Dorr Township Planning Commission Vice Chairman Robert Traxler said said it was a good day Monday in Dorr to welcome a new business and the expansion of another.
However, the news isn’t all good, as RPM Machinery LLC, the Case equipment dealer, has announced it is closing its doors at the end of this month.
The expansion is of Tool & Die Inc. on Commerce Drive, which gained site plan approval for expansion of 8,000 square just to the south of its current facility. A representative said the move won’t create new jobs, but it will allow for better accommodation of machines and presses.
The only condition not met in the proposal was for parking, which by ordinance requires three more spaces, but Kirk Scharphorn Jr. of Professional Code Inspections said it isn’t necessary.
“I think there’s more than adequate parking space as it is now,” he told planning commissioners.
“It’s so good to see a business startup with a good plan succeed,” Traxler commented.
It was noted that the operation now has eight employees. Tool & Die came to Dorr a couple of years ago after the Wayland City Council turned down a proposal to have it come into a location near the Michigan State Police post on North Main Street.
The vote for site plan approval was unanimous.
Later in the meeting, Chairman Bob Wagner recused himself from deliberations and voting on a request for a special use permit for bilingual day care center at 1743 142nd Ave.
Eric and Maria Isabella Blair asked for the permit for facility for up to 50 children that would include five classrooms and six teachers. The center would have between five and ten employees, some part-time.
Isabella Blair said she has been running a five-star day care center in Byron Center and noted, “There is great demand for (pre-kindergarten) day care for families… I get calls all the time and I already have a few clients who live in Dorr.”
She said the center will be open from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday and there is hope it can open in the spring.
Scharphorn indicated there appears to be no problems with the proposal, saying, “Everything is all in place… from everything I’ve looked at, everything is fine.”
Traxler added, “Having a bilingual day care program here is really neat. These kids can pick up a second language very quickly.”
The vote to approve the special use request was 6-0 with Wagner abstaining because of a potential conflict of interest.
