULLET POINTS. SITE PLAN WAS UPDATED AND INCLUDED IN YOUR PACK.

IT SHOWS LANDSCAPING ALONG THE EASTERN PROPERTY LINE ADJACENT TO COLLEGE PARK APARTMENTS.

IT ALSO SHOWS THERE'S A 20 FOOT SANITARY SEWER EASEMENT ON THE PROPERTY.

THE TOWNSHIP ENGINEER HAS CONFIRMED THAT SHRUBBERY IS APPROVABLE ON OVER ON THE EASEMENT.

TREES WERE REMOVED. THE ROOTS GO TOO DEEP FOR THE SEWER LINE, BUT THE SHRUBBERY IS ACCEPTABLE.

ALSO SHOWS THE NON-MOTORIZED CONNECTION THAT WAS REQUESTED BY NEIGHBORS CONNECTING THE SUBJECT PROPERTY AND WHARNCLIFFE DRIVE.

THAT, OF COURSE, IS DEPENDENT ON THE INGHAM COUNTY ROAD DEPARTMENT PLAYING BALL ON THAT.

THE ORIGINAL STAFF REPORT IS ATTACHED AS WELL AS THE MEMO FROM JULY 13TH.

AND AT YOUR REQUEST, THERE IS A RESOLUTION OF APPROVAL AND A RESOLUTION OF DENIAL.

YOU ARE THE APPROVING BODY. I WILL NOTE THAT THE APPLICANT HAS THE RIGHT TO APPEAL THE DECISION TO THE TOWNSHIP BOARD, AND IF SO, THEN ALL MATERIAL WILL GO FORWARD TO THE BOARD.

BUT YOU ARE THE APPROVING OR DENYING BODY IN THIS CASE.

I CAN ANSWER QUESTIONS AND OR THE APPLICANT IS REPRESENTED.

ANY QUESTIONS FOR MR. SHORKEY? COMMISSIONER MCCONNELL? CAN WE LOOK AT THE SITE PLAN, PLEASE? SURE. I'LL ZOOM OUT.

TELL ME WHEN TO STOP. OKAY. THAT'S GREAT. OKAY.

THAT IS DIFFERENT THAN THE ONE I FOUND IN THE PACKET.

THIS IS THE PACKET. OKAY. I DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU.

I DON'T KNOW IF YOU SAW AN OLD PACKET. THIS IS THE AUGUST 8TH.

AUGUST 10TH PACKET. YEAH, I DOWNLOADED THAT THIS MORNING ON MY PHONE.

AND THAT'S NOT THE DIAGRAM. UNLESS I MISSED IT.

DID EVERYBODY ELSE GET THAT? LOOKS DIFFERENT BECAUSE IT LOOKS THE SAME.

SORRY, IT'S JUST ME. OKAY. I'M LOOKING AT A DIFFERENT SITE.

HERE'S THE PATH. AND HERE'S THE PROPOSED LANDSCAPING ON THE EASTERN PROPERTY LINE.

I JUST DON'T. I MEAN, I JUST OPENED IT OFF THE WEBSITE AND IT'S DIFFERENT. I THINK IT'S THE PREVIOUS SITE PLAN WITHOUT THE ADDED RED FEATURES, SO I COULDN'T. YEAH, IT'S NOT THAT ONE. IT'S A BLACK AND WHITE.

YEAH. I JUST GOT IT DIFFERENT. WOW. SORRY. AT ANY RATE, THIS IS THE SITE PLAN THAT WAS INCLUDED IN THE PACKET.

OKAY. YES. AND YEAH, LANDSCAPING AND FENCING IS SHOWN ON THE EASTERN PROPERTY LINE.

AND LIKE I SAID, THERE'S THE WHARNCLIFFE CONNECTION.

AND ONCE AGAIN THERE'S THE CONNECTION. THAT CONNECTION IS VERIFIED.

ANYWAY. THAT'S WEIRD. YEAH. BECAUSE I'VE GOT IT RIGHT HERE AND IT IT'S. RIGHT. OH, YOU GUYS SEE IT CORRECTLY. I THINK WE'RE I THINK THIS DOCUMENT HAS THE OLD SITE PLAN IN IT WITHOUT WHAT YOU ADDED IN RED, AND THIS IS VERY HELPFUL TO SEE IT. SO PLEASE CONTINUE.

OKAY, I HAVE I HAVE NOTHING, I HAVE NOTHING FURTHER TO ADD.

IF YOU HAVE MORE QUESTIONS, MAYBE IT'S NOT RENDERING ON MY PHONE, I DON'T KNOW.

YEAH. I MEAN, BECAUSE I DOWNLOADED IT TODAY AND GOT THE CORRECT ONE.

YEAH, IT LOOKS FINE. IT'S RIGHT HERE ON MY IPHONE. COULD BE THE PHONE ISSUE.

YEAH. HIT REFRESH DOWN AT THE BOTTOM. THE YEAH.

THOSE ARE THOSE ARE MARKUPS. NO. THAT'S FINE.

OKAY. IT'S A TECHNICAL GLITCH AND WE DON'T NEED TO WORRY ABOUT IT. OKAY.

I'M DELIGHTED TO SEE THE EVERGREEN TREES. AND NOW I CAN SEE THE PATHWAY CONNECTION IS WHERE? RIGHT HERE. THIS IS THE END OF WARD CLIFF DRIVE, THE CONNECTION.

AND IT COMES DOWN HERE AND CONNECTS. IT CONNECTS TO THE SIDEWALK.

THIS ISN'T DRIVING AREA. SO IT SO IT WORKS. SO IT'S A PATHWAY ON TOP OF THE PUBLIC EASEMENT.

IT'S NEXT TO THE PUBLIC EASEMENT ROUGHLY SPEAKING.

[00:10:04]

THERE IS A UTILITY EASEMENT HERE. IT LOOKS LIKE IT MIGHT OVERLAP A LITTLE BIT.

BUT AGAIN TOWNSHIP ENGINEERING HAS REVIEWED THIS AND DOESN'T REALLY HAVE AN ISSUE.

IN FACT, IT LOOKS LIKE IT KIND OF GOES ADJACENT RIGHT HERE IF I'M GUESSING RIGHT.

IF THIS IS APPROVED, IT'LL END UP IN SITE PLAN.

AND WE'LL DO A MORE FURTHER MORE THOROUGH REVIEW.

BUT OKAY, THAT'S WHEN WE'LL GET THE INGHAM COUNTY ROAD DEPARTMENT APPROVAL ON THIS.

THANKS. THAT'S ALL I HAVE. SO DOES THE SIDEWALK.

OR DOES THE PATH THEN GO FROM WARDENCLYFFE ALL THE WAY DOWN TO THE ROAD.

OR IT JUST GOES RIGHT TO THE BACK OF THE STORE.

THERE'S THERE'S SIDEWALKS SURROUNDING THE STORE.

AND SEE, THERE'S, THERE'S YOUR MAIN DOORS. YOU'VE GOT SOME WALK UP CANOPY ON THIS SIDE. CORRECT? AM I INTERPRETING THAT CORRECTLY? YEAH. ANYWAY, I'M. SO YES, IT CONNECTS TO THE SIDEWALK SO YOU COULD END UP.

YEAH. IT DOESN'T GO ALL THE WAY TO THE TO GRAND RIVER AVENUE.

DID ANY DID ANYBODY ELSE THINK THAT THE PATH WAS GOING TO BE CONNECTING TO LIKE THE MAIN ROAD.

NO. OKAY. NO, THEY WEREN'T THE RESIDENTS AS AS ANECDOTALLY REPORTED AT YOUR LAST MEETING, THE RESIDENTS THAT WERE SURVEYED WEREN'T CONCERNED ABOUT GETTING TO GRAND RIVER AVENUE.

THEY WERE CONCERNED ABOUT GETTING TO THE SLURPEES. I MEAN, THEY WERE CONCERNED ABOUT GETTING TO 7-ELEVEN.

THEY WEREN'T CONCERNED ABOUT GETTING TO GRAND RIVER. THEY WERE THEY WERE CONCERNED ABOUT GETTING TO 7-ELEVEN AND THE PATHWAY.

THERE IS NO FORMAL PATHWAY RIGHT NOW THROUGH THE WOODS IN THE BACK OF THE PROPERTY.

THERE IS AN OVERGROWN, BEATEN DOWN, INFORMAL AND FORMAL TRAIL, BUT THAT'S NOT TO GET TO TO 7-ELEVEN.

YES, YES IT IS. IT GOES RIGHT FROM RIGHT HERE.

NO. BRIAN. BUT BUT BUT THE, THE PATH THAT'S THERE RIGHT NOW ISN'T TO GET TO 7-ELEVEN.

WELL, BECAUSE 7-ELEVEN DOESN'T EXIST. THAT'S MY POINT, THOUGH.

SO PEOPLE HAVE MADE A PATH TO GET FROM THAT NEIGHBORHOOD TO THE MAIN AREA OF GRAND RIVER, WHICH THEY CAN WHETHER OR NOT TO DO, BECAUSE THEY'LL BE ON THE SIDEWALK HERE AND THEY'LL JUST WALK TO GRAND RIVER AVENUE AND OVER MORE CONCRETE THAN OVER FRESH CONCRETE INSTEAD OF THE BUSTED PAVEMENT THAT'S THERE RIGHT NOW AROUND THE CLARION HOTEL.

RIGHT? OKAY. SO THIS STILL BE IT'S NOT LIKE THEY'RE PUTTING A FENCE UP, BUT YOU CAN STILL GET TO GRAND RIVER AVENUE.

VICE CHAIRMAN MCCURTIS, JUST REAL FAST. WHAT IS THE MAYBE I SHOULD KNOW THIS, BUT I JUST DON'T.

WHAT IS THE 4852FT²? WHAT'S THAT BUILDING RIGHT THERE? YES, THIS IS THE 7-ELEVEN PROPOSED 7-ELEVEN. OKAY.

SO WHAT IS MAYBE I'M NOT READING IT THE RIGHT WAY.

WHAT'S ALL THE GRAY? THIS IS PAVEMENT. OH, I SEE.

YEAH, THIS IS THEIR DRIVE. THESE ARE THE THIS IS THE CANOPY, THE PUMP STATION.

GAS STATIONS. OKAY. YEP. AND THEN HERE'S YOUR PARKING SPACES.

AND THEN THESE ARE DUMPSTERS. SO THE TRASH RECEPTACLE CAN BE TAKEN OUT HERE.

AND THIS IS THE CONNECTION TO WHOLE FOODS. WHOLE FOODS? CORRECT.

ANY OTHER QUESTIONS FOR MR. SHAWKI? VERY WELL. WE COULD OPEN IT UP IF THE APPLICANT WOULD LIKE TO SPEAK OR IF THERE'S NOT REQUIRED TO.

JUST AN OPTION. I WILL DEFER. THANK YOU. NAME AND ADDRESS FOR THE RECORD, PLEASE. YES, SIR. JOHN KRUPKA.

ONE. THREE. FIVE EAST LAKE. EAST WESTMINSTER.

LAKE FOREST. THANK YOU. GOOD AFTERNOON GUYS. GOOD EVENING.

WHEN WE STEPPING OUT OF THIS LAST MEETING, I THINK THE TWO PREVAILING ISSUES THAT WERE UNANSWERED THAT NEEDED TO BE ADDRESSED.

ONE, MR. MCCONNELL, YOU HAD MENTIONED THE SCREENING, THE SEPARATION BETWEEN OUR USE AND THE COLLEGE APARTMENTS, COLLEGE PARK APARTMENTS TO OUR EAST. I DID MAKE CONTACT WITH THE LANDOWNER THERE OR THE PROPERTY OWNER THERE.

