Planning Commission recommends rezoning of Scottish Rite building at 60614 Center Avenue to C-3

The Bay City Planning Commission voted to recommend rezoning 60614 Center Avenue in the Second Ward from O-1 (office) to C-3 (central business), a change the applicant said is needed to allow reuse of the historic Scottish Rite building as an event space.

Terry, planning staff, summarized the application and the zoning change, saying the site’s current zoning is O-1 and "the proposed rezoning would take it to a C-3 central business zoning." Terry said the structure is not expected to change physically and that the lot has about 110 feet of frontage on Center Avenue and a depth of roughly 300 feet with additional frontage on North Monroe.

Applicant Margo Apple said the group intends to “maintain everything within it, change nothing other than minor aesthetic things like paint, repair the roof, etcetera. And then use it as an event space.” Apple described past uses including fraternal gatherings and weddings and said the initial focus would be receptions in the building’s reception space. On capacity, Apple said the fire marshal quoted “3 3 53 50” for the reception space and later confirmed the auditorium’s capacity at about 500.

Public comment included support from Dennis Kramer, who said the proposal promotes “the reuse and repurpose of this beautiful historic building,” Tanner Hanson, board treasurer of Friends of the Historic Masonic Temple, who said the organization is “definitely for it,” and Fred Kaiser, president of the Scottish Rite Association and owner of the building, who said the association supports refurbishment and reuse.

Commissioners questioned parking and liquor service. Apple said past events were held there before the building sat vacant and described plans to use the existing parking lot and to negotiate with nearby lots; she said the group would not pursue its own liquor license and that alcohol at receptions would be served by bartenders holding day permits. Terry noted that with C-3 zoning the project would be “exempt from any parking calculations,” per zoning rules cited in the staff report.

After discussion the commission voted to forward a recommendation to the City Commission for rezoning. The record shows the public hearing was opened, public comments were received and included in the meeting packet, and the commission passed the motion to recommend rezoning to C-3.

The recommendation now moves to the City Commission for final action; the planning commission’s vote was a recommendation rather than a final zoning ordinance adoption.