Council introduces North Van Dyke corridor zoning district after planner presentation; public raises floodplain concerns

The Sterling Heights City Council on Tuesday introduced two companion ordinances to rezone and establish development standards for the North Van Dyke Avenue corridor, a step officials said is intended to guide future redevelopment around Van Dyke, Utica and Riverland Drive.

City Planner Dr. Jake Parcells presented the map amendment and text for the proposed North Van Dyke Corridor District (case PZ24‑0008). He told council the proposal converts the existing overlay into a standalone zoning district with four subdistricts (District Core, Utica Triangle, Parkside and NVDA Industrial), updates permitted uses to encourage mixed‑use and “missing middle” housing, and adds dimensional standards such as maximum heights, river setbacks and minimum pedestrian sidewalk widths. The ordinance would set a 100‑foot minimum setback from the Clinton River top‑of‑bank for new development that abuts the watercourse and reduce maximum building heights from earlier drafts (the city planner said the core would allow up to 60 feet and other subdistricts up to 48…