[00:15:01]

WHAT HE WANTED TO SEE THERE HE SUPPORTS THE USE HE WANTED TO SEE MORE OR BETTER SEPARATION BETWEEN OUR PROJECT AND HIS.

WE PROVIDED THAT WITH AN EIGHT FOOT FENCE. IF YOU GUYS ARE AWARE OF THE PROPERTY IT DOES SLOPE DOWN TO THE COLLEGE PARK APARTMENTS.

THAT EIGHT FOOT FENCE WILL SIT KIND OF AT THE ROOF OF THE APARTMENTS EFFECTIVELY FROM THE COLLEGE PARK APARTMENTS.

IT'S GOING TO LOOK CLOSER TO TEN, 11 FOOT FENCE.

HE ALSO WANTED SOME, SOME TREES VERY SIMILAR TO WHAT WE'RE PROPOSING IN THE BACK OF THE PROPERTY.

SEPARATING OUR USE FROM THE WHARNCLIFFE HOMES.

WE COULDN'T PUT THE TREES THERE. AS MR. SHAWKEY EXPLAINED, THERE'S AN EASEMENT THAT'S RUNNING PARALLEL TO THE PROPERTY LINE.

WE'VE SATISFIED THE LANDSCAPING AND JUST THAT ENHANCED PRESENCE PER THE PROPERTY OWNERS REQUEST WITH SHRUBS AND OTHER BUSHES. MR. NESHAM BROUGHT UP AND I THINK IT WAS MR. BROOKS AS WELL DISCUSSING VAPORS, THE PLUME AND DISTRIBUTION OF THAT.

MR. SHAWKEY ADDED TO THE PACKET A COUPLE OF NOTES THAT HE SUMMARIZED WITH BULLETS, BUT IT IS EFFECTIVELY A THE RECOVERY SYSTEM THAT NOT ONLY 7ELEVEN BUT ALL FUEL STATIONS EMPLOY HAS TWO HOSES. ONE DROPS FUEL INTO THE TANK, THE OTHER ONE PULLS VAPORS OUT.

IT'S A CONSTANT SWAP. ANY SPILLAGE IS CONTAINED WITHIN THE TANK WITH LIKE A FIVE GALLON RESERVOIR TO CATCH TO CATCH OVERFLOW.

THERE'S ALSO A HOSE ON THE SURFACE THAT ASSUMES VAPORS THAT MIGHT BE ESCAPING AROUND THE PORTAL.

WE'VE, WE'VE SEEN IN OUR STUDIES AND WHAT'S REFERENCED IN THE REPORT THAT PROVIDED THEY'RE CORRECTLY MAINTAINED AND THE LOCAL JURISDICTIONS OR THE STATE REQUIRES PROPER MAINTENANCE THAT THEY HAVE 98% EFFICIENCY.

THE VAPOR DISPERSION IS VERY LEAN, ESPECIALLY AT THESE MODERN CONVENIENCE STORES.

I THINK THOSE ARE THE TWO BIG ISSUES THAT CAME OUT OF THE LAST MEETING. I'M HAPPY TO ADDRESS. ANY OTHER ANY ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS THAT YOU GUYS MAY HAVE? YEAH. SO I SUBMITTED SOME STUDIES TO COMMUNICATIONS THAT LOOKED AT MOSTLY CHILDHOOD LEUKEMIA RATES FOR IN BOTH NORTHERN ITALY AND CANADA.

AND IT LOOKS LIKE A LOT OF. THE PREVAILING EVIDENCE IS THAT SETBACKS TO RESIDENCES IS A IS A GOOD IDEA BECAUSE THERE'S EVEN, YOU KNOW, THESE ARE DONE IN 2023 AND 2026. THESE ARE MODERN FUEL STATIONS THAT THEY FOUND RELATIVE RISK AND HAZARD RELATIVE. THE STATISTICS HERE. SORRY. IT'S A, IT'S SHOWING ABOUT A, LIKE A TWO TIMES PREVALENCE OF A LOT OF THESE CHILDHOOD LEUKEMIAS, WHICH IS THE MOST COMMON CAUSE OF CHILDHOOD CANCER.

AND THESE ARE FOUND AS FAR AS LIKE 250M FROM THE FUELING STATIONS, THEY FOUND SIGNIFICANT INCREASES.

AND IT GOES, IT'S DOSE DEPENDENT. SO AS YOU GET CLOSER.

SO MY CONCERN IS, SO A LOT OF THE STUDIES SHOWED THAT AMBIENT, SORRY, THE ACTUAL QUESTION WAS THAT AMBIENT AIR AROUND THE STATION, NOT EVEN DURING FUELING, BUT DURING NOT FUELING THE LARGE TANK, BUT JUST USES PRETTY CLOSE TO KIND OF THE OSHA LIMITS, OFTENTIMES OF 0.1 PPM FOR BENZENE. DO YOU KNOW WHAT THE KIND OF NUMBERS YOU'D EXPECT FROM AIR FUEL STATIONS IN REGULAR USE? YOU KNOW, WE'RE JUST GETTING THE STUDY NOW. I TRY TO RESEARCH IT REALLY QUICKLY.

WHEN I, WHEN I SAW IT ON MY, ON MY CHAIR I DON'T HAVE THAT INFORMATION FOR YOU RIGHT NOW.

OKAY. THE ONE THING THAT I WAS TRYING TO VERIFY REALLY QUICKLY IS WHETHER THE STANDARDS HERE IN AMERICA ARE SIMILAR TO CANADA AND ITALY, WHERE YOU PULLED YOUR FINDINGS. I KNOW THAT HERE STATESIDE, WE HAVE THE STRICTEST STANDARDS WHEN IT COMES TO FUEL STATIONS ON THE GLOBE.

SO I WISH I COULD ANSWER IT BETTER. I IMAGINE THE STRICTEST MEASURES POSSIBLE ARE BEING TAKEN IN ORDER TO PREVENT VAPOR DISTRIBUTION.

I KNOW THAT IN ALL OF OUR CARS HERE STATES THAT I JUST PULLED THIS REALLY QUICKLY THAT THERE.

AND THIS IS AS OF 90. ALL, ALL CARS SINCE 2000.

AND THIS IS ADDRESSING YOUR QUESTION FOR VAPOR DISTRIBUTION OR DISPERSION.

WHEN THE FUEL TANKER IS NOT EVEN THERE, WHEN THEY'RE NOT FUELING THE TANKS, THE DISTRIBUTION FROM THE FUELING STATIONS THEMSELVES,

[00:20:02]

SO THAT'S ALL I HAVE ON THAT ON ON SHORT NOTICE.

I CAN CERTAINLY RESEARCH IT FURTHER FOR YOU. I APPRECIATE THAT, AND I APPRECIATE YOU BRINGING THIS STUDY TO TO THE GROUP'S ATTENTION.

OTHER QUESTIONS. I'M NOT A SCIENTIST, AND I'M JUST SEEING THIS FOR THE FIRST TIME TONIGHT.

BUT I DID NOTICE JUST IN SKIMMING THROUGH THE SUMMARY OF THE MONTREAL OR THE CANADIAN STUDY, IT SAYS IT EXCLUDED MONTREAL, WHERE STATIONS MUST CONTROL VAPOR EMISSIONS.

SO I WONDER IF WE'RE COMPARING APPLES TO APPLES.

YOU KNOW, I CERTAINLY DON'T DON'T WANT TO PRESUME TO KNOW THIS BECAUSE I DON'T.

BUT THAT ALMOST MADE ME FEEL BETTER. LIKE IF THE PLACES THAT THEY STUDIED DIDN'T HAVE THOSE CONTROLS.

AND HERE WE REQUIRE THOSE CONTROLS. THAT MAKES ME FEEL A LITTLE BIT MORE SECURE ABOUT READING THROUGH WHAT WAS IN THE PACKET ABOUT THE CONTROLS FOR THE VAPORS. BUT BUT CERTAINLY I THINK OUR KIDS ARE EXPOSED TO A LOT OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONTAMINANTS.

AND I'M NOT ONE THAT WANTS TO PUT ANYBODY AT RISK.

SO I, YOU KNOW, I JUST DON'T FEEL LIKE I KNOW ENOUGH TO BE ABLE TO SPEAK TO THIS.

BUT BUT THAT DID MAKE ME FEEL BETTER.

AND EVEN GOING BACK TO AGAIN, SAME AS COMMISSIONER SHREWSBURY.

I WAS SCANNING THE CANADIAN STUDY NOTES PETROL STATION EMIT BENZENE AND OTHER VOLATILE COMPOUNDS IN AMBIENT AIR.

THE EPIDEMIOLOGICAL EVIDENCE REMAINS LIMITED.

WE INVESTIGATED WHETHER REGISTERED PROXIMITY TO GASOLINE STATIONS AT BIRTH WAS ASSOCIATED WITH CHILD WITH CANCER INCIDENCE.

SO THERE'S AN ADMISSION THAT THE EVIDENCE IS LIMITED BUT ALSO NOT A SCIENTIST.

SO. ANY FURTHER QUESTIONS FROM THE FROM THE BOARD.

FROM THE COMMISSION. IS THERE ANY FINAL COMMENTS? I THINK THAT WE'VE PUT TOGETHER A PRETTY THOUGHTFUL PLAN CONSIDERING THE CONSTRAINTS OF THE SITE.

WORKING TOGETHER WITH CITY PLANNING DOT THE NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION TO THE NORTH, PROPERTY OWNER TO THE EAST, PROPERTY OWNER TO THE WEST. EVERYBODY'S WE'VE, WE'VE TOUCHED.

NOBODY HAS OPPOSED THE PROJECT WORKING IN CONCERT WITH THEM.

I THINK WE'VE DELIVERED A PLAN THAT ADDRESSES A LOT OF THE NEIGHBORING CONCERNS.

AND ULTIMATELY IT'S, IT'S, IT'S YOUR, IT'S YOUR CALL WHETHER THE PLAN SATISFIES THE COUNCIL'S AND APPRECIATE YOUR GUYS'S CONSIDERATION.

THANK YOU. DO YOU WANT TO ADD ANYTHING? THANK YOU.

OKAY. AND WITH THAT WE HAVE, I BELIEVE, AND THIS ONE, WE HAVE A.

WE HAVE ATTACHED A RESOLUTION TO RECOMMEND APPROVAL AND ONE TO RECOMMEND DENIAL.

CORRECT. THAT IS CORRECT. OKAY. ALL RIGHT, MR. SHIRKY'S, COME BACK. NOT TO SAY ANYTHING, NOT TO SAY ANYTHING.

JUST NOTE THAT HE IS AT THE AT THE LECTERN. MAKE A MOTION ARE YOU ASKING FOR A MOTION? A MOTION FOR EITHER ONE OF THE RESOLUTIONS? MAKE A MOTION TO APPROVE.

NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED. PLANNING COMMISSION OF THE CHARTER TOWNSHIP OF MERIDIAN HEREBY APPROVES A SPECIAL USE PERMIT.

NUMBER 26018, SUBJECT TO ALL CONDITIONS THAT ARE LISTED HERE.

I'LL SECOND. WE HAVE A MOTION BY VICE CHAIRMAN MCCURTIS.

SECONDED BY COMMISSIONER SHREWSBURY. ANY COMMENTS? I'M SORRY. COMMISSIONER. FOR THOSE WHO ARE GOING TO SUPPORT THIS, I'M CURIOUS WHAT YOUR RATIONALE IS, GIVEN THAT IT'S WELL WITHIN THE 300FT SETBACK REQUIREMENT.

