Canton planning commission recommends master plan; sends document to township board

The Canton Township Planning Commission voted May 5 to recommend adoption of the township’s comprehensive master plan, known as “Canton’s Vision for Tomorrow,” and send the plan to the Board of Trustees for final consideration.

The recommendation, made by Commissioner Watkins and seconded by Commissioner Singh, passed on a roll-call vote with all commissioners present voting in favor. The motion cited compliance with the Michigan Planning Enabling Act (PA 33 of 2008, as amended) and asked the Board of Trustees to consider adoption.

The public hearing drew comments from neighbors who opposed specifics in the draft plan. Brad Holt of 4138 Hawkesbury Court asked why a cross connection to Hawkesbury appeared in the draft after earlier discussions had removed that requirement. “As far as we can were concerned, this issue’s already been decided, adjudicated, and dismissed,” Holt said during public comment.

Planning staff responded that the reference to a Hawkesbury connection came from aerial review but that staff had investigated neighborhood history and removed the cross-connection language. “Once we did look into that, we saw that that was something that we should remediate. So that was changed,” said Patrick, planning division staff.

Another speaker, Jim Castiva of Ridge Road, urged the commission to remove a proposed neighborhood node at Ford and Beck, saying the location is “a seriously flawed approach” and not appropriate for suburban settings. Commissioners and staff discussed the node concept: planning staff described nodes as one of 20 intersection-based places intended to encourage small-scale, walkable mixed uses rather than corridor-style commercial sprawl. Planning staff said node standards remain guidance in the master plan and would be translated into specific zoning districts later.

Commissioners repeatedly praised the time spent drafting the plan and emphasized that the master plan provides guidance, not zoning changes. Several commissioners noted that detailed zoning rules for each node will be written later and that substantial infrastructure or regulatory hurdles would be required before specific developments could occur at Ford and Beck.

With the commission’s recommendation approved, the plan will be presented to the Board of Trustees for its action; the Planning Commission’s vote was expressly a recommendation rather than adoption. The commission’s packet included a revision removing the Hawkesbury cross-connection language after resident input; staff said further site-specific review would occur if and when a development proposal is submitted for any particular node.

Commissioners thanked planning staff and members of the public who served on task forces and focus groups as the plan was drafted. The planning commission chair noted the item concludes a long process and expressed interest in seeing the first node development built in Canton.