VBT planners send opinions on BYC dock to BZA for March meeting

After an hour-long discussion on Feb. 8, the Van Buren Township Planning Commission sent its opinions on the special exception requested of the Board of Zoning Appeals for the Belleville Yacht Club dock.
The BZA was due to meet Feb. 14, but the meeting was canceled and it will meet March 14. Both the planning commission and the BZA met in January to discuss the docks and both postponed action until the planners could give their opinions to the BZA members. Then the BZA would decide whether to allow the BYC to build their docks three times the length allowed into Belleville Lake. Then, the BYC could present its site plan for review by the planning commission.
On Feb. 8, Director of Municipal Services Ron Akers filled in for Planning and Economic Development Director Dan Power, who was ill.
Director Akers said the planners needed to review and comment on the special application postponed from the last meeting to help the BZA with its decision.
Akers said this is the first special exception request the township received since the Shoreline Ordinance was enacted in 2016. He pointed out that 25 items were discussed in the staff report.
He said the planners are asked to comment to help the BZA decide on the length of the dock.
Forty feet is allowed by the ordinance and the BYC wants 120 feet.
At this point, Commissioner Medina Atchinson said that her husband and she are members of the BYC. She said she talked with the township attorney and he said she could vote on the BYC issue.
Commissioner Atchinson said she is a member of the community and member of the planning commission and her job is to make decisions for the whole community. She said she wants to “retain myself” and vote.
Commissioner Brian Cullin made a motion to allow her to vote on this issue and Commissioner Bernie Grant seconded the motion. The motion was passed unanimously. However, there were no votes on the issue at the meeting, only discussion.
In presenting a revised site plan for discussion and review, applicant Scott Jones spoke on behalf of the BYC plans, noting there is a 100 foot no-wake zone around the dock and the busiest days of the lake are also the busiest days at the dock. He showed the lights that will be put on the docks.
Jones said there is 518 feet of water in the lake between the no wake zones. He said the narrowest point is at Potter Drive, 700 feet to their west, where it is 400 feet.
“We believe we’re not impeding the safety of the lake,” Jones said. He noted that the DNR proposed extending its dock at its launch site next door to the BYC and putting in a jetty to break up the wake. He said it has been approved, but is waiting for funding.
Jones said the BYC is a non-profit 501c7 and if the club dissolved, the money would be distributed to a lake charity and no member of the club would personally benefit.
The discussion began when Commissioner Grant asked in regard to the 518 feet, “How do you feel it’s safe?”
Jones said that is not the narrowest on the lake, the 400 feet to the west is, and, “That’s safe as well.”
Grant said in the community there is concern about safety.
Jones said in Florida the intercoastal waterway is narrower than 500 feet.
Commissioner Callie Barr said they need a little bit more information on the safety. She asked if there were studies and something that takes a look over time. She said they shouldn’t be making assumpions over safety. And, this is a private club.
Commissioner Barr said that at the last meeting with the commission, Jones represented that women are members. Jones replied there are seven voting members and no one is kept out by the bylaws. He read a portion of the bylaws that said they do not discriminate.
Barr said women have told her they have been unable to join the BYC. She asked if now she can tell them to apply because they can. He did not reply.
Jones said they have no fueling or repairs and they are trainient docks for the club’s members.
Commissioner Cullin said the 120 feet was his concern. He looked at it from the DNR launch site next door. He said he is not a boater, but people don’t know what to do on the lake and do not observe the 100 foot no-wake zone. Cullin said 40 yards is half a football field and it is two football fields across. A quarter of the lake would be taken up with dock. Jet skis sliding by there. “That 120 feet is my concern,” Cullin said.
Barr asked if the BYC has considered a shorter dock length.
Jones said that is for 16 boats and that is what they need and actually they need more.
Grant said if the BZA gives an extension, it goes to EGLE (the state department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy), who potentially could deny the permit. There is a comment period for residents, he said. They are the one who design the docks. He asked Akers if that is correct and Akers said that is accurate.
Atchinson asked if it goes to both EGLE and FERC, too.
Akers said they are looking into that.
Cullin said the shoreline property belongs to the township and the water belongs to the state, “How can it be private?”
Akers said it is a privately owned dock. Under it is the township property they are allowed exclusive use if maintained.
The meeting then opened to public comment:
• Alisha Goodman of E. Huron River Drive said she is a neighbor to the BYC and appreciates the beautiful facility, but safety is an issue for her. She worries about her granddaughter and doesn’t use the lake on weekends. She said a traffic study is needed. If it kept one person from dying it would be worth the cost.