AND ALSO THAT THE, THAT THE USE OF THE BUILDING NEXT TO IT IS RESIDENTIAL.

COMMISSIONER MCCONNELL WERE YOU I'M HAPPY TO HAVE A DISCUSSION ON THAT POINT.

[00:25:01]

WELL AT THE MOMENT I'M AMBIVALENT ON THIS FOR A COUPLE OF REASONS.

BUT SOMETHING OCCURRED TO ME TODAY THAT HAD NOT OCCURRED TO ME PREVIOUSLY AS MUCH.

AND THAT IS THAT DESPITE CREATING ANOTHER. DRIVEWAY ON GRAND RIVER, A VERY INCONVENIENT LOCATION. AND HAVING A LACK OF FAITH IN ALL OF MY FELLOW DRIVERS TO OBEY THAT NO LEFT TURN. THAT BOTHERS ME. IT FEELS LIKE IT'S CREATING STILL MORE CHAOS AT THAT INTERSECTION.

BUT ON THE OTHER HAND, THE WE HAVE AS A COMMISSION AS A TOWNSHIP FOR A LOT OF YEARS TRIED TO ENCOURAGE MULTI-PURPOSE VISITS TO AVOID PEOPLE GETTING ON AND OFF THE HIGHWAY.

AND THIS PROJECT CAN ACCOMPLISH SOME OF THAT BECAUSE WHOLE FOODS IS NEVER GOING TO SELL GAS.

AND 7-ELEVEN IS NOT GOING TO SELL FRESH PRODUCE.

SO, IF THOSE TWO NEEDS COALESCE WITH ONE LESS ON AND OFF OF M22, THEN THAT FEELS LIKE A WIN.

SO THOSE ARE THE THINGS I'M BALANCING. I LOVE THE FACT THAT IT'S GOT CONNECTION TO THE NEIGHBORHOOD.

I BELIEVE THAT THE PEOPLE WHO ESTABLISHED THAT DESIRE PATH THROUGH THE BRUSH, WE'RE GOING OTHER PLACES AND THEY WILL CONTINUE TO GO OTHER PLACES. AND IF YOU DON'T WANT THEM WALKING ACROSS YOUR LAWN, MAYBE YOU SHOULD BUILD A PATHWAY TO WHERE THEY'RE GOING. BUT THE SCIENCE SIDE I WAS, I'M RECOVERING SCIENTIST. SO THE TWO STUDIES THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT ARE BOTH SPATIAL ASSOCIATION STUDIES SAYING, HERE'S THIS OBJECT AND WITHIN ABOUT THIS, FAR FROM IT OR THIS FAR MEASURED IN THIS OTHER WAY ALL THINGS CONSIDERED SEEMS TO BE AT HIGHER RISK.

AND WITHOUT LOOKING AT THE STUDIES AND SEEING WHAT CONFOUNDING FACTORS DO, THEY ACTUALLY WERE THEY ACTUALLY ABLE TO INCORPORATE WHAT SORT OF THINGS ARE CO-LOCATED WITH GAS STATIONS THAT MIGHT ALSO BE HAVING THESE EFFECTS.

SO IF WE'RE CONCERNED ABOUT THE HEALTH EFFECTS, I THINK WE GOT TO DIVE DEEPER.

IT'S FEDERALLY REGULATED. AND I GOT TO BELIEVE THAT THE FEDERAL REGULATIONS ARE AS THEY SHOULD BE.

BUT MAYBE, MAYBE THEY'RE NOT. I DON'T KNOW. IF SOMEBODY WERE TO DO THESE STUDIES ON A FEDERALLY REGULATED, PROPERLY OPERATED, YOU KNOW, REAL GOLD STANDARD AND NOT EXCLUDE MONTREAL BECAUSE THEY MIGHT HAVE MORE MORE FAITH IN IT.

I AM ALSO BOTHERED BY THE ISSUE OF THE SETBACK AND THE VARIANCES THAT ARE GOING TO BE REQUIRED.

AND WHENEVER I HEAR AN APPLICANT TALKING ABOUT WITHIN THE CONSTRAINTS OF THE SITE, IT STARTS TO FEEL A LITTLE BIT LIKE A SHOEHORN.

LIKE MAYBE IF YOU GOT TO PUSH THE EDGES THAT HARD TO FIT THIS THING ONTO THIS SITE, MAYBE IT'S NOT THE RIGHT SIDE OR NOT THE RIGHT USE.

END OF SOLILOQUY. AND WHAT END OF SOLILOQUY? EXCEPT, AGAIN, IF SOMEBODY IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD CAN WALK TO A CONVENIENCE STORE WITHOUT HAVING TO CROSS M-22.

THAT'S A BIG WIN. COME ON. I FEEL LIKE IT'S WORTH NOTING WHAT THE VARIANCES ARE AND REMINDING OURSELVES WHAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT WHEN WE SAY VARIANCES.

THERE IS NO VARIANCE REQUIRED FOR THE DISTANCE TO FOR THE PROXIMITY OF COLLEGE PARK APARTMENTS THAT IS ZONED COMMERCIAL.

THAT IS A NONCONFORMING USE IN A COMMERCIAL ZONE.

THE VARIANCES WE'RE TALKING ABOUT ARE BUILDING SETBACKS ADJACENT TO A RESIDENTIAL DISTRICT OF 170FT.

THAT'S GOING THIS DIRECTION FROM HERE TO HERE.

OKAY. AND THAT'S THE CANOPY, NOT THE PUMPS. THE OTHER VARIANCE IS BUILDING PERIMETER LANDSCAPING, AND THEY WANT RELIEF FROM A FOUR FOOT BUILDING PERIMETER, LANDSCAPING BETWEEN THE SIDEWALK AND THE BUILDING. THIS IS NOT AN UNCOMMON REQUEST. THERE IS NO VARIANCE REQUIRED FOR THIS DISTANCE. THIS 211FT WAS SHOWN AS A COURTESY BY THE APPLICANT ON THE SITE PLAN.

JUST WANTED TO REMIND US WHAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT WHEN WE WHEN WE TALK ABOUT VARIANCES. THANKS FOR THE CLARIFICATION.

YEAH, I APPRECIATE THAT. I WAS REFERRING TO THE DISTANCE BETWEEN AND MAYBE IS THE WRONG WORDS, BUT THE VARIANCE REQUEST FOR THE RESIDENTIAL RESIDENTIALLY ZONED PROPERTY TO THE NORTH.

[00:30:02]

CORRECT. ALL I'M SPEAKING ABOUT ARE THE VARIANCES.

YEAH. OKAY. THAT'S ALL I'M SPEAKING ABOUT. THAT'S FAIR.

I GUESS SOME CURIOSITY ON THE ON THE REGULATION, THE FEDERAL REGULATION, THAT APPROVAL OBVIOUSLY WON'T HAPPEN YET.

IT WILL HAPPEN MUCH FURTHER DOWN THE LINE. SHOULD WE APPROVE IT? LIKE THE THAT'S WHEN THE FEDS WOULD COME IN AND REVIEW THE PAPER AND ALL OF THIS OTHER ACTION.

RIGHT. SO IF THIS GETS APPROVED AT SOME LEVEL, THEY HAVE TO COME IN FOR SITE PLAN.

THEY'LL GET THEIR APPROVALS. THEY'LL SUBSEQUENTLY GO THROUGH THEIR BUILDING PERMITTING PROCESS.

AT SOME POINT THEY'RE GOING TO HAVE TO SHOW THEIR, THEIR PAPERWORK BEFORE THEY'RE ALLOWED TO OPEN.

IT SEEMS LIKE THAT'S THE NEXUS TO ME BETWEEN KIND OF LIKE THE STUDY AND THE FEDERAL LAWS.

LIKE IF I WOULD IMAGINE THERE MUST BE A STATE INSPECTION, I WOULD IMAGINE THERE'S A STATE.

YES. OH, SURE. SURE. BUT, YOU KNOW, THAT'S LIKE TO ME, THE OVERSIGHT IS LIKE IF THESE STUDIES ARE TRUE AND I'M, I GUESS I'M NOT I DON'T HAVE THE BACKGROUND TO ATTACK THEIR CREDIBILITY IN THE LEAST.

BUT LIKE OUR STATE AND FEDERAL PERMITTING PROCESS WOULD BE DESIGNED TO PREVENT THESE SORTS OF THINGS AND ENSURE HEALTH AND SAFETY AND OPERATION AND GET A LITTLE LIKE I FEEL LIKE TO, TO BASE IT ON THE SCIENCE WOULD HAVE TO ASSUME THAT IT WON'T PASS AN INSPECTION.

AND I DON'T THINK THAT'S LIKE TOO FAR OF A STEP FOR ME.

I'M NOT SURE HOW MUCH SENSE THAT MADE, BUT I'M TRYING TO GET TO THE POINT THAT REGS. REGS ARE DESIGNED TO HANDLE PUBLIC HEALTH.

CAN I MAKE A QUICK COMMENT? SO PART OF MY FEELING ON THIS IS THAT, YOU KNOW, THE REASON THAT THERE IS A SETBACK FROM THE RESIDENTIAL ZONE IS, WE DON'T WANT TO HAVE HOUSES RIGHT ON GAS STATIONS.

AND I THINK THERE'S A LOT OF REASONS FOR THAT.

YOU KNOW, THERE'S, YOU KNOW, HEALTH IS ONLY ONE POSSIBLE CONCERN.

AND I FEEL THAT THERE IS ENOUGH EVIDENCE THAT THERE IS POTENTIAL HARM THAT THIS IS AN ADVERSE USE. BUT I ALSO COMPLETELY UNDERSTAND THAT, YOU KNOW, THESE, YOU KNOW, PERHAPS WE'RE NOT THE BODY THAT SHOULD BE GOING LIKE ACTUALLY IT'S NOT SAFE, YOU KNOW, WE'RE GOING TO OVERRIDE, YOU KNOW, STATE AND FEDERAL, WHICH I PRESUME ALLOW HOUSES TO BE, YOU KNOW, RIGHT NEXT TO THE PUMPS.

BUT YEAH, SO, BUT MY PERSPECTIVE IS, THE EVIDENCE THAT I'VE SEEN AND THE STATISTICS THAT HAVE BEEN DONE TO ME FEEL PRETTY COMPELLING THAT HAVING NO SETBACK, WHICH IS KIND OF WHAT'S GOING ON HERE WHERE YOU HAVE APARTMENT RIGHT, YOU KNOW, ADJACENT TO THE FUELING STATION IS A HAZARD. AND I WOULD JUST HATE TO BE RESPONSIBLE FOR ALLOWING THAT KIND OF USE AND ANY HARM THAT MIGHT COME FROM IT. SO THAT'S MY PERSPECTIVE.

BUT I ALSO UNDERSTAND IF WE GO THE OTHER WAY.

AND THAT WAS EXTREMELY GREAT MULTITASKING.

A PHENOMENAL JOB. VERY, VERY GOOD. I GUESS MY THINKING ON THIS IS, I DO THINK FOR THE SHAPE AND SIZE OF THE SITE, THE SITE PLAN HAS BEEN PRETTY THOUGHTFULLY DESIGNED IN TERMS OF ALL THE TRAFFIC IS FRONT FACING AND PROBABLY MUCH LESS DISRUPTIVE TO THE NEIGHBORHOOD THAN THE EXISTING CURRENT USES.

WHEN YOU LOOK AT A MOTEL WITH MULTIPLE ROOMS AND TRAFFIC AND I DID NOT GO TO THE BACK OF IT.

BUT IF THERE ARE BACK FACING ROOMS, YOU KNOW, IT MAY BE MORE DISRUPTIVE TO NEIGHBORHOOD THAN.

