Planning commission postpones Somerset West PUD; asks developer for use, design and phasing details

Troy — The City of Troy Planning Commission on April 22 postponed consideration of the Somerset West concept development plan (PUD021 / JPLN2024-0012) and the preliminary plan for Phase 1A after an extended public hearing and nearly three hours of questions and public comment.

The commission voted to delay at the request of Commissioner Michael Fox, who moved to postpone so the applicant could return with specific commitments and clarifications; Commissioner John Lambert seconded. The motion carried on a roll-call vote (Fox, Tagle, Malala Holly, Lambert, Faison, Krent, Prakas voting yes; Beakner voting no). The applicant is the Forbes Company; the project includes a University of Michigan medical facility proposed on land inside the PUD boundary.

Why it matters: The proposal would reshape the former Kmart/Kmart headquarters parcel at the gateway to the Big Beaver corridor, add public open space and new retail/restaurant/office/residential uses, and includes a University of Michigan health facility that the developer says will anchor the site. Commissioners and nearby residents raised questions about parcel ownership, whether state-created constitutional corporations (University of Michigan) are exempt from local zoning, the amount of surface parking proposed, and the lack of minimums or binding commitments for housing or other uses in the draft PUD agreement.

Developer presentation and major plan changes Nate Forbes, managing partner of the Forbes Company, told the commission the proposal is a conceptual PUD plan and said his team and partners have reworked the layout since last appearing before the commission seven months earlier. Forbes said the design team doubled the size of a central park, reoriented public open spaces to create stronger north–south and east–west connections, and changed an earlier plan that showed a multi‑level parking deck for the University of Michigan facility to surface parking for Phase 1 so the university could expand later. "We are the stewards of this development and we will ensure that the gateway to the city of Troy will maintain its prominence in terms of architectural design integrity," Forbes said during the presentation.

Planning staff outline process and…