Grand Haven council approves consent items, vacates alley for Marriott project, secures county parking and OKs Elks Pulaski event; short-term rental overlay is\

Grand Haven City Council on Aug. 4 approved the consent agenda, vacated a portion of right-of-way behind 233 Washington Ave. tied to a planned Marriott development, accepted a memorandum of understanding with Ottawa County to use County Lot 24 for downtown parking, and approved a new-event permit for the Elks Lodge Pulaski Day celebration. The council also advanced an amendment to the Centertown overlay allowing short-term rentals by special land use on first reading with a technical amendment; that ordinance will return for a second reading.

Why it matters: The alley vacation and county parking MOU are both tied to an upcoming Marriott project at 233 Washington Ave.; council actions aim to resolve a parking shortfall for that development while keeping public downtown parking and permitting the Elks' public event and a Purple Heart proclamation already on the consent agenda.

Votes at a glance

- Consent agenda (minutes of 07/21/2025; bills memo in the amount of $3,269,094.52; proclamation recognizing Aug. 7, 2025 as Purple Heart Day; amendment to an election equipment agreement with Ottawa County originally approved in 2018): Motion by Lowell, second by Fritz. Roll call: Fritz — yes; Lowell/Low — yes; McLaughlin — yes; Maneta/Vanessa — yes. Outcome: approved.

- Resolution to vacate a portion of right-of-way between 233 Washington Ave. (parcel 70-03-20-432-017) as a condition of an approved planned development: Motion by Low, second by McLaughlin. Roll call: Low — yes; McLaughlin — yes; Fritz — yes; Maneta — yes. Outcome: approved. The vacation completes the final step after a planning commission public hearing and a council resolution of intent (initiated June 23). Planning staff reported no public comments to date.

- Memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Ottawa County for temporary use and maintenance of County Lot 24 (Franklin Avenue) to address a parking gap for the 233 Washington development: Motion by Fritz, second by Low. Council discussion: Ashley (city staff) said the county offered access to two Franklin Avenue parcels and that Lot 1 contains about 69 spaces, of which about 39 would be needed by the Marriott development; the city would continue to use remaining spaces for public overnight permits and would be responsible for maintenance. Roll call: Fritz — yes; Low — yes; McLaughlin — yes; Maneta — yes. Outcome: approved (administration to finalize a more formal agreement later).

- Introductory resolution to amend the zoning ordinance to permit short-term rentals by special land use in the Centertown overlay (Neighborhood Mixed Use district) — first reading and amendment: Motion by McLaughlin, second by Low; council also moved to amend the language to require that the usable area of the first floor for buildings fronting Seventh and Washington avenues be 100% retail/commercial (motion to insert the words "usable area" — mover Lowe, second McLaughlin). Roll call on the amendment: Lowe — yes; McLaughlin — yes; Fritz — yes; Maneta — yes. Council called for a vote on the amended introductory resolution (first reading): roll call recorded as yes by the same members. Outcome: first reading passed; the ordinance will return for a second reading in two weeks.

- New-event permit: Grand Haven Elks Lodge Pulaski Day celebration, Sept. 27, 2025 (southern half block of South Third Street in front of 15 S. Third St., 2 p.m.–10 p.m., setup beginning 7 a.m., teardown by 10 a.m. next morning): Motion by Fritz (listed in the transcript as "Fred"), second by McLaughlin. Brian Drews, Waterfront Events Manager, described the planned tent, polka music, dancing, food prepared in the Elks kitchen and that the lodge applied for appropriate alcohol licensing. Roll call: Fritz/Fred — yes; McLaughlin — yes; Low — yes; Maneta — yes. Outcome: approved.

What the council recorded: motions, seconds and roll-call votes for the items above were entered in the meeting record; in each vote the four council members present recorded "yes." The planning commission had previously reviewed the alley vacation and the Centertown overlay proposal and recommended actions as noted in staff reports.

Procedural notes and next steps: The MOU with Ottawa County is an interim step to facilitate the developer's site-plan timeline; a more formal agreement will be drafted for council review. The Centertown overlay amendment proceeded on first reading and will return for final action at the next council meeting after staff and council review of the "usable area" language. The alley vacation concluded the public hearing process and was approved by council.

Sources and evidence: Council proceedings, staff presentations and roll-call votes as recorded in the Aug. 4, 2025 council meeting transcript.