BUT OTHERWISE IT JUST SEEMS LIKE THERE WOULD BE MORE VOLUME IN THE SPACE THAT IS CLOSEST TO THE NEIGHBORHOOD WITH THAT USE THAN THAN WITH WHAT IS BEING PROPOSED.

AND BECAUSE IT'S ALL SORT OF GRAND RIVER FACING, AND WE HAVE LOTS OF GAS STATIONS ON GRAND RIVER, I DON'T SEE THIS AS BEING SIGNIFICANTLY DIFFERENT FROM WHAT'S ALREADY THERE.

YOU KNOW, I THINK THE REAR OF THE FACILITY IS REALLY NOT GOING TO HAVE TRAFFIC AND NOT GOING TO HAVE

[00:35:01]

ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? COMMENTS FOR THE GOOD OF THE THAT WE HAVE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE TO APPROVE THE APPROVAL. SORRY. TO TO APPROVE BEFORE US.

THERE'S BEEN A MOTION AND A SECOND. AND WITH THAT WE CAN MOVE TO ROLL CALL VOTE AND START WITH COMMISSIONER NAHUM.

NO. COMMISSIONER BROOKS. NO. VICE CHAIR MCCURTIS.

YES. COMMISSIONER MCCONNELL. YES. COMMISSIONER SHREWSBURY.

YES. AND THE CHAIR VOTES YES. OKAY. YOUR NEXT STEP WILL BE SITE PLAN.

THERE IS NO DEADLINE. OH, ZBA. EXCUSE ME. YES, CORRECT.

SORRY. IT'S. I'M KEPT PLAYING CATCH UP. THANK YOU VERY MUCH.

THANK YOU. I LOVE IT. WHILE THE CAMERA MIGHT BE CATCHING IT EVERY TIME I'M TRYING TO STAY AWAY FROM THEM, I DON'T.

I THINK WE'RE ALL. IT'S WAY MORE FUN THIS WAY.

ABSOLUTELY. I'LL BRING MY KIDS SOMETIME. IT'LL BE A REAL RIDE.

WE'LL PROBABLY GET INTO A FIGHT OUT THERE. CAN I BRING MY CAT? CAN IT FIGHT WITH MY KIDS? ALL RIGHT. WITH THAT, WE CAN MOVE TO EIGHT B ON THE AGENDA, WHICH IS Z

[8.B. ZA #26015 - Mass Timber ]

GOSH, THERE WAS A LOT OF. MASS TIMBER. COULD I GO BUY IT? I DID. SORRY ABOUT THAT. YES. AFTER DISCUSSIONS WITH THE CORRIDOR IMPROVEMENT AUTHORITY AND GOING BACK AND FORTH WITH YOU GUYS A LITTLE BIT IT'S BEEN IT'S YOU GUYS SEEM INTERESTED IN ADDING MASS TIMBER CONSTRUCTION AS AN AMENITY TO THE COMMERCIAL PLANNED UNIT DEVELOPMENT AND THE MIXED USE PLANNED UNIT DEVELOPMENT ORDINANCE REGULATIONS.

WE HAD A PUBLIC HEARING ON THAT ON JULY 27TH AND NO COMMENT WAS RECEIVED FROM THE PUBLIC.

SO AT THIS TIME, STAFF RECOMMENDS APPROVAL. AND THERE IS AN ORDINANCE TO THAT EFFECT IN YOUR PACKET.

IN THIS CASE, YOU ARE THE RECOMMENDING BODY. THIS AMENDMENT WOULD GO TO THE TOWNSHIP BOARD.

COMMISSIONER MCCONNELL. I MOVED TO ADOPT THE RESOLUTION RECOMMENDING APPROVAL OF ZONING AMENDMENT NUMBER 26015 IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE REVISED DRAFT ORDINANCE LANGUAGE.

SECOND, WE HAVE A MOTION FOR COMMISSIONER MCCONNELL SECOND VICE CHAIRMAN MCCURTIS.

QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FROM THE BOARD? THANKS TO STAFF.

YES, YES. THANK YOU. AND I ALSO WANT TO COMMEND THE CORRIDOR IMPROVEMENT AUTHORITY AND THEIR FEEDBACK ON THIS.

WITH THAT ROLL CALL VOTE. COMMISSIONER. YES. COMMISSIONER.

BROOKS. YES. VICE CHAIR. MCCURTIS. YES. COMMISSIONER MCCONNELL. COMMISSIONER SHREWSBURY. YES. AND THE CHAIR VOTES YES.

ALL RIGHT. AND WITH THAT MUCH, MAKING SURE MR. SHORTEN CAN GET BACK IN TIME. WE CAN MOVE TO EIGHT C ON THE AGENDA.

[8.C. SUP #26022 - Krock Day Care ]

I KNEW SHE WASN'T GOING TO BE HERE. I GAVE HER THE OPTION OF GOING TO THE NEXT MEETING, BUT SHE TRUSTS YOU.

SHE'S OUT OF THE STATE AT THE MOMENT AND FAMILY BUSINESS.

SO THAT'S WHY SHE'S NOT HERE. SHE'S NOT JUST ABSENT.

YOU HELD A PUBLIC HEARING ON THIS APPLICATION ON JULY 27TH.

THERE WAS DISCUSSION AND COMMENT AT THAT MEETING.

YOU AGREED TO CONSIDER A RESOLUTION TO APPROVE THE SPECIAL USE PERMIT TO OPERATE A GROUP CHILD CARE HOME FOR UP TO 14 CHILDREN AT SIX THREE, SIX FOUR PORTER AVENUE. AT YOUR NEXT MEETING, I DID TAKE ONE TELEPHONE CALL FROM A RESIDENT ACROSS THE STREET.

IT WAS A VOICEMAIL. I DIDN'T HAVE A NAME. CONCERNED ABOUT NOISE.

YOU HAVE THE SAME, THE SAME STUFF. YOU, YOU KNOW, SIMILAR COMPLAINTS THAT WE'VE HAD ON OTHER DAYCARES.

THEY DO HAVE PLENTY OF PARKING MEETING OUR REQUIREMENTS.

AND IT'S IN THE BACKYARD ADJACENT TO TOWNSHIP LAND.

[00:40:02]

BUT THERE WAS NO NAME LEFT WITH. YEAH, I DIDN'T END UP SPEAKING TO THE PRESIDENT, BUT DID THEY LIKE WAS THERE IDENTIFIABLE INFORMATION ON THE VOICEMAIL, LIKE NAME AND ADDRESS OR WAS IT JUST I, I'M JUST TRYING TO SEE HOW MUCH WEIGHT TO GIVE THIS.

OKAY. THAT WORKS. WE YEAH, I NEVER HEARD BACK.

AND I WAS GONE LAST WEEK. YEAH. AND THERE WAS NO VOICEMAIL WAITING FOR ME, YOU KNOW, NO ANGRY.

WHY DIDN'T YOU GET BACK WITH ME? LIKE I, I, I MOVED THE COMMENT ALONG.

OKAY. WITH THAT QUESTIONS FROM THE COMMISSION.

I WOULD JUST NOTE THAT ON MY OTHER OBJECTION TO THESE, I THINK THE ZONING ENABLING ACT HAS ISSUES BECAUSE THIS IS A SHALLOW PROBE AND THERE'S REALLY NO REASON FOR THIS, BUT IT DOES NOT AFFECT THE MY MATERIAL VOTE ON THE CROC DAYCARE.

BUT I JUST THINK THE STATUTE IS FLAWED. DULY NOTED.

THANK YOU. WE HAVE AN OUTGOING LEGISLATOR. PERHAPS SENATOR OR REPRESENTATIVE WILL HANDLE THAT ON THE RECORD.

IT COULD BE A LAME DUCK ISSUE. WITH THAT, I THINK WE CAN MOVE TO A ROLL CALL.

VOTE. COMMISSIONER. I NEED A I NEED A MOTION.

MOTION. APOLOGIES. CAN I GET A MOTION TO APPROVE? I MOVE TO APPROVE. SPECIAL USE PERMIT 26022 CROC DAYCARE.

MOVED BY COMMISSIONER BROOKS. SECOND. SECOND BY COMMISSIONER NAHUM ON THIS ONE.

SLIGHT IN THERE A LITTLE BIT. OR IT'S BECAUSE OF THE BABY.

ALL RIGHT. WITH THAT WE HAVE A MOTION FROM COMMISSIONER BROOKS AND A SECOND BY COMMISSIONER NAHUM.

ANY FURTHER COMMENTS? ROLL CALL. VOTE. COMMISSIONER NAHUM.

YES. COMMISSIONER BROOKS. YES. VICE CHAIRMAN.

MCCURTIS. YES. COMMISSIONER SHREWSBURY. YES. COMMISSIONER MCCONNELL. AND THE CHAIR VOTES YES.

THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. LAST ITEM UNDER UNFINISHED BUSINESS A D RESTAURANTS AND PROFESSIONAL OFFICE DISCUSSION.

[8.D. Restaurants in Professional Office - Discussion]

YOU RECENTLY HEARD THE AN SCP APPLICATION FOR A RESTAURANT IN THE PO DISTRICT.

YOU ASKED TO DISCUSS THIS. WE, YOU KNOW, RESTAURANTS BEING MOVED AROUND IN, IN THEIR, IN, IN THE DISTRICT DISCUSS THIS AT YOUR MEETING ON JULY 27TH.

AND AT THAT TIME, PLANNING COMMISSION DECIDED TO RECOMMEND MOVING RESTAURANTS WITHOUT DRIVE INS OR DRIVE THRUS TO USES PERMITTED.

AND AFTER FURTHER DISCUSSION, ALSO DECIDED TO RECOMMEND MOVING BARBERS AND BEAUTY SHOPS TO USES PERMITTED AS WELL.

I NOTED YOU HAVE TO LICENSE THEM AND OUR, OUR OUR, OUR ORDINANCE REFERS TO LICENSED PROFESSIONALS ALLOWING OFFICE USES BY RIGHT.

SO STAFF PROVIDED A RED LINE AND A CLEAN VERSION TO YOU TO SEE TO SHOW YOU WHAT IT WOULD LOOK LIKE IF YOU ARE HAPPY WITH THIS AMENDMENT. WE CAN SCHEDULE A PUBLIC HEARING AND IT WILL BE IN SEPTEMBER.

ANY QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, CONCERNS RELATED TO THE PROPOSED LANGUAGE? I JUST WANT TO SAY I THINK IT LOOKS GREAT. AND I THINK, YOU KNOW, IF OUR GOAL IS TO SUPPORT THE ESTABLISHMENT OF NEW RESTAURANTS, THIS GOES TO MAKING IT A LITTLE BIT EASIER, ALTHOUGH THERE'S NOT A LOT OF THE TOWNSHIP, WHICH IS POE, BUT I THINK, YOU KNOW, EVERY LITTLE BIT PROBABLY HELPS. WELL, I THINK NOT ONLY THAT, I MEAN, WE SAW THE ISSUE WHEN THE RESTAURANT CAME BEFORE US.

IT WAS LIKE KIND OF A FLUKE IN THE REG, RIGHT? DON'T JUST SIT BY, FIX THE FLUKE. RIGHT. I MISSED THE DISCUSSION LAST MEETING BECAUSE I WASN'T HERE EITHER, BUT IT SOUNDS LIKE YOU FOUND A CLEAN WAY TO FIX IT, SO THAT'S GOOD TO ME.

YEAH, I EDITORIAL COMMENT COMING FROM THE GOSPEL OF ME AS A PLANNER, IT'S AWESOME WHEN I SEE PROACTIVE ACTIONS. THIS IS GETTING AHEAD OF SOME STUFF.

