Planning commission approves minor amendment to Lakeshore ‘Sandbox’ PUD; residents press for parking, view and wetland safeguards

The Muskegon City Planning Commission on an item concerning the Lakeshore “Sandbox” development approved a minor amendment to the site’s planned unit development (PUD), changing parcel layouts, removing two multifamily buildings and adding single-family lots while requiring the final site plan to include all buildable elements.

The amendment affects parcels at 3434–606474 Wilcox Avenue, 1875 Waterworks Road and 1490 Edgewater Street and modifies lot depths, parking configurations and a sidewalk connection to the boardwalk. Planning staff told the commission the original PUD was approved in June 2019 and that this would be the third amendment to that approval.

Why it matters: The revision alters the mix and placement of residences along the city’s waterfront and shifts parking and road layouts that residents say will change views and noise patterns for nearby Harbour Town condominiums. The commission’s approval, taken as a minor amendment, allows the planning body to act without forwarding a major recommendation but includes conditions—most notably that the developer show all buildable features on the final site plan and attempt to move the northern end of a newly configured parking area south "as far south as could be feasible."

Planning staff described two plan exhibits: Exhibit B widens and deepens Lots 1–12 and changes on-street parking from perpendicular to angled spaces on Public Road A; Exhibit C simplifies the road and alley network, places lots on both sides of the road and removes two multifamily buildings (a total of 10 residential units). Staff said the change increases single-family lots in the affected section from 19 to 26 and results in a net reduction of two residential units across the broader development (from about 240 to 238 units).

Developer representatives said the reconfiguration "simplifies the road structure significantly and moves homes onto the waterfront as opposed to looking across the street at the water," and that the change allows deeper lots to accommodate garages. The developer also told the commission that the docks shown previously remain part of the project and are included on the EGLE permit, and that construction cannot proceed until state and other required agency sign-offs are complete.

Residents who spoke at the public hearing urged changes or clarification to protect existing condo residents and wetlands. Bill Ottenbach, a 14-year resident and retired professional planner, asked that "3 or 4 spaces on the north side be removed from the north end and added to the south end of the parking lot as was shown in the previous layout," saying the northward shift increases visual and noise impacts on nearby Harbour Town units. Roger Brink, who lives at 1460 East Harbour Town Circle, asked for clarification of the approved distance between the development and the nearest condominiums—he said a 2019 meeting referenced a tentative 180-foot buffer but that the current plans did not show a definite distance.

Other commenters raised traffic and environmental concerns. David Calkins said simultaneous construction on Lakeshore Drive could create access problems for residents. Carolyn Blake said wetlands created after past dune removal would be affected by new development and that the packet’s characterization of certain wetlands as "unaffected" understates the ecological impacts of additional homes and associated landscaping and chemical runoff.

Commission discussion focused on whether the amendment should be classified as "minor" or "major," confirmation that previously imposed conditions and approvals would remain in force, and whether landscaping and buffer language was included in the earlier PUD documentation. Planning staff said they had checked files before the meeting and that the site plan was marked "approved," but acknowledged the landscaping management plan and a landscaping drawing had not yet been submitted or approved and should be included as conditions of final site plan approval.

The developer agreed during the hearing to move the northern limit of the parking area south "to the extent the road design allows for it" and to include docks and other buildable elements on the final site plan. The commission added that commitment as a condition before taking a roll-call vote.

The motion to approve the PUD amendment as a minor amendment, with the condition that the final site plan include all buildable elements and that the parking be shifted south where feasible, passed on a roll call with all voting members recorded as in favor.

Next steps: the developer must submit a final site plan that shows the buildable elements, landscaping/vegetation plans and the revised parking layout; the project also requires state permits (including EGLE) and other agency sign-offs before construction can begin.