The Board of Zoning Appeals approved dimensional variances to permit reconstruction of a parking area at 1440 Front Avenue Northwest that fronts the Grand River, including permission to place parking within the defined front yard, to exceed the ordinance maximum number of spaces, and to eliminate required landscape screening along the riverfront.

Planner Rowan told the board the hatched portion of the parking area was the only section proposed for replacement and that, because reconstruction would affect more than 25% of the lot, the work triggers loss of nonconformity protections and required BZA review. Rowan said the applicant proposes to reconstruct parking in ‘‘a very similar manner as it exists today’’ and that ordinance limits for front-yard replacement created in the August 2025 amendment do not apply because this proposal exceeds the cap.

Planning staff observed the property is in a historic industrial warehouse area and predates the current ordinance language. Richard Craig of Craig Architects said the site faces unique constraints: ‘‘This is a former railroad track that used to be along the river there. And it's contaminated soil. So there's an agreement with the city that they're gonna keep that covered. So any kind of landscaping is basically in violation of that agreement, because they're they're basically keeping the gases down below the parking area.’’ That contamination-management agreement, staff and the applicant said, limits the practicality of installing the screening strip that the code would otherwise require between parking and the river.

Craig said the building supports roughly 30 workers plus 20 office staff in some configurations, with two shifts and overlap that create peak parking demand. Staff and board members discussed surrounding uses including the Department of Transportation parcel to the south and a recently relocated Streets and Parks department operation next door; speakers noted that shared parking arrangements with neighboring public entities are not guaranteed.

Board members voted to grant the requested variances without requiring the full landscape buffer, citing the site’s contamination agreement and the building’s long-standing configuration. The board’s motion and discussion emphasized the goal of allowing property owners to maintain and upgrade existing, heavily used lots without imposing requirements that could discourage maintenance.

Ending: With the variances granted, the applicant may proceed with reconstruction subject to any permit-level conditions; staff said they would document the environmental constraints and the BZA’s decision in the permit record.

Proper names: 1440 Front Avenue Northwest; Grand River; Craig Architects; City of Grand Rapids; Department of Transportation.