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Planning commission approves special-use permit for urban farm at 2407 Barclay Street
Summary
The Muskegon City Planning Commission approved a special-use permit allowing an urban commercial flower farm to operate at 2407 Barclay Street. The permit excludes on-site sales under current zoning; the applicant said he will focus on supplying local florists and event planners and composting organic waste on-site.
The Muskegon City Planning Commission voted to approve a special-use permit for an urban commercial farm at 2407 Barclay Street, authorizing Cody Sloan’s flower-growing operation to continue on-site under the findings listed in the staff report.
Staff presented the application as a request to operate a specialized flower farm that will grow dahlias and related varieties and supply cut stems to local florists and event planners. Planning staff noted the city’s zoning ordinance currently prohibits on-site retail sales for commercial farms; staff said that restriction remains in effect and on-site sales were not approved with this permit.
Applicant Cody Sloan told the commission the operation is small-scale and research-focused: “This is not a huge operation. Our total planting area is around 5,000 to 5,500 square feet,” and he described the site’s primary activity as dahlia hybridization and local distribution. Sloan also said compost and stem byproduct will be retained on-site: “The waste is all very usable product… it gets a chance to break down over the season and becomes a very usable product for us next year.”
During the public hearing a nearby resident asked the commission to ensure the farm would not deposit yard waste on adjacent lots; Sloan said composting would be kept on-site and situated away from property lines. Planning staff noted Ruderman Creek runs just south of the parcel and asked that the applicant update his site plan to depict the creek; staff said there is existing vegetation between the creek and the planting area.
Commission discussion touched on greenhouse size (the applicant described a prospective 12-by-10-foot structure) and buffers to neighboring properties. After closing the public hearing, commissioners moved to approve the permit based on staff findings. The chair took a roll-call vote; the motion passed.
The permit allows cultivation and distribution consistent with the staff report but does not authorize on-site retail sales under current ordinance language. The commission discussed revisiting accessory commercial unit rules in the future to consider limited on-site sales or farm carts in appropriate retail zones.
Staff required the applicant to update his site plan to show Ruderman Creek and to comply with standard site and nuisance conditions described in the staff report.