AND BEHIND THE SCENES, I'VE BEEN HAVING SOME CONVERSATIONS WITH SOME PEOPLE AND SAYING, JUST HOLD TIGHT.

AND LET ME SEE WHERE THIS GOES. AND THIS IS, THIS IS GOING TO MAKE SOME PEOPLE HAPPY.

OKAY. ALL RIGHT. WE WILL, WE WILL ADD MORE RESTAURANTS COME HELL OR HIGH WATER.

ALL RIGHT. SO THEN, MR. COMMISSIONER BROOKS, YOU CAN FINISH YOUR THOUGHT AND THEN I'LL.

MY THOUGHTS AREN'T THAT RELEVANT TODAY. I THINK IT LOOKS GOOD.

THANK YOU. AND AS I WAS REREADING THE RED LINE PART, I THOUGHT IF WE COULD MAKE A SMALL ADJUSTMENT TO THE MINUTES FROM LAST TIME, IT SAYS THAT COMMISSIONER BROOKS INDICATED SUPPORT FOR ALLOWING NON DRIVE IN OR DRIVE THROUGH RESTAURANTS IN DISTRICTS WITHOUT AN SUP.

AND I THINK THAT I CAN GO BACK TO THAT. YOU'VE ALREADY VOTED.

I KNOW, I KNOW, BUT THEN I'M LIKE, BUT I DON'T THINK THAT'S WHAT I SAID.

[00:45:02]

BUT MAKE SURE IT GETS IN THIS NEW IF IT IS, IF IT'S WORDING, OKAY, BUT YEAH, I KNOW, BUT NOW IF WE'VE ALREADY VOTED ON IT, BUT I THINK IT LOOKS GOOD THE WAY IT IS, BUT I THINK MY WHATEVER WAS IN THERE WAS INCORRECT NOW THAT I THINK ABOUT IT.

BUT ANYWAYS, ON THIS TOPIC I'M GOOD. YEAH. IT'S.

LET ME IF IT, IT'S NOT CHANGING THE MEANING. IT IS KIND OF A, A, A NEGATIVE, RIGHT. A NON DRIVE IN OR DRIVE THROUGH RESTAURANT AS OPPOSED TO ALLOWING RESTAURANTS WITHOUT DRIVE INS OR DRIVE THRUS.

YOU GET TO THE SAME PLACE LINGUISTICALLY, BUT IT SOUNDS A HECK OF A LOT LESS CONFUSING.

NOT TO BE A GEEK, BUT I THINK PARLIAMENTARILY YOU COULD VOTE TO REOPEN THE QUESTION OF THE MINUTES.

AND IF EVERYBODY AGREES, WE CAN REOPEN THAT AND MAKE A FURTHER AMENDMENT TO THE MOTION.

IS THAT RIGHT? I THINK YES. HOLD ON A SECOND.

I GOT A VOTE. OPEN IT. SORRY, I DIDN'T NOTICE THIS BEFOREHAND.

OKAY. GO AHEAD. MAKE A MOTION. I WOULD LIKE TO MOVE TO REOPEN THE APPROVAL OF OUR MINUTES FROM THE LAST MEETING.

SECOND. SECOND. ANY COMMENTS FROM THE COMMISSION? OKAY. HEARING. SEEING NONE. THE MOTION TO TAKE A VOTE ON THE MOTION TO REOPEN.

SO. COMMISSIONER. YES. COMMISSIONER BROOKS? YES.

VICE CHAIRMAN. MCCURTIS. YES. COMMISSIONER MCCONNELL. COMMISSIONER SHREWSBURY. YES. CHAIR VOTES. YES. SO MY APOLOGIES FOR DOING THIS.

I NOTICED IT BEFOREHAND, BUT THEN I WAS LIKE, THIS SEEMS WEIRD.

BUT THEN, NOW IT IS. HOW WOULD YOU LIKE THAT TO READ, MR. BROOKS? I'M PRETTY SURE WHAT I WAS INDICATING SUPPORT FOR WAS ALLOWING RESTAURANTS THAT WEREN'T DRIVE IN OR DRIVE THRU WITHIN THE PO DISTRICT WITHOUT AN SUP.

SO BASICALLY EXACTLY WHAT IT SAYS HERE, ALLOWING RESTAURANTS IN THE PO DISTRICT THAT WEREN'T DRIVE IN OR DRIVE THRU TYPE FACILITIES.

SO WHATEVER NEEDS TO BE GRAMMATICALLY FIXED IN THERE.

OKAY. THANK YOU. RESTAURANTS WITHOUT DRIVE INS OR DRIVE THRUS IN PO DISTRICTS WITHOUT AN SUP.

YEAH. OKAY. OKAY. I MOVE TO APPROVE THE MINUTES AS AMENDED.

SECOND. AND A SECOND. ANY COMMENTS, QUESTIONS OR CONCERNS? ALL RIGHT. WE'LL MOVE TO A ROLL CALL. VOTE. COMMISSIONER.

NAHUM. YES. COMMISSIONER BROOKS. YES. VICE CHAIRMAN.

MCCURTIS. YES. COMMISSIONER MCCONNELL. COMMISSIONER SHREWSBURY. YES. AND THE CHAIR VOTES YES. SO THE EVENTS ARE EFFECTIVELY AMENDED.

CREDIT. CREDIT TO COMMISSIONER MCCONNELL AND VICE CHAIRMAN MCCURTIS FOR THEIR INTENSIVE KNOWLEDGE OF ROBERT'S RULES OF ORDER.

OH, I'M A LITTLE BIT EMBARRASSED BY THIS, BUT.

ALL RIGHT. AS FOR THE ORDINANCE ITSELF SEPTEMBER 14TH WOULD BE YOUR PUBLIC HEARING ON THE 14TH.

ALL RIGHT. VERY WELL. DO WE NEED ANY DO WE NEED ANY FURTHER VOTES HERE TONIGHT? NO. OKAY. IF YOU'RE OKAY WITH THIS, I'LL JUST MOVE IT FORWARD.

WE'LL MOVE IT FORWARD. ALL RIGHT, WITH THAT, EIGHT UNFINISHED BUSINESS IS CLOSED.

WE CAN MOVE TO ITEM IN THE AGENDA. OTHER BUSINESS.

NONE AVAILABLE UNDER OTHER BUSINESS. WITH THAT, WE MOVE TO ITEM TEN.

[10.A. Township Board update ]

I HAVE A NOTE THAT OUR MEETING IN SEPTEMBER IS ON THE 21ST, NOT THE 14TH BECAUSE OF THE HOLIDAY.

OH, OKAY. ONE IN SEPTEMBER, I THINK. WELL, I THINK WE COMBINED.

I COULD BE WRONG, BUT I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE.

I WILL CHECK THAT. OKAY. I HAVEN'T GONE FIRST.

YOU MIGHT BE RIGHT ABOUT THAT. COMMISSION.

ANY. COMMISSION.

EVERYTHING EXCEPT OUR. OH, YEAH. THERE YOU GO.

OH. OH. OH. SEPTEMBER 21ST. YEAH. SO, YES, YOU HAVE A SEPTEMBER 21ST MEETING.

OKAY. OKAY. OKAY. THANK YOU FOR BRINGING THAT TO MY ATTENTION.

I WOULD HAVE SEEN THAT EVENTUALLY. NO. THAT'S USEFUL.

[00:50:05]

TOWNSHIP BOARD UPDATE. I'M SORRY. I DON'T HAVE ANYTHING FOR YOU TONIGHT.

YOU WERE OUT. THAT MAKES SENSE. TEN. OH, SO I CAN SAY SOMETHING REAL QUICK.

I THINK THE BIGGEST THING THAT WAS RELEVANT TO US IS THE SEEING REZONING WENT TO THE BOARD AND THEY COMMENTED THAT THEY WATCHED OUR MINUTES AND AGREED WITH OUR SENTIMENTS AND DID NOT VOTE IN FAVOR OF THE REZONING.

THAT QUICK. I THINK IT WAS LIKE THE FIRST TIME IT WAS HEARD, BUT LIKE THEY, I, SORRY I DID THAT, I THOUGHT THEY VOTED, BUT MAYBE THEY JUST I'M NOT QUESTIONING YOU OR A BOARD.

I'M JUST LIKE, WOW. AT LEAST IT SEEMED LIKE THEY EXPRESSED SENTIMENT AGAINST IN AGREEMENT WITH OUR DENIAL OF THE REZONING REQUEST. WHAT AGAIN? SO HE WAS THE ONE REALLY CLOSE TO BATH TOWNSHIP THAT WAS TRYING TO READ THE HIGHWAY. YEAH. ON SAGINAW HIGHWAY TO INCREASE THE DENSITY SO THAT HE COULD TURN IT INTO A DUPLEX.

HE WAS HERE? YEAH. BUILD FIRST. ASK LATER. YES.

IF YOU BUILD IT, WE WILL APPROVE. IT'S NOT WHAT WE WERE GOING TO CALL IT.

THANK YOU, COMMISSIONER NAHUM. WITH THAT TEN B LIAISON REPORTS THE ZBA DID NOT MEET.

[10.B. Liaison reports]

AT THE BIGGEST SINGLE PROJECT GOING ON UNDER THE CLIMATE SUSTAINABILITY FUNDING IS AN UPGRADE TO MARSHALL PARK, WHICH, IF YOU DON'T KNOW IT, IS NEXT TO LAKE LANSING SOUTH, THE COUNTY PARK WITH THE PICNIC SHELTERS AND THE BANDSHELL.

JUST NORTH OF THAT IS MARSHALL PARK, WHICH IS A MUNICIPAL TOWNSHIP PARK, BASICALLY A POCKET PARK IN THAT NEIGHBORHOOD.

IT'S GOT A SWING SET. AND THAT NEIGHBORHOOD OFTEN EXPERIENCES FLOODING BECAUSE IT'S GOT THE LAKE ON ONE SIDE AND A WHOLE LOT OF WATER ON THE OTHER. AND SO A BIG CHUNK IS GOING TO COMPLIMENT ROAD WORK BEING DONE IN THAT NEIGHBORHOOD TO CREATE SOME RETENTION AND DETENTION PONDS IN A CASCADING FASHION IN MARSHALL PARK, TO TRY TO SLOW DOWN SOME OF THAT STORM WATER, FILTER IT BEFORE IT GOES INTO THE LAKE. SO SOMETHING THAT COULD EASILY COME BEFORE THE A PLANNING COMMISSION AT SOME POINT.

THE NEIGHBORHOOD SEEMS TO BE EXCITED. THRILLED WITH THE WORK THAT THE TOWNSHIP IS PLANNING.

AND IT'S ALL BEEN THROUGH THE PARK COMMISSION, AND THEY'RE VERY SUPPORTIVE OF IT.

ANY OTHER LIAISON REPORTS? PROJECT UPDATES? NOTHING RIGHT NOW.

ALL RIGHT. AND ANY PUBLIC REMARKS SEEING NO MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC MOVE TO COMMISSIONER COMMENTS.

[13. COMMISSIONER COMMENTS ]

I KNOW THAT A LOT OF FAMILIES REALLY ENJOYED THAT FROM MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP, BUT SURROUNDING COMMUNITIES AS WELL.

I SECOND THAT. IT WAS I CAME OUT WITH SOME OF MY GRANDKIDS AND THEY HAD A BLAST.

AND THE FOOD WAS GOOD AND DRONE SHOW WAS REALLY COOL.

IT WAS IT WAS NICE. AND IT WAS JUST NICE TO SEE PEOPLE OF ALL AGES OUT HAVING FUN TOGETHER FOR SURE.

