Council approves rezoning and site plan for 9 Mile retail center, including drive‑thru

St. Clair Shores City Council on Monday approved rezoning and related approvals for the long‑vacant Saint Mary’s site at the northeast corner of East 9 Mile Road and Glen (Glen) Court, clearing the way for a roughly 9,000‑square‑foot retail center anchored by a drive‑through restaurant.

The council voted 6–1 to rezone parcels at 22501 and 22601 East 9 Mile Road from RM‑1 (multiple‑family low rise) to B‑3 (General Business District), and separately approved a special land use for a drive‑through and the site plan for the retail center. The approvals include conditions for landscaping, a masonry wall along the rear property line, hours of operation limits and further site‑plan review of access and parking.

The approvals bring a property that speakers described as “vacant and in rough shape” back into active redevelopment under the city’s downtown planning area. City planning staff and the applicant said the proposal is intended to fit into the broader downtown and “social district” vision for the 9 Mile corridor.

Robert Kirk, identified as representing Saint Clair Management and Saint Clair Retail Management, told council the former Saint Mary’s building has been closed for more than four years and that the existing RM‑1 zoning is “not real conducive” to viable reuse. “We think the rezoning is consistent with the surrounding…