Summary
The Suttons Bay Village Planning Commission's November 13, 2024 meeting agenda followed up on actions taken at the October 9, 2024 regular meeting, where the Commission voted to schedule a public hearing for November 13 on two zoning text amendments (Section 5-3 Bayview Stories and Section 9-13 Wireless Communications). The October meeting also welcomed new Commissioner Michael Campbell, appointed by the Village Council. The November 13 agenda included the public hearings on the zoning amendments, review of Master Plan priorities, discussion of the 2025 budget, and adoption of a 2025 meeting schedule.
Public Comments
At the October 9, 2024 meeting, there was no public comment and no written communications received. No guests were present.
Affordable Housing Initiatives
A Master Plan Priorities memo from Sara Kopriva (Beckett & Raeder) presented a worksheet of housing-related action items for the Commission to prioritize, including considering zoning changes to permit housing for all age groups, streamlining review for workforce housing developments, creating incentive programs for varied housing sizes, mapping priority development areas for workforce/attainable housing, allowing conversion of single-family homes to multi-family units, permitting accessory dwelling units (ADUs) in all districts, allowing an additional ADU per property, limiting short-term rentals in workforce housing districts, and updating PUD regulations to support workforce housing. The Commission was asked to review these items and assign priority (high/medium/low) and timeframe (1, 1-3, or 5 years); no priorities were finalized in the document.
Infrastructure Projects
The Commission addressed a proposed amendment to Section 9-13 (Wireless Communications) to bring the ordinance into compliance with State law (P.A. 110 of 2006, Section 3514), which allows collocation of wireless equipment on an existing tower without requiring a special land use permit, provided specific height, compound size, and compliance conditions are met. Kopriva's memo outlined detailed criteria for tower height (capped at 199 feet), setbacks, visual impact analysis, lighting, architecture, and abandonment/removal procedures. On October 9, the Commission voted (Ayes: 5, No: 0) to schedule a public hearing on this amendment for November 13, 2024.
Other Business
The Commission also voted (Ayes: 5, No: 0) to schedule a public hearing on Section 5-3 (Bayview Stories), which would formally reduce the minimum story requirement in the Bayview District from 1.5 to 1 story, reflecting recent building practice. Staff proposed moving the Planning Commission's regular meeting from the second to the third Wednesday of the month (and shifting the ZBA meeting to the second Wednesday) due to scheduling conflicts; Chair Hetler asked members to review their calendars, with a full 2025 meeting schedule to be provided by the Clerk. The October Zoning Administration Report noted 25 land use permits issued year-to-date, one pending permit, and two driveway permit reviews conducted with the DPW.
Financial Summary
A 2025 budget for the Planning & Zoning department was placed on the November 13 agenda for discussion, covering line items such as planning commission and ZBA per diems, professional planning services, legal fees, zoning ordinance review, printing/publishing, and insurance/retirement contributions; no final budget figures or votes are recorded in the document.
Action Items
Staff and the Commission were to finalize and adopt a 2025 meeting schedule, moving the Planning Commission meeting to the third Wednesday of the month. Commissioner D. Smith requested that height/story limits in the Single-Family Waterfront District and encouragement of ADUs/room rentals be added to a future meeting agenda. The Commission was also tasked with reviewing and prioritizing the Master Plan action items, including numerous housing-related provisions noted above.