Kroger development postponed to November; commission postpones approval of Aug. 12 minutes

Representatives for a proposed Kroger development asked the Royal Oak Planning Commission for more time on an unfinished agenda item, and the commission voted to postpone the matter to November.

"We're requesting to further postpone any action on this particular item," Mike McPherson of Atwell, the civil engineering consultant for the Kroger project, told the commission. He said the team was coordinating with the current landowner to explore additional development on the back portion of the site and expected revised plans to be submitted in two to four weeks, making a November hearing "accurate" if review time is allowed.

Commissioners discussed procedural rules. City attorney Josh Markham noted that, under Robert's Rules of Order, postponing an open hearing indefinitely would require re-noticing and reopening it as a new hearing. Commissioners also debated whether to signal that November should be the final postponement; several members stated they did not want to set a precedent of repeated postponements.

A commissioner moved to postpone the Kroger agenda item to November; the motion was seconded and passed by voice vote with no roll-call tally recorded in the transcript. The petitioner thanked the commission and said they would return in November if feasible.

Earlier in the meeting the commission also postponed approval of the Aug. 12 minutes after multiple members reported a broken attachment link; Commissioner Lisonbee moved to postpone approval and Cantina seconded the motion, which passed by voice vote.

There were no other formal actions taken on the Kroger project at this meeting. Staff and commissioners said they expect the applicant to return with revised plans and that the commission will consider the item again at the November meeting if the petitioner submits materials and review timelines align.