Council tables Mulberry Park/Tabernacle PUD after heavy neighborhood turnout; returns March 3

Farmington Hills City Council voted to table consideration of the Mulberry Park and Tabernacle planned unit development (PUD) — a proposed mixed‑generation community with 76 units across roughly 12.04 acres — until the March 3 council meeting to allow the developer to respond to neighborhood concerns about density, tree removal and traffic.

Developer Schafer Development presented a two‑part plan: Mulberry Park (nine two‑story townhome buildings totaling 40 for‑sale units) and Tabernacle (nine one‑story ranch buildings totaling 36 age‑restricted rental units to be associated with Baptist Manor). The combined project would use a single access off 13 Mile, preserve a central tree corridor and add open space through clustered development. The applicant described the proposal as “missing middle” housing with a total density of roughly 6.3 units per acre and projected market price points for townhomes starting in the $400,000 range and Tabernacle rental units in the mid‑$2,000s monthly.

At the Planning Commission stage the plan received a qualification finding and a positive recommendation to council, but dozens of residents from Holly Hill Farms, Westgate and other nearby subdivisions spoke at the council public hearing to oppose the design, saying it would remove hundreds of trees (the applicant estimated removal of about 368 trees, of which 167 were identified as low‑quality species), erode privacy for existing homes, and worsen drainage and traffic at the Westgate/13 Mile intersection. The applicant said the site plan proposes planting roughly 400 new trees on‑site plus additional off‑site plantings and would preserve a wildlife corridor. Schafer representatives also offered timelines for mass grading (four to five months) and building phases for each portion (12–14 months for the Tabernacle portion; 18–24 months for the townhome portion).

Council members raised compatibility and density concerns, noting adjacent zoning is RA‑1 single‑family lots and that rezoning or PUD approval should protect neighborhood character. Several council members asked the developer to reduce perceived impacts on Holly Hill Farm residents, add screening and re‑examine unit counts and building heights; traffic and level‑of‑service impacts at Westgate were highlighted as significant by residents and examined by traffic consultants. With the developer’s agreement to return with revisions addressing density, tree calculations and traffic mitigation options, the council voted to table the item to March 3 to give time for additional refinements and neighbor outreach.