QUICK COMMENT, QUICK COMMENT FROM YEAH I EMAILED YOU BEFORE I LEFT.

MISTER CHAIR, YOU DON'T HAVE ANYTHING FOR YOUR NEXT MEETING, SO WITH YOUR PERMISSION, I'LL GO AHEAD AND CANCEL THAT.

SEEING NO OBJECTIONS. WHICH MEANS YOU DON'T MEET AGAIN UNTIL SEPTEMBER 21ST.

SO DON'T FORGET, IT COULD BE A BIG DAY. ALL RIGHT, VERY WELL.

WE'LL CANCEL THE 24TH. IF THERE'S ANYTHING ANYBODY WOULD LIKE TO BRING UP AS A DISCUSSION, LIKE PLANNING WISE, SOMETHING FROM THE MASTER PLAN.

SOMETHING YOU THINK WE. HEY, SOMETHING ORDINANCE WE SHOULD BE DISCUSSING.

SHOOT ME A NOTE AND I'LL ADD IT TO THE AGENDA FOR THE SEPTEMBER 21ST MEETING.

THINGS. I'LL JUST NOTE THAT I DID. YOU PASSED OUT THIS ARTICLE.

I DID TEXT THIS TO YOU EARLIER. I PROBABLY SHOULD HAVE EMAILED IT, WHICH WOULD HAVE BEEN MORE FORMAL, BUT COMMISSION.

YOU DID? I'M SORRY. NO. YES, I DID PASS THAT OUT.

[00:55:03]

IT WAS AN ARTICLE THAT WAS IN THE DETROIT FREE PRESS TODAY, AND I THOUGHT IT WAS VERY PERTINENT TO TO WHAT WE WERE DEALING WITH RIGHT HERE IN THE TOWNSHIP. OKAY. GREG, I CAUGHT IT AND ACTUALLY TEXTED IT TO BRIAN AND THEN THOUGHT LATER THAT I PROBABLY SHOULD HAVE EMAILED IT FOR FORMAL INCLUSION, BUT YEAH, IT'S A LOT OF WHAT WE WERE TALKING ABOUT WHEN IT CAME TO THE GAS STATIONS AND I THINK REFLECTED SOME PUBLIC COMMENT TOO, WHERE IT'S LIKE THERE'S A LOT OF GAS STATIONS AND SOME CITIES.

WARREN AND ROSEVILLE, I APOLOGIZE. WAS THAT SUPPOSED TO BE A NO.

OKAY. NO. OKAY. COMMISSIONER. I BROUGHT THAT HERE.

OH, OKAY. AND I JUST PUT IT ON. OKAY. IT ACTUALLY RAISES A QUESTION.

I DON'T WANT TO. I KNOW EVERYBODY'S TRYING TO GET OUT OF HERE, BUT I HAVE. LOCATIONS THAT ARE DOING MORATORIUMS. IT WAS MY UNDERSTANDING THAT, LIKE, YOU COULDN'T REGULATE THE TYPE OF BUSINESS IF IT WAS ALLOWED IN, IN A PARTICULAR ZONING AREA. SO HOW DOES THAT WORK WHEN YOU'RE PUTTING A MORATORIUM ON THINGS LIKE THAT, IS THAT YOU'RE NOT GRANTING SPECIAL, YOU KNOW, THINGS THAT NEED SPECIAL USE PERMITS OR, AND.

WHAT, WHAT IS THE WISDOM OF LIKE, CAN YOU DO THAT? OR ARE YOU RISKING GETTING SUED IF YOU DO A MORATORIUM? YEAH. ON LIKE A GAS STATION OR A CAR WASH. IT WAS WHAT THIS ARTICLE IS SAYING, THAT SOME COMMUNITIES ARE PUTTING AT LEAST TEMPORARY MORATORIUMS ON NEW GAS STATIONS, NEW CAR WASHES. YOU'RE NOT.

SO YOU CAN DO IT. YOU CAN DO A MORATORIUM. THAT'S NOT SAYING, NO, WE'RE NOT GOING TO LET YOU BUILD THAT EVEN THOUGH OUR ORDINANCE SAYS IT'S ALLOWED. YOU'RE JUST SAYING WE'RE TAKING SOME TIME WHERE IT'S OFFICIALLY OFF THE TABLE, WHERE WE'RE THINKING ABOUT HOW WE'RE GOING TO APPROACH THESE. OKAY. YOU'RE SEEING COMMUNITIES DO THAT WITH DATA CENTERS FAMOUSLY LATELY.

I HAVEN'T SEEN THAT ARTICLE, SO I CAN'T COMMENT ON IT.

I APOLOGIZE FOR NOT OPENING YOUR TEXT MESSAGE.

I WOULDN'T OPEN MY TEXT MESSAGES EITHER, BUT I WILL GET TO THAT, I PROMISE.

BUT. YEAH, A MORATORIUM IS DIFFERENT THAN STAFF SAYING NO TO A, YOU KNOW, A MINI MART, FOR EXAMPLE. AT SOME POINT YOU MIGHT EXPLORE A POTENTIAL CHANGE IN YOUR CODE ZONING CODE TO SAY WHAT KIND OF USE IS ALLOWED AND WHAT KIND OF DISTRICT OR SOMETHING.

OH, SURE. SURE. IF YOU'RE IF THE IF YOU'RE FEELING THAT THERE'S TOO MANY WIDGET STORES GOING IN A PARTICULAR DISTRICT, THEN YOU CAN ALWAYS YOU CAN AMEND YOUR ORDINANCE AND MAKE WIDGET STORES AN S U, P AND GIVE YOU MORE CONTROL.

BECAUSE YOU HAVE THE ABILITY TO SAY NO, WHICH, YOU KNOW, WAS PARTIALLY DEMONSTRATED TONIGHT.

IF YOU, YOU KNOW, SOMETHING COMES IN THAT DOES, IN YOUR ESTIMATION, DOESN'T MEET THE CRITERIA AND THE MAJORITY GOES WITH YOU, THEN YOU CAN, YOU CAN DENY AN SUV. WE'VE SEEN THAT YOU DON'T HAVE THAT ABILITY ON A USE BY.

RIGHT. YEAH. OKAY. COMMISSIONER MCCONNELL. GIVEN OUR GROWING RELATIONSHIP WITH THE CORRIDOR IMPROVEMENT AUTHORITY, IT SEEMS LIKE IT'D BE A GOOD IDEA TO CHECK IN WITH THEM AND MAYBE DDA AND MAYBE OUR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR AND TO SEE TEST THE WATERS AROUND COMMUNITIES THAT MIGHT BE AFFECTED BY A MORATORIUM BEFORE WE BLINDSIDE HIM WITH A.

I MEAN, THE CORRIDOR IMPROVEMENT AUTHORITY MIGHT SAY, YEAH, YOU JUST GAVE US THREE NEW GAS STATIONS.

WE'D BE HAPPY TO DRAW THE LINE THERE. THEY MIGHT SAY, NO, NO, NO, WE DON'T.

WE DON'T WANT MORATORIUMS. I WOULD JUST SAY I SHARE COMMISSIONER SHREWSBURY COMMENTS LIKE, AND I SAID, MR. SHIRKEY, YOU'RE GETTING IT RIGHT. YOU'RE PROBABLY RIGHT. BUT IT JUST FEELS LIKE PUTTING OUT A BLANKET WITHOUT PUTTING A MORATORIUM, WITHOUT AN END IN MIND. AN END IN MIND. YEAH.

YOU BETTER HAVE A REASON. LIKE, HEY, WE'RE GOING TO TAKE SIX MONTHS TO LOOK AT OUR ORDINANCE TO MAKE CHANGES TO BRING IT UP TO DATE.

YOU KNOW, THAT'S, THAT'S FINE IF YOU'RE SAYING SIX MONTHS SO WE CAN GET OUR, YOU KNOW, SO, SO WE DON'T HAVE TO PUT UP WITH IT FOR SIX MONTHS. THAT'S NOT A DEFENSIBLE RIGHT, IS IT? IF WE IF WE BELIEVE IT IS FLOODED, RIGHT. BECAUSE WE'VE APPROVED, FOR EXAMPLE, THREE DIFFERENT GAS STATIONS HERE IN THE SHORT TERM.

RIGHT. IF WE ARE, YOU KNOW, COULD WE SAY, HEY, WE'D LIKE SIX MONTHS FOR SOME SORT OF STUDY TO FIGURE OUT IF WE'RE OVERLEVERAGED OR SOMETHING LIKE VERSUS JUST SAYING WE'RE JUST, WE FEEL LIKE WE HAVE TOO MANY.

LIKE WE HAVE TOO MANY WITH EVIDENCE IS ONE THING VERSUS WE JUST HAVE TOO MANY WITHOUT EVIDENCE TO ME IS ANOTHER THING.

I WOULD ADD THAT I FEEL LIKE WE DO HAVE SOME SUBSTANTIVE CONCERNS ABOUT THE POTENTIAL HEALTH EFFECTS OF GAS STATIONS,

[01:00:02]

THE APPLICANT THIS EVENING MENTIONED A WHOLE LOT OF FEATURES OF BOTH THE FILLING THE TANKS AND DELIVERING FUEL TO CARS, AS WELL AS ANY SPILLS. HE ALSO MENTIONED SOMETHING ABOUT AN ACTIVE VAPOR RECOVERY SYSTEM THAT COULD CATCH AMBIENT GAS SPILLS OR SOMETHING.

IT'S THE FIRST TIME I'VE HEARD OF IT THIS EVENING.

WHERE IS IT? WHERE IS IT ACTUALLY GETTING FUMES FROM? DOES IT SOUND AN ALARM WHEN YOU KNOW, BRINGING AN ATTENDANT OUT TO FIND OUT IF SOMEBODY JUST.

YEAH. SO IT SEEMS LIKE THERE'S A LOT OF THINGS I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW MORE ABOUT HOW GAS, HOW SAFE GAS STATIONS ARE BEFORE SOMEBODY COMES BACK WITH ANOTHER APPLICATION NEXT TO A NEIGHBOR. I'D ALMOST BE INTRIGUED TO INVITE WHOMEVER FROM THIS ARTICLE IS FROM THE, THE, YOU KNOW SOMEBODY I THINK IN THIS ARTICLE, IF I REMEMBER IT REPRESENTED GAS STATIONS. IT WAS THE PETROLEUM COMMITTEE ASSOCIATION, MICHIGAN PETROLEUM ASSOCIATION.

YEAH. BUT IT ALSO MENTIONS THAT EAST LANSING HAS TAKEN A SIMILAR STEP.

AND YEAH, YEAH. SO IT'S A WORTHY READ. MR. SHAWKEY ULTIMATELY IS WHAT I'M SAYING.

WELL, HOW WOULD A MORATORIUM HAPPEN? WOULD THAT BE A WOULD WE HAVE THE AUTHORITY TO DO THAT, OR WOULD THE TOWNSHIP BOARD HAVE A BOARD ACTIVITY? I WAS GOING TO MENTION THAT TO A LOT OF THE COMMENTS IN HERE ARE FROM WHAT WOULD BE THE EQUIVALENT OF LIKE THE WARREN CITY COMMISSION, COUNCIL, WARREN CITY COUNCIL, WHICH WOULD NOT BE OUR VOTE.

ONE. WELL, IT LOOKED LIKE THOUGH IN THIS ARTICLE IT MENTIONED THAT THERE WAS AN UPDATE MADE TO THE ZONE TO THE ORDINANCE, WHICH WE ARE CAPABLE OF PROPOSING TO THE BOARD THROUGH SOMETHING MORE FORMAL IF WE PROPOSE IT TO THE TOWNSHIP BOARD.

