The Wayland City Planning Commission Tuesday night recommended the City Council grant preliminary site approval for Gun Lake Investments’ request for a planned unit development (PUD) at the former Cars2Go empty lot at the corner of Reno Drive and West Superior Street.
The approval was given after the Gun Lake Tribe’s economic arm had to put up with tabling the request last fall. What finally turned the trick was GLI’s scaling down its project for an apartment complex at the site, which could aggravate an already troublesome bottleneck at the traffic light at the intersection, easily the busiest in the city limits.
The proposal originally was for 130 residential units. This time it was 58 units on 2,600 square feet of property in the 10,000 square foot empty lot, which commissioners agreed would lessen the traffic problems at the corner.
The mixed use development proposal was referred to as Phase One of the project, with a Phase Two coming later, according to Urban Planner Adam Rack. The lot currently is zoned B-2 business.
A spokeswoman for GLI told the commission, “We’ve worked hard on adjusting our plan,” since the it was tabled last October.
The site formerly was used by a Chevrolet dealership and a used car dealership. The vacant lot has become something of an eyesore since Cars2Go left, so there was some desirability for a replacement. Furthermore, a lack of affordable housing has been identified as a pressing need in Allegan County.
The GLI reps have agreed to remove parallel parking on Reno Drive and a traffic study already has been done.
The lot will have room for 111 parking spaces, with vehicle access on Reno Drive and on West Superior Street.
Rack said the new housing will answer the need for affordable living spaces by targeting people with rental payments between $500 and 1,400 per month.
Rack added that the apartments will feature a sort of hotel appearance and provide one-, two- and three-bedroom units. The outside appearance will include a brick veneer with wood siding.
Commissioner Anne Tatreau declared, “With the improved landscaping, it will beautify that lot.”
City Zoning Administrator Lori Castello said, “It think it (the proposed development) is sized appropriately for that location.”
The lot became vacant when Cars 2 Go abandoned it. That move came after Wayland Chevrolet vacated it more than na decade ago. The lot originally was home to one of the first businesses to leave the Wayland downtown area and set up shop near the U.S.-131 expressway west of town. Dealership owner Lester Herb established the business at that site after his business downtown was destroyed by fire in the summer of 1965.
No fewer than eight representatives supportive of GLI’s proposal indicated the residential development should break ground by the summer of 2026.
A Phase Two development plan later will seek a special use permit for the project.
Final approval is subject to administrative review of the traffic study.
