‘Project Pancake’ gets site plan approval for phase 1 on Smith Farm

ACS Michigan will be testing Subaru automotive prototypes at its new facility on the 75-acre Smith Farm in Denton and that’s why it needs a six-foot chain link fence on the outside of its 10-foot berms with trees on them around the project.
“We don’t want people snooping around with telephoto lenses, sitting on top of the berms,” said Jerry Philo, an architect working on the automotive research and development facility that formerly was referred to with the code name “Project Pancake” for confidentiality.
At its Aug. 8 meeting, the Van Buren Township Planning Commission unanimously gave site plan approval for phase one of the construction at the former Harold Smith Farm at 50015 Michigan Avenue.
Philo said there will be no durability testing on the site, but there will be a low-speed test area.
Gary Tressel, senior associate of Hubbell, Roth & Clark consulting engineers, said they plan a 70,000 square foot, two-story building for research and development.
He said plans for drains have been submitted to Wayne County. Tressel said the Denton Drain crosses the site. He said it was built in 1917 and is not functional and mostly collapsed, with water having to go uphill to enter the drain.
“We have requested from the township and the county to vacate the drain,” Tressel said, adding they will take water in another way to the north to join the drain.
Philo said the project has not been closed on. He said that won’t happen until the owner knows what will be built on the property.
Ron Akers, VBT Director of Planning and Economic Development, said this project has been under way in the township for more than a year. There was the amendment of the Master Plan from residential to light industrial for the property, then the rezoning with conditions, two neighborhood meetings and then the development agreement was approved by the township board on July 17 so they can get in the ground before winter.
He said the development agreement doesn’t waive the standards but moves the project along. In exchange they will pay about $300,000 in a performance bond to make sure the trees are in place for screening.
Akers said the site plan approval gives the township the ability to issue building permits. He said because of the scope of the project it has been split into two phases. Phase one covers the mass grading, building foundation and shell, detention basin, berms, and soil erosion.
Philo said the parking spaces are less than those required by the township, but they have found the number is more than adequate in their other facilities, according to their figures.
He said they will have a small garage to store special vehicles and a small building for tire storage. He said actually the building will be 63,500 square feet, including the mezzanine area. There will be 100 employees to begin with and this is expected to grow to 150 in the future. He said if they need more parking they have lots of space to add on spaces.
When Commissioner Jeff Jahr asked about why they needed refrigerated storage at the site, Philo explained.
He said a refrigerated unit the size of a shipping container will be moved from Subaru’s Ann Arbor location and put next to the 28’ high facility at the Van Buren Township location so prototypes can be put into cold temperatures to test emissions. He said it will be colored to match the building.
Comissioner Jahr also asked about why there is no curb on one side of the paved drive on the plans and Philo said water will be allowed to flow off the parking area into swales and then out to the retention pond and eventually to Denton Drain.
Tressel explained that they are having to raise the building, “to get it up so we don’t have water problems.”
Tressel said they have an offshore firm that wants to locate here and it needs to be in by the end of 2019. He said they want to move dirt while the weather is still up.
While McKenna & Associates asked for a berm along the railroad tracks at the rear of the property, Commissioner Jeff Jahr pointed out that township ordinances do not require a berm along railroad tracks.
McKenna also said there was a deficiency of 165 parking spaces, but said that will be dealt with in phase two.
Tressel said they will respond to all review letters from the township, item by item, and, “If we can’t comply we’ll explain why. But, we intend to comply.”
Tressel said they looked at 15 sites in Michigan and Ohio for the right site and this site in VBT is site #15.
“We came to your township administration and they rose to the question,” he said. “So did the county and the EDC.” He said the planners and consultants have been great and they are moving ahead more quickly than anticipated. He stressed the new owner has to be in the building by the end of 2019.
He said they will be back at the Aug. 22 meeting of the planning commission to fully go through the plans.
In other business at the almost two-hour planning commission meeting on Aug. 8, the commission:
• Recommended approval of the rezoning of the eight acres at 9275 Haggerty Road from C-1, General Business, to OT, Office Technology, for US Signal Properties to build a data processing center for IT services and network provider. This goes to the township board for the final decision on the rezoning;
• Recommended special approval to construct a multi-tenant retail building with a drive-through restaurant at the site of 10573 and 10551 Belleville Road, a request by Ra Chiesa Architects. A special approval originally was given in November of 2016 with a different layout. This now goes to the township board for a final decision;
• Approved preliminary site plan for applicant Ra Chiesa Architects’ multi-tenant retail building with a drive-through restaurant at 10573 and 10551 Belleville Road. Also present was Jason Kishmish, one of the owners, who three years ago had just one of the parcels and found he was having difficulty with the size. He was able to get another parcel next door which helped with the layout. And, his original proposed tenant stayed with him;
• Recommended approval of a zoning ordinance text amendment that adds “high-tech, data processing, and computer centers” as a permitted use in the M-1, Light Industrial zoning district. Akers said this is to make sure the township’s zoning ordinance is as up to date as possible for current uses. This now goes to the township board for a final decision; and
• Was introduced to intern Grace Moore who is working in the planning department.