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Troy planning commission approves two‑story El Car Wash with nonprofit offices after traffic, design debate
Summary
After a public hearing with neighbors who warned of traffic and safety risks and supporters who highlighted the Rainbow Connection nonprofit’s needs, the Troy Planning Commission approved a special‑use and preliminary site plan for a two‑story El Car Wash at Long Lake and Dequindre, 6–3, imposing conditions including added transparency, a possible deceleration lane, and removal of four outdoor vacuum stalls.
The City of Troy Planning Commission voted 6–3 April 14 to grant special‑use and preliminary site plan approval for SUJPLN 2024‑0007, a two‑story El Car Wash with second‑floor office space intended for the nonprofit Rainbow Connection at 2955–2995 E. Long Lake.
The application, brought back to the commission after a circuit court remand, proposes an automated wash tunnel at the Long Lake frontage, an enclosed vacuum and employee parking area along Dequindre, and a second‑floor office for Rainbow Connection. Planning staff and the applicant emphasized revisions from a prior submission: the vacuums are now enclosed, the attendant booth has been incorporated into the main building, and a pedestrian plaza and landscaping have been added.
Why it mattered: neighbors who attended the hearing and submitted comments said the intersection of Long Lake and Dequindre already experiences frequent crashes and heavy, high‑speed traffic, raising safety concerns if a high‑turnover car wash were approved. Supporters countered that Rainbow Connection would receive free office space in perpetuity, enabling the charity to expand services for families of children with life‑threatening illnesses.
What staff and the applicant said: Brent Carlisle, planning consultant with Carlisle Workman Associates, summarized the zoning and design…
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