YEAH. YEAH. AND I WAS CURIOUS ABOUT A MORATORIUM ON THESE TWO THINGS AS WELL, BECAUSE I REMEMBER TALKING ABOUT THE CAR WASHES BACK IN 2024 WHEN WE HAD MULTIPLE. AND THEN NOW WITH GAS STATIONS, I ACTUALLY THINK WE ALREADY HAVE THE RATIONALE TO PROPOSE MORATORIUM BECAUSE. DID WE GET ANY IN THE PAST THREE THAT DIDN'T HAVE VARIANCE REQUESTS? THAT HAD TO GO IMMEDIATELY TO THE ZBA. AND ONE OF THE REASONS THAT WE UPDATE OUR ORDINANCE IS BECAUSE THE ZBA IS GETTING AN INFLUX OF CASES.

YES, THAT'S TRUE, BUT TWO OF THOSE CASES IS BECAUSE THEY WANT MORE THAN ALLOWED BY RIGHT GAS PUMPS.

SO WHAT STAFF'S CONVERSATION HAS BEEN IS, SHOULD WE BE LOOKING AT AMENDING THE ORDINANCE TO UPDATE THE NUMBER OF GAS PUMPS? WELL, ISN'T THAT THAT'S ALL EVERY SO BUT EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THESE CONVERSATIONS HAVE BEEN ABOUT AMENDING THE THAT THE SITE OR WHATEVER THEY'RE TRYING TO BUILD DOESN'T CONFORM TO OUR ORDINANCE SITE CONFORMS WHAT THEY WANT TO DO DOESN'T THEIR CONSTRUCTION GOES BEYOND THAT.

YOU SEE WHAT YOU SEE THE DIFFERENCE. THIS 7-ELEVEN HAD HAD DIMENSIONAL CONSTRAINTS THAT THEY'RE GOING TO NEED RELIEF FROM ONE OF THEM ANYWAY.

BUT TAILGATERS, THEY THEY WANT THEY JUST WANTED MORE PUMPS AND SO DID SHEETZ.

SO THAT'S THEIR VARIANCE. OKAY. SO THEN THERE'S STILL VARIANCES THOUGH REQUIRED FOR THEM.

IF THEY DON'T GET THOSE VARIANCES ANY THREE OF THESE.

BUILDS. THEY DON'T GET THE VARIANCES THEY CAN'T BUILD.

IF SO, TAILGATERS GOT THEIR VARIANCE AND I'M EXPECTING A SITE PLAN FROM THEM SOMETIME THIS MONTH, I THINK. MY POINT, THOUGH, IS THAT IF THE THREE THAT WE'VE SEEN MOST RECENTLY REQUIRE VARIANCES BEFORE THE ZBA, THEN OUR CODE AROUND GAS STATIONS DOESN'T MEET THE EXPECTATIONS OF THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY COMING TO US.

SO WE CAN RELAX IT. SO THAT WOULD WHAT? BUT FOR THE TWO OF THEM, IT WAS ONLY TO ALLOW MORE PUMPS.

AND WOULD YOU PROPOSE RELAXING THE CODE TO ALLOW MORE PUMPS BY.

RIGHT. OR DO YOU THINK IT'S A GOOD QUESTION TO HAVE THE ZBA.

ANSWER? NO, I THINK I THINK IT'S UP TO US TO ACTUALLY REVIEW THE ORDINANCE, TO SAY, DO WE HAVE THE RIGHT NUMBER OF PUMPS? I THINK I THINK YOU'RE SAYING THE SAME THING.

SHOULD WE CHANGE THE ORDINANCE SO WE DON'T HAVE TO HAVE VARIANTS? YEAH, YEAH. IT'S NOT PROFITABLE TO HAVE WHAT'S IN OUR ORDINANCE, APPARENTLY. AND ALSO, SORRY, I DIDN'T MEAN TO CUT YOU OFF.

NO. AND ALSO, IF WE HAVE A 300 FOOT SETBACK OR WHATEVER, WHY DO WE HAVE THAT.

WHAT IS THE REASON FOR THIS THING? IF WE'RE GOING TO IF WE'RE IF WE'RE GOING TO IGNORE IT BY ALMOST HALF.

[01:05:02]

AND TO ANSWER THE QUESTION, I THINK I HEARD IN THERE, IF THEY DON'T GET THEIR VARIANCES, IT BLOWS UP THEIR SUP BECAUSE THE CONDITION OF THE S P APPROVAL IN BOTH CASES IS THAT THEY HAVE TO GET THEIR VARIANCES.

THEY WOULD HAVE TO COME BACK HERE FOR AN AMENDED SUP IF THEY OR OR JUST PULL THE PLUG ON THE PROJECT.

YEAH. BECAUSE I MEAN LOGICALLY YOU CAN'T PROCEED TO SITE PLAN IF YOU DON'T GET THE VARIANCES AND YOU'RE GOING TO CHANGE THE SITE PLAN.

IF THEY CHANGE THE SITE PLAN THAT THEY SUBMITTED WITH THE APPLICATION, THAT CHANGES THE SVP.

AND IF, IN FACT, THE ISSUE WITH PROXIMITY TO FUMES IS RELATED TO PUTTING GAS INTO CARS, THEN THE MORE PUMPS YOU ALLOW, THE GREATER RISK YOU'RE CREATING.

AND MY GUESS IS JUST THINKING ABOUT WHAT THEY TOLD US THIS EVENING, THAT VERY LITTLE VAPOR IS ESCAPING WHEN THEY'RE REFILLING THEIR TANKS, BECAUSE THAT'S ALL VERY HIGHLY REGULATED WITH PROFESSIONALS AND THEY'RE INSPECTED AND PROBABLY VIDEOTAPED.

BUT SOMEBODY WHO COMES IN AND THE NOZZLE FLIES OUT OF THEIR HAND AND IT LANDS ON THE GROUND.

YOU KNOW, ACCIDENTAL SPILLS PROBABLY ARE WHERE MOST OF IT IS AT FOR OLDER CARS.

MAYBE. BUT CERTAINLY IF IT'S AT THAT FILLING YOUR CAR SPOT, THEN THE NUMBER OF PUMPS, IF THAT'S A PROBLEM, IS GOING TO BE WORSE THAN MORE IS GOING TO BE WORSE THAN LESS.

AND I'M NOT ADVOCATING FOR MORE PUMPS. I ACTUALLY ALSO I'VE ASKED DURING THIS WHOLE THING ABOUT WHAT ARE THE LONG TERM EFFECTS OF HAVING MORE GAS STATIONS, BECAUSE WHAT DO WE DO TO CLEAN THEM UP AFTERWARDS? WE HAVE THIS PRIME LOCATION THAT'S RIGHT NEXT TO WHOLE FOODS, TRADER JOE'S, STARBUCKS, ETC.

NOW WE'RE REMOVING ONE OF THE ONLY LIKE SORT OF LOWER.

TIER HOTEL MOTEL PLACES IN THE WHOLE AREA. AND WE'RE REPLACING IT WITH A GAS STATION WHEN THERE'S A GAS STATION JUST HALF A MILE UP THE STREET.

SO AND WE'RE ALLOWING IT TO GO INTO A PLACE WHERE IT REQUIRES A LARGE VARIANCE AGAINST OUR CODE THAT WE ALREADY HAVE ESTABLISHED.

AND THERE'S RESIDENTIAL USE RIGHT NEXT TO IT.

AND WE TALKED ABOUT ALL OF THIS THE WHOLE TIME.

AND I'M A LITTLE. SO I THINK THERE'S A PLACE TO DO A MORATORIUM ON MORE GAS STATIONS BECAUSE.

BECAUSE WE HAVE HEALTHY DISAGREEMENT. RIGHT. WE HAVE.

YEAH. YEAH. DEMOCRACY. ABSOLUTELY. I MEAN, I NOT TO BELABOR BECAUSE EVERYBODY WANTS TO GET OUT OF HERE, BUT IN SOME WAYS, I VIEW EVERY NEW CAR WASH AS AN UPGRADE TO AN OLD CAR WASH.

AND EVERY NEW GAS STATION HAS AN UPGRADE TO AN OLD GAS STATION.

I THINK THE MORE OF OUR GAS STATIONS ARE NEWER, THE BETTER.

SO I WISH THERE WERE NO GAS STATIONS IN THE WORLD, BUT THAT'S A REALITY THAT WE LIVE WITH.

I GUESS THOUGH, IS THAT WHAT HAPPENS? WELL SHEETZ IS GOING TO KNOCK DOWN A CAR WASH, RIGHT? THAT ONE I WE GOT A BRAND NEW ONE RIGHT UP ON MISTER CAR WASH.

RIGHT? SO. AND YEAH, YOU WANT TO HAVE A RANGE OF HOTEL MOTEL OPTIONS IN THE TOWNSHIP.

WE'VE GOT A WHOLE BUNCH OF REALLY NICE ONES THAT HAVE BEEN BUILT IN THE LAST FEW YEARS.

SWITCH FROM THAT PROPERTY CURRENTLY TO A BRAND NEW 7ELEVEN.

I'D PERSONALLY RATHER LIVE NEXT TO THE 7ELEVEN, BUT THAT'S JUST ME.

I'VE WALKED THAT TRAIL. IT'S SCARY. BUT FUEL STATIONS ON IT. I WOULD SUPPORT A MORATORIUM WHILE WE GET THIS FIGURED OUT.

THAT'S A HEAVY QUESTION, BUT I, FOR LACK OF A BETTER TERM, I'M GOING TO BUTCHER.

HOW MUCH DO YOU HAVE RESOURCES INTERNALLY THAT COULD LOOK AT.

I DON'T WANT TO PHRASE THIS LIKE COMMUNITY OF SIMILAR SIZE.

HOW MANY GAS STATIONS DO THEY LIKE? DO THEY HAVE? BECAUSE I WOULD UNDERSTAND THE INDUSTRY PEOPLE THAT CAME AND WANTED TO BUILD THESE. THEY'VE DONE SOME RESEARCH, THEY'VE DONE THE RESEARCH AND FIGURED OUT THAT THIS WORKS ECONOMICALLY FOR THEM. BUT NOW WE'RE TAKING A MACRO LOOK AT, OKAY, IF THIS IS WHAT'S COMING BEFORE US, IF WE WANT TO, IF WE WANT TO THINK ABOUT A MORATORIUM, I WOULD JUST LIKE A COMPARISON POINT OF WE ARE OF THE SAME NUMBER OF PUMPS AS WE USED TO WORK IN HOLLAND, IOWA. PIC HOWELL. HERE WE ARE LIKE HOWELL OR WE ARE LIKE ONE OF THESE OTHER, YOU KNOW, YOU WANT SOME COMPARISONS. YEAH. AND YEAH.

