Rochester Hills council approves preliminary Oak Creek condominium plan, allows small wetland impact

Rochester Hills City Council on Monday approved a preliminary site condominium plan and a wetland‑use permit for the Oak Creek development, a proposed 21‑unit detached single‑family subdivision on approximately 8.5 acres at 3249 and 3271 Livernois.

The council voted unanimously to approve the preliminary condominium plan and to authorize a permanent impact of about 417 square feet to an on‑site wetland to allow construction of a culverted public road. Planning staff and the developer said the impact was the minimum necessary to build the road and that mitigation and design measures will keep the wetland channel open.

City planning staffer Miss Roediger told the council the property is surrounded by single‑family neighborhoods and that the plan preserves a central common open space where the existing wetlands are located. Roediger said the plan reduces lot counts and aligns the new road to connect to the existing neighborhood street network. The planning commission recommended approval of both the preliminary condominium and the wetland permit.

Developer Mohammed Badouin, identified in the meeting as the applicant representing Enliven Developers, said the team worked to minimize disruptions to natural features and reduced the number of lots to accommodate existing wetlands. Wetland scientist Megan Davis of Tetra Tech said the permanent impact is roughly one one‑hundredth of an acre and limited to the roadway crossing; the design calls for a buried culvert sized to maintain stream bed and flow and meets EGLE's permitting thresholds for a minimal‑impact culvert installation.

Councilmember David Walker praised the architecture and the effort to protect the wetlands but pressed the applicant on landscaping and basement drainage. City staff and the applicant said street trees will be planted as part of the public improvements and that perimeter or boundary plantings will be installed during development grading. Council questions about basements and basement water were answered by the project engineer: sump pumps and foundation drainage will be routed to the project's storm sewer system and conveyed to the detention pond rather than discharging onto neighboring properties.

The planning commission had requested replacing split‑rail fences that mark the natural feature boundary with a more permanent boulder delineation for lots that encroach more closely on the natural feature setback; the council's approval includes that request for the lots the commission identified and requires the developer to return for final review after other permits are secured.

Council approval was contingent on the conditions in the planning packet, and staff confirmed that the EGLE permit application for the culvert and wetland crossing is still in preparation; the item will return at final plan approval once state permits and any other outstanding approvals are obtained.

Votes at the meeting were recorded as unanimous on both the preliminary condominium approval and the wetland use permit.

The council approved the preliminary condominium motion (motion by Councilmember Walker; second by Councilmember Moreland) and the wetland permit motion (motion by Councilmember Walker; second by Councilmember Neubauer). Final engineering details, EGLE permit approval and final condominium documents will be required before building permits are issued.

Planning staff said final construction details, including the culvert design, boulder delineation at the identified lots, tree replacement and traffic‑calming features requested by the planning commission, will be added before the project returns for final council review.