Planning Commission Agenda, 2026-01-22

Submitted by whitemice on Wed, 01/21/2026 - 11:09

The municipal agenda for the Planning Commission meeting on 2026-01-22 is 👉here👈

1319 Division Ave S

This is a Special Land Use (SLU) request to operate a vehicle repair facility within a Traditional Business Area (TBA). Auto-oriented uses within the TBA zone require SLU as the intent of a TBA zone is to establish a commercially active and pedestrian and transit friendly area.

The property in question was previously a vehicle service station, a use which had ceased sometime prior to 2006. A second-floor was added to the existing structure in 1967 as office space but was at some point converted to a residential use; the date of that conversion is not known. The residential unit on the second floor has been certified as a rental dwelling since 2024. The residential unit is currently occupied and it is the intent of the owner that the unit will remain.

Aside: Right to a use, such as to operate as a auto service center, expires upon one year of inactivity. Thus the existing use of the site is only of historical note and does not carry forward.

Aerial

 Zoning

The existing property is 0.26 acres (11,664sq/ft); the existing ordinance recommends that vehicle service uses be on sites of at least one (1) acre.

There are two plans which speak to the intended "future use" of the property: the 2024 Master Plan and the 2020 South Division Corridor Plan.

The current 2024 Master Plan defines the area as "Neighborhood Center" which is described as: Reinforce a pedestrian and transit-friendly environment in a compact area and promote a mix of small-scale retail, service, entertainment, civic, office and residential uses to enhance the vitality of surrounding neighborhoods.

The South Division Corridor Plan, adopted in 2020, included the desire of residents of the area to see the corridor evolve into a more pedestrian friendly - and less auto-oriented - development pattern. It was expressed by residents that the predominance of auto-oriented uses on the corridor has been inhibiting the further development of the corridor.

"a large number of potential medium-to-small redevelopment sites, many of which are auto repair service and tire shops. Residents have mentioned on several occasions that the presence of these auto-oriented businesses is holding the neighborhood back. As the Corridor transforms over time, many of these auto businesses may transition out of the area to provide space for higher and better uses that help to enhance the neighborhood."

The owner does intend to remove existing chain link and barbed wire fencing which currently exists on the western property line. There is also an intention to install landscaping to buffer the property both from Divsion Ave and adjacent residential uses. However, due to potential contamination from the previous use of the property removal of pavement for the installation of landscape will require coordination with EGLE (Environment, Great Lakes, & Energy).

The parking for the site is primarily in the front of the site, which is prohibited in TBA zones, however this has been the layout of the site since 1934. The residential unit requires two (2) parking spaces, and the vehicle service repair facility will require seven (7) parking spaces, for a total of nine (9) parking spaces. The site provides eight (8) on-site parking spaces creating a deficiency of one (1) parking space. Due to nearby transit service and on-street parking spaces the ordinance does allow the Planning Commission to waive the parking deficiency; yes, that would be a parking waiver for a specifically auto-oriented use. The property is within the walk-shed of both a north and south bound SilverLine station.

Additionally the use would present two service doors facing South Division Ave, which is the property's primary street; service doors facing the street are not required to be oriented away from a public street or residential use. On the other hand, one of the two proposed service doors is pre-existing; then, the proposed use would add a second service door facing the street.

This is an interesting application as it pushes against the spirit of the existing ordinances - possibly more so than any proposal in recent years - while having a long history as the site is currently designed; although the site has been inactive for almost two decades.

1150 Adams Street SE

This is the agenda item rescheduled from the 2025-12-11 Planning Commission meeting.

The application is seeking an amendment to the previously approved Boston Square PRD (Planned Redevelopment District, a form of spot zoning). The PRD is comprised of 12 parcels and totals 7.11 acres. The primary purpose of the amendment is to move a proposed park space and adjust the plan to accommodate twenty two (22) town homes to be constructed in five (five) buildings oriented toward Adams St. The proposal also reduces the project's very generous parking component by sixteen (16) space from the previous 258 to 242.

Aerial

 Zoning

The twenty two (22) townhomes will be Affordable for a household income of 80% the AMI (Area Median Income which is ~$85,000/yr. These twenty two (22) units are ~10% of the Boston Square project's proposed ~207 total units. Habitat Kent, who is developing the town home component, expects to break ground in 2027. Fifty seven (57) rental units - ~28% of the total units - are already under construction. The rental units, which are part of a mixed-use apartment building, are priced at varying levels of Affordability.

Component Description Status
HUB 07 Community Center, ~45,000sq/ft Complete
Kzoo Station Business Incubator Complete
? Retail Incubator Under Construction
? Apartments (Rental), 57 units Under Construction
? 22 Townhouses (For Sale) in five (5) buildings Proposed
? Park Proposed

The estimated cost of the town house development, by the non-profit Habitat Kent, is $11,000,000. This breaks down to $500,000 per 3 - 4 bedroom unit.

The reason for the changes to the PRD, the relocation of the park?

Narrative (PDF)

 Narrative (TXT)

The layout, however, has been reworked to better accommodate the significant grade change of the site, address safety concerns, as well as increase visibility and accessibility to the park. In meeting with City staff, it was recommended that townhomes at the corner of Adams and Fuller switch locations with the proposed park to assuage concerns of southbound Fuller traffic, north of the site, from potentially crashing into the townhomes. This space would instead be the location of the park, which would increase visibility and access to this recreational space, making it more readily available tothe greater community.

Eh? Traffic is too dangerous at the intersection in question for buildings, but put a park there for the community - people - to use? That along side Affordable housing constructed at very significantly higher costs than comparable for-profit market-rate development? After years of tedious process. I have no doubt that the end product of the Boston Square development will be ... fine; yet this project is contending to be an exemplar of all the absurdities that are American Urban Planning. Could we perhaps address the fact that high speed traffic on Fuller Ave is inappropriate in an urban neighborhood? No, we will invite children to play there, after six (6) - now seven (7) - Planning Commission appearances spanning five (5) years. Some days it feels like we have made progress, and some days it feels like nothing has changed.

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