Planning Commission holds public hearing on rezoning at Grand River and Touraine; no decision made

The East Lansing Planning Commission on May 28 held a public hearing on Ordinance 15-48, a request to rezone a vacant parcel at the northwest corner of West Grand River Avenue and Touraine Avenue from R-1 (low-density single-family residential) to B-2 (general retail business). The commission took public comment and did not take final action; the item is scheduled to return to the commission at a later meeting for further consideration.

City planning staff described the site as an unaddressed triangular parcel near the Grand River–Saginaw–Coolidge intersection and said the parcel is currently designated “M-1” mixed use in the city’s 2018 master plan. Staff advised the commission that the rezoning request is limited to the zone change itself, and that any later proposal to expand a parking lot would require a separate site-plan review and, if appropriate, a recommendation to city council.

The applicant, Eric Rose Kranz of Martin Commercial Properties, told the commission the owner purchased the parcel and intends to add roughly 15 parking spaces to the adjacent office/retail complex to serve existing tenants. Kranz said the plan would use roughly half the parcel as impervious surface, leave a significant amount of green space, avoid curb cuts onto Grand River or Touraine, and include required landscaping and stormwater management to be determined during site-plan review.

More than a half-dozen residents who live in the nearby Glencairn neighborhood spoke in opposition. Speakers said they bought homes in the neighborhood for its tree-lined character and architecture and said rezoning the parcel would permit commercial uses that could permanently change the area. Neighbors raised traffic and safety concerns at the nearby lane-merging area on eastbound Grand River, expressed worry about increased cut-through traffic on residential streets, and said the parcel currently buffers noise and provides visual separation between the commercial corridor and older homes.

Commissioners asked staff whether the parking expansion would trigger requirements for electric-vehicle chargers and whether it would require a traffic study. Staff said the city’s current code requires an EV charging station for parking lots with more than 50 required spaces; adding roughly 15 spaces would place the combined property near that threshold if total required spaces exceed 50. Staff also said a traffic study is required when a project is expected to generate at least 100 directional trips in the peak hour or 750 directional trips on an average day; staff does not expect a 15-space addition to meet that traffic threshold. Commissioners also discussed why the rezoning is being considered before any detailed site plan; staff explained that the parking expansion would not be a permitted use in R-1 and so the rezoning would be required before a site-plan application could be filed.

Chair Sullivan closed the public hearing and the commission agreed to return the item for further review and possible action at a future meeting (the item was tentatively scheduled to be heard again on June 11). No vote on the rezoning was taken on May 28.

Residents and the applicant were directed that detailed questions about curb cuts, tree removal, exact stormwater management, and EV infrastructure will be addressed during the site-plan review if and when the rezoning is approved and a site plan is submitted.