The Leighton Township Planning Commission could be accused of kicking the can down the road, but members insist there are good reasons.
The commission voted unanimously after a public hearing Thursday night to table for a second straight time a request to approve conditional rezoning for a scaled-down apartment complex on the east side of Division Avenue near 12th Street.
A motion to approve the rezoning did not earn a second. The same happed to a motion to deny, leading commissioners eventually to table the issue. Members insisted they first need legal advice from Township Attorney Cliff Bloom and they want to see what the new township master plan looks like.
So, they reasoned, they aren’t properly prepared to made a definitive decision.
GRI Moline, developer of the residential project, first proposed the matter in 2023, but township officials turned it down because of its potential negative impact. GRI first suggested a 320-unit apartment complex at the site by getting getting approval to rezone the parcel from agricultural to R-3 residential.
But GRI came back to the Planning Commission last month with a scaled-down proposal for 248 units and conditional zoning, which would limit the project to the 248 units and make them all residential on the 57-acre parcel.
There was about 50 citizens present in the audience at the hearing, and though only a few spoke to the commission, it was clear they opposed the project. The reasons were increased traffic, more pressure on infrastructure and services, concerns about property values and preservation of the rural agricultural character of the township.
However, as Commissioner Steve Shoemaker said, “Growth in Leighton Township is inevitable” because it is conveniently located between Grand Rapids and Kalamazoo along the U.S.-131 expressway corridor.
One observer claimed that adding another housing development transfers living costs from newcomers to the residents already here.
Jim Gort said it’s hard enough for local motorists to get in and out of Division (10th Street) and he wasn’t fond of prospects of more congestion.
Gary Dykstra said he’s not happy about prospects of newcomers trespassing on his property. He also expressed concern about the added population’s impact on the local school systems.
Jessica Weers flatly commented, “We moved here because we wanted to live in the country.”
Fern O’Beshaw, who serves on the Dorr-Leighton Wastewater Commission said the connection fee for each hookup to the wastewater plant would be $4,038 per residence for a total bill of more than a million dollars.
But Shoemaker noted the infrastructure study indicated the wastewater plant can handle the extra load.
Trisha Anderson of engineers Williams & Works said the developers indeed have scaled back from their original request from almost two years ago. They have given up control over what they can do on a parcel zoned R-3, confining it to residential and 248 units.
She added that it’s her understanding that the developer eventually will take the issue to Circuit Court if the Township Board and Planning Commission reject it.
But in the end, commissioners opted for kicking the can down the road one more time.
Matt Vandereide explained that is critical for a decision to be made under the guidance of the township attorney, for it to be delayed until the master plan is completed, and perhaps another traffic study is warranted after the first one was conducted in November 2022.
So the matter will be taken up again in the Planning Commission’s December meeting. The commission eventually must make a recommendation to the Township Board, which will accept or reject the project.