COMMISSIONER SHREWSBURY. I WOULD ALSO, I THINK SIMILAR TO WHAT COMMISSIONER MCCONNELL SAID,

[01:10:06]

AND BECAUSE EVERY SITE THAT WE APPROVE FOR A GAS STATION OR CAR WASH OR A BANK OR WHATEVER IS A SITE THAT IS ESSENTIALLY TAKEN OFF THE MARKET FOR A DIFFERENT KIND OF BUSINESS. SO DO THEY HAVE A WHAT IS THEIR PLAN FOR DEVELOPMENT IN THE TOWNSHIP AND SORT OF BUSINESS MIX, AND HOW DOES OUR MASTER PLAN AND WHAT WE DO AFFECT THAT? YOU KNOW, HOW ARE THEY MARKETING THINGS? WHERE DO THEY SEE BUSINESSES THAT ARE LOOKING TO INVEST IN MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP, OR ARE THEY TRYING TO ATTRACT A CERTAIN TYPE OF BUSINESS? AND IS THERE ANYTHING THAT WE, AS THE PLANNING COMMISSION COULD BE DOING TO SUPPORT AND SUPPLEMENT THOSE EFFORTS? AND THEN ALSO THE CORRIDOR IMPROVEMENT AUTHORITY OR DOWNTOWN DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY, YOU KNOW, THERE'S THERE'S ONLY CERTAIN PLACES THAT CAN HAVE GAS STATIONS AND CAR WASHES, BUT I WOULD HATE TO SEE EVERY OTHER PROPERTY TURNED INTO ONE OF THOSE AND THEN MISS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR ANOTHER DEVELOPMENT THAT THEY'RE TRYING TO WORK ON BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, AND I WOULD ASSUME LIKE THE RESTAURANT THAT GOT TURNED INTO A BANK, IF A RESTAURANT HAD BEEN VIABLE THERE, WE WOULD HAVE GOTTEN A RESTAURANT THERE. SO AND YOU KNOW, THE ONE THAT WAS THERE WOULDN'T HAVE CLOSED. SO I BUT I'D LIKE TO BE SUPPORTIVE OF WHAT THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT TEAM IS TRYING TO DO, AND MAKE SURE THAT OUR COMMUNITY DOESN'T TURN INTO A CORRIDOR FULL OF GAS STATIONS AND CAR WASHES AND SORT OF A DRIVE THROUGH PLACE.

I'D LIKE IT TO CONTINUE TO HAVE THE SPIRIT THAT WE THINK OF AS MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP AND KIND OF WHAT DO WE DO TO TRY TO BUILD ON THAT AND COMPLEMENT IT OTHER THAN, RATHER THAN SEE IT TURN INTO LIKE A SIX LANE ROAD? SURE, SURE. A THOUGHT IF YOU DON'T WANT IT TO WHICH YOU SAID JUST TRIGGERED SOMETHING.

I DON'T KNOW IF. WHAT ABOUT A MINIMUM DISTANCE RADIUS? I SAW THAT WITH OTHER LAND USES, THERE WAS A ONE OF THAT ONE OF THE STORIES IN THE ARTICLE MENTIONED THAT.

OH DID IT. YEAH. THAT OKAY. THEY COULDN'T SITE IT WITHIN X NUMBER OF.

YEAH. YEAH. EXISTING. I'LL LOOK AT THAT. THAT'S A POSSIBILITY IF YOU DON'T WANT THEM.

NEXT, IF YOU IF YOU'RE AFRAID OF THEM SHOWING UP NEXT DOOR.

I KNOW SHEETZ AND TAILGATERS IS KIND OF CLOSE.

BUT YOU CAN LOOK AT THAT. DO YOU WANT GAS STATIONS AS A DISCUSSION ITEM ON SEPTEMBER 21ST? I MEAN, I MEAN, DO YOU FEEL LIKE IF WE'RE TALKING ABOUT A MORATORIUM, I THINK WE WOULD HAVE TO HAVE SOME FURTHER.

ARE YOU AS A BODY TALKING ABOUT TRYING TO DO THEM? BECAUSE I IT'S HARD TO SAY THAT FOR ME, IT'S LIKE IT'S THIS IS HARD TO PREDICT HOW MANY MORE OF THESE KIND OF BUSINESSES ARE GOING TO COME FORTH. THEN IF THEY GET OUT, IF.

EXACTLY. SO IF I COULD PREDICT THE FUTURE AND SAY, WE'RE GOING TO GET FIVE MORE OF THESE THINGS OR FOUR MORE OF THESE THINGS, I'M LIKE, YEAH, WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT THIS BECAUSE THINGS, THINGS HAVE COME IN WAVES SINCE I STARTED HERE.

AND THE FIRST WAVE WAS STORAGE FACILITIES. YEAH.

AND YOU SAW 1 OR 2 OF THOSE. BUT BELIEVE ME WHEN I SAY WE HAD A LOT OF CONVERSATIONS BEHIND THE SCENES WHERE WE TOLD PEOPLE, YOU'RE NOT BUILDING THAT THERE BECAUSE THEY WEREN'T ALLOWED IN THE.

WE ACTUALLY HAVE PRETTY STRICT REQUIREMENTS ON WHERE STORAGE FACILITIES GO.

THE NEXT WAVE AFTER THAT WAS CAR WASHES. YEAH.

CAR WASH. WE HAVEN'T HAD CAR WASH REQUESTS IN A WHILE.

THE CURRENT WAVE SEEMS TO BE GAS STATIONS. AND BELIEVE ME WHEN I SAY WE'VE HAD CONVERSATIONS WITH PEOPLE WHERE YOU DON'T WANT TO TRY TO REZONE THAT PROPERTY FOR A GAS STATION. I'M NOT GOING TO TELL YOU WHERE OR HOW MANY TIMES, BUT I YOU'VE SEEN THREE WHERE IT'S ZONED COMMERCIALLY ALREADY.

WE HAVE TALKED TO MORE PEOPLE ABOUT THAT, BUT I HAVEN'T TAKEN THAT CALL IN A WHILE.

SO MAYBE WE'RE SEEING THE END OF THAT WAVE. I GUESS ULTIMATELY LET'S ADD IT AS A DISCUSSION ITEM ON THE FORUM FIRST.

OKAY. OKAY. I WILL LISTEN TO THESE MINUTES AND I'LL SEE IF THERE'S SOMETHING I CAN PARSE OUT OF THIS FOR A MEMO.

I JUST I MEAN THAT NICELY. I'M NOT TRYING TO.

NO, NO. YOU'RE GOOD. NO, I WILL OFFER THAT. THESE COME IN WAVES.

MY THOUGHT IS THAT BECAUSE OF PRIVATE INVESTMENT.

SO CAPITAL HAS TO HAVE SOMEWHERE TO FLOW. CAR WASHES THE SUBSCRIPTION MODEL.

IT'S A WAY TO MAKE MONEY. AND THERE'S PROPERTIES THAT CAN BE GARNERED TO USE THAT.

GAS STATIONS WITH CONVENIENCE STORES ARE ONE OF THOSE THINGS THAT ARE CURRENTLY HAPPENING.

THERE'S A BOOK CALLED MARKET CRAFTERS, WHICH IS ABOUT HOW GOVERNMENTS HAVE BASICALLY STRUCTURED MARKETS TO SUPPORT DIFFERENT INDUSTRY GROWTH

[01:15:10]

WE HAVE PLANNING COMMISSION IN ORDER TO STRUCTURE THE GROWTH THAT WE WANT TO SEE.

SO I THINK THE QUESTION IS MORE IT'S NOT WE CAN'T PREDICT THE FUTURE.

WE DON'T KNOW WHAT CAN WE INCENTIVIZE THE KIND OF GROWTH IN THE COMMUNITY THAT WE WANT? SO IF OUR STRATEGIC PLANNING DOCUMENT DESCRIBES A COMMUNITY THAT HAS WALKABLE PATHS AND INFILL DEVELOPMENT, ETC., THEN DO THIS. DOES OUR CODE SUPPORT THAT CURRENTLY? IN MY MIND, WHEN WE LOOK AT THE SPEEDWAY EXAMPLE, THE PATH THAT WAS PUT IN LEADS DIRECTLY TO THE BACK DOOR OF THE SPEEDWAY, WHICH IS INCENTIVIZING THE SPEEDWAY, THE 7-ELEVEN, 7-ELEVEN, 7-ELEVEN, BUT NOT THE WALKABILITY OF MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP. I THINK IT'S BOTH. BUT AS A MATTER OF ARGUMENT.

YEAH. I'VE LONG SUSPECTED THAT THE REASON THESE COME IN WAVES IS BECAUSE SOME MARKET ANALYSIS FINDS AN UNMET DEMAND, AND SEVERAL PEOPLE DETECT THAT AND THEY START LOOKING TO EXPLOIT IT.

THEY DON'T KNOW ABOUT EACH OTHER UNTIL THE FIRST ONE LANDS HERE, AND THE OTHER ONE GOES, OH BOY, I'VE GOT TO HURRY UP AND GET AND BUY THE THIRD ONE.

I DID THAT WAVE IS GOING TO CONTINUE TO BUILD BECAUSE THERE'S STILL FIVE MORE PEOPLE OUT THERE WHO MISSED THE FACT THAT WE JUST DID THREE.

AND IF THAT'S THE CASE, THEN A DELAY, A MORATORIUM CAN BREAK THAT WAVE.

YEAH. SO YOU WANT TO BUILD GAS STATIONS, SO THAT'LL GO SOMEWHERE ELSE AND DO IT.

I CAN'T SEE ANYBODY ARGUING TOO HARD WITH NO MORE ON GRAND RIVER.

RIGHT. WE IF YOU'RE THINKING ABOUT PUTTING A GAS STATION ON GRAND RIVER, DON'T COME TO US FOR.

I THINK THE BOARD WOULD SUPPORT THAT IN A FLASH IF WE SAID NO MORE GAS STATIONS.

THEY MIGHT SAY, WELL, WHAT ABOUT SAGINAW? WHAT ABOUT LOTS OF PLACES WHERE THERE COULD BE WOULD BE A HARDER SELL? AND THAT'S WHY I'M THINKING ABOUT THE CORRIDOR IMPROVEMENT AUTHORITY. I SOMETHING TELLS ME IF THEY'RE INTO MASS TIMBER, THEY'LL BE INTO NOT ENOUGH GAS STATIONS ON IT.

SO, MR. KIRK, DO YOU HAVE WHAT YOU NEED TO. SURE.

OKAY. AND WE STUMBLE OVER. WELL, WAIT. DO YOU ARE WE SAYING THAT WE WANT TO HAVE A DISCUSSION ABOUT THIS ON SEPTEMBER 21ST? I WILL LISTEN TO THIS. I WILL SEE WHAT I'VE GOT A COUPLE QUESTIONS YOU WANT ME TO LOOK INTO.

YOU WANT TO SEE SOME KIND OF COMPARISON WITH OTHER COMMUNITIES AND TRY TO COUNT GAS STATIONS? I'LL TALK TO OUR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR.

I'LL START THERE. AND HOW CAN THAT'S A BIGGER THAT'S A DIFFERENT CONVERSATION.

BUT HOW CAN WE SUPPORT WHATEVER THEY'RE TRYING TO DO? I WILL POINT OUT THAT TAILGATERS IS GOING ONTO A VACANT PROPERTY AND IS AN INFILL DEVELOPMENT BY DEFINITION.

AND SHEETZ. YES, THE CAR WASHES IS OPERABLE, BUT THAT VERIZON STORE HAS BEEN VACANT FOR A LONG TIME.

SO YOU BRING IN VIABILITY TO A CLOSED PROPERTY.

I'M NOT GOING TO COMMENT ON 7-ELEVEN. COULD YOU HAVE A CONVERSATION WITH SOMEBODY IN EAST LANSING ABOUT THEIR MORATORIUM? SURE. CAN I GET THAT ARTICLE? I GOT YOU. OKAY.

YES. I BELIEVE WITH THAT, WE CAN MOVE TO ADJOURNMENT IF WE HAVE NOTHING.

SECOND. SO I BELIEVE THAT'S IT. I'LL TAKE THE MOTION.

WE HAVE A MOTION. AND SECOND. WE HAVE A MOTION.

WE HAVE A SECOND. ALL IN FAVOR? AYE. AND OPPOSED? WE ARE CLOSED.

* This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.