Planning Commission Meeting — 2025-06-19

Detailed briefing

Planning Commission — June 19, 2025 • The commission proceeded despite the current absence of a City Council representative. The city attorney’s written opinion said the commission may act if the members present satisfy quorum requirements and follow the Michigan Planning Enabling Act and commission bylaws. Members said they were comfortable continuing. • The May 15 and June 5 meeting minutes were approved by voice vote without stated opposition. • A special land use was approved by roll-call vote for a new shop building on vacant property next to Walstrom Marine’s storage yard. The applicant, Walstrom Dock and Dredge, said the building would store equipment and some completed dock sections outdoors. The approval requires visitor parking to be moved from the front of the building to its side or rear. Staff reported that the proposal otherwise met the reviewed special land use, site design, stormwater and septic-related requirements. • Commissioners discussed informal pre-application meetings between prospective applicants and city staff. Staff said these meetings range from questions about decks and garages to early discussions of large projects, but do not grant approvals. Commissioners generally supported keeping the current process rather than requiring a public list of every informal meeting. Some public commenters asked for greater transparency and earlier neighbor involvement. • In the zoning-code review, commissioners treated maintaining Harbor Springs’ character and protecting property owners’ rights as principles to consider. Article 10 was treated as complete for now, although it can still be revisited. The commission directed that the separate condo-hotel development section be removed because members believed other provisions could address those projects and some requirements would be burdensome to administer. • Preliminary dimensional directions included a 35-foot maximum height with no story limit for industrial and community districts, and a 30-foot maximum for the commercial waterfront district without roof-height averaging. Current mobile-home-park dimensions were retained. Members favored combining B1 and B2 business areas below the bluff while keeping B2 above the bluff, but permitted uses still need review. Central business district height, ROS lot coverage, R2 standards and multifamily residential standards remain unsettled. Worth watching: • Staff will review whether the ROS district’s 90% lot-coverage allowance should be reduced. • Staff and consultants will return with central business district design and height analysis, including the relationship between street width, setbacks and a possible “canyon” effect. • Residential dimensional standards, including percentage-based side setbacks, still require decisions. Upcoming: Planning Commission meetings were scheduled for July 17 and July 31; a revised pending special use application is expected on the July 17 agenda. Why it matters: The dimensional rules now under review will shape future building scale, property flexibility, waterfront views and neighborhood character.

No open public follow-ups are linked to this meeting yet.