• Chris Donley of W. Huron River Drive said he is an avid boaters and probably uses the lake more than anybody else. He said that area is the trickiest area at the DNR launch site, with people waiting to reenter. He said the new BYC dock will help push the boats out away from shore. He said people are thumbing their nose at the law and it’s happening all over the lake. He said in 1998 and 2004 the DNR asked to extend their docks and it was approved by the MDEQ (now EGLE) and now they are trying to find funding. “We’re just asking for the same kind of courtesy,” he said.
• Michele Montour of E. Huron River Dr. said she disagrees with Jones that 518 feet of water is safe. She said it is not safe for two boats pulling tubes. She goes out onto the lake with her dog and anything out into the lake you have to go around. It’s a huge safety issue, she said. She asked if they had contacted the police for their input. She said it is not a gated lake. It’s for everyone.
• Corey Gibson of E. Huron River Dr. said when Donley introduced himself he left his BYC membership off his resume. He said they should get an official survey, since different numbers are coming up. He said it’s up to the requestor to provide a survey. And the DNR traffic studies referred to change over 20-30 years. He said EGLE is waiting for direction from the township. He said this is the only lake with restrictions in the state. He read part of the Ridenour letter that was printed in the Independent, noting the writer was on the committee that set up the 40 foot restriction. He suggested the township reconvene the lake committee. He said he appreciates what the BYC does for the community but this dock will benefit only the club. “I stand opposed to 120 feet.”
• Angela Mears of Ryznar Drive said the BYC wanted space for 24 boats, then it was 22, and now it’s 16. She said she would support an 80-foot dock. She also said people on the BYC should not vote on the issue.
• Jeffrey Riggs of Potter Drive said he also has two properties in Van Buren Township. He spoke via zoom. He said he supports the BYC in what they do, but a lot of people are against this and there’s lots of talk on social media. He said it’s one thing to ask for a variance on land, but if this is approved it would set a precedent for other groups. Then it wouldn’t be an all-sports lake. It would be a no-wake lake. He said he had sent a video to commissioners that showed how busy the lake was when the BYC wanted a 140-foot dock off their N. Liberty Street site in the city. That video was taken in October, he said. Then, a few years back they got a stop-work order from the township while they were extending their docks at the present location without a permit. Now, two business days before Christmas, they applied for these docks. He said it would be a 15% reduction in the navigatable channel – for a private club. He said his proposal is to deny the BYC until the DNR extension is build and then match it. He said he finds a lot of danger in the BYC plans. He said he disagrees with having a BYC member on the issue and asked if there were any other BYC members on the planning commission.
“When we see an audience like this, we get excited,” Commissioner Barr said, referring to the large number of people. She said the BZA should not grant a special exception for safety reasons.
“It would be an exception into a public resouce by a private organization,” she said, adding there should be no guess on safety and other would like to build out docks, too.
Commission Vice-Chairman Jeff Jahr said, in answer to Riggs’ question, there is no one else on the commission that is a member of the BYC. He said a commissioner would be required to say he or she was on the BYC, if that was the case.
The commission then paused its meeting briefly while the BYC members filed out.
In other action, the commission:
• Welcomed new commissioner Jackson Pahle who takes the place of Bryon Kelley who now is a township trustee;
• Approved the final site plan for the DTE Morton Substation at 42061 Ecorse Rd. It was noted that Wayne County’s only outlying item for the project is the sidewalk bridge;
• Approved the final site plan for the Chahal Semi Truck Repair Facility at 6100 Schooner Dr., which includes an 8,320 square foot truck and trailer repair building with a truck well and site improvements. Joe Davenport said the 36” storm sewer outlet that was lost has been found;
• Approved extension for a year of the final site plan approval for Metro Park Party Store Gas Station and Fuel Pumps. Timothy Shammas and Andy Shina were present on behalf of owner Side Park, Inc. who will add a gasoline filling station to an existing shopping center. Shina explained there had been issues since the site plan was approved April 14, 2021. He said Wayne County lost their plans and they had to make new ones. Then it took 11 months for approval. They have an extension from the county, he said, and they hopefully will start work by April;
• Removed from the agenda an extension for the final site plan for Jiffy Lube Minor Vehicle Service until officials for the project can be present. This 3,064-square-foot building is located on a Meijer outlot at 44475 Tyler Rd. Approval was granted on May 12, 2021;
• Discussed revisions to the Rules of Procedure with adherence to the state’s enabling acts, which includes the Pledge of Allegiance at the beginning of each meeting and to adjust the placement of the annual election of officers within the agenda of the first regular business meeting of December each year. The commission unanimously approved the rules. They will be sent on to the township board for approval;
• Agreed to put a new election of officers on the next agenda, based on the recent vacancy of the planning commission chairman; and
• Postponed to the next meeting discussion of the draft EV ordinance.