Plan commission approves revised site plan for 6205 Durand Avenue after staff conditions

The Village of Mount Pleasant Plan Commission on April 23 approved an amended site plan for 6205 Durand Avenue, SP25-0005, after staff recommended conditional approval.

The commission’s action follows a staff review of changes to a site plan originally approved about a year earlier. The applicant removed a previously approved six-unit apartment component from the mixed-use proposal; the rest of the plan remains largely the same. Staff recommended approval with corrections and clarifications on landscaping, parking geometry, roof parapets and tree-caliper requirements.

Why it matters: The amendment reduces the project’s residential component, which staff said reduces the site’s fiscal performance compared with the earlier approval. The commission approved the revised plan so the commercial and restaurant uses can proceed while leaving open the possibility of future mixed-use redevelopment.

Staff overview and key conditions A planning staff member who presented the review said the revised plan is “pretty much everything is the same as the last approved site plan, with the exception of those approved apartments that are on top.” Staff flagged a number of technical items the applicant must correct: pavement and drive-aisle dimensions exceed local regulations, some parking spaces need to be reconfigured, the landscape tabulation counted turf/sod as landscaped area (which does not meet the code), and proposed trees were sized at 2-inch caliper when the code requires 2.5-inch caliper (or two 1.5-inch trees per one 2.5-inch requirement). The presenter recommended using pervious pavement to reduce runoff toward the nearby highway facility and noted the lighting and screening otherwise complied with standards.

“Staff recommends approval of the site plan, and that’s, the buck stops here with that one,” the staff presenter said.

The presenter also said the applicant must address parapet requirements for flat roofs or request a formal exception. On fiscal effects, staff said the commission’s earlier fiscal analysis was not repeated; by removing the apartments the project “performs about half as well as it did” under the prior approval.

Applicant and technical response Developer representative Ray Stivek (address given on the record) and project engineer Mark Eberle spoke during the review. Eberle described the underground stormwater storage system supporting the site and said it was sized for a 100-year event and is intended to “drain out over 24 to 36 hours.” He also said the property largely drains to the state highway and that the underground detention is routed along the main west drive aisle.

Commissioners pressed the applicant on parapet design, the potential for future cross-access to adjoining parcels, and parking layout given the site’s stormwater requirements. One commissioner said the applicant could seek a waiver on the parapet requirement; another asked whether cross-access agreements with adjacent property owners were in place. The applicant said cross-access was discussed with adjacent owners but detailed agreements had not yet been finalized.

Public comment and vote There was no public comment on this item. A commissioner moved to approve the site plan review for 6205 Durand Avenue (SP25-0005) with the identified conditions; another commissioner seconded. The commission voted to approve the proposal; the chair announced it “passes unanimously.”

Next steps The approval is conditional on the applicant addressing the outstanding technical items identified by staff (landscape tabulation adjustments, tree-caliper substitutions or larger trees, pavement/drive-aisle dimensions or engineered alternatives, and either parapet details or a formal exception request). If the applicant needs to pursue any variances or exceptions, those would be separate actions before the village board or relevant hearing body.