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Livonia Council removes Fox Drive access condition for car wash, requires traffic signal before opening
Summary
After extensive public comment and debate over neighborhood access and safety, the Livonia City Council approved an amendment to Resolution 402‑25 that removes a Fox Drive access condition for a proposed car wash but requires the installation and operation of a traffic signal before the business may open and stronger commitments to secure secondary access where feasible.
The Livonia City Council voted to amend a previous land‑use condition tied to Resolution 402‑25, approving a petitioner’s request to remove a requirement that a proposed car wash obtain access to Fox Drive while imposing conditions intended to protect neighborhood safety.
The motion to approve — offered as a substitute and passed 5–2 — requires the developer to pursue “objective” commitments to secure secondary access (Fox Drive, an emergency egress through the adjacent hotel property, or another acceptable egress) and conditions the car wash’s opening on a traffic signal being installed and operating at the 6 Mile Road/Fox Drive area.
Councilmembers and dozens of residents debated whether removing the Fox Drive access condition would undercut an already‑promised traffic signal and worsen egress for the nearby Quakertown subdivision. Victoria Wysocki of Quakertown told council members that without the signal, “our ability to get in and out of our subdivision is going to be made worse by this.” Residents and nearby businesses urged the council to secure a plan that would allow the signal to be permitted and installed.
The petitioner and his consultants said the traffic signal’s approval depends not on Fox Drive access but on shifting the development’s driveway eastward so Wayne County will permit the signal. The petitioner argued traffic modeling and a trip‑generation memo showed the net traffic impact of a car wash (compared to the prior restaurant use) was within the 1% growth rate assumed in the 2023 HRC study, and that industry “pass‑by” rates mean most car wash trips are not new trips. The petitioner said the site offers a 21‑car stacking capacity and that peak car wash traffic would not coincide with peak commuting times.
Councilmembers differed over how firm the developer’s obligations should be. Councilmember Persicone said she wanted language stronger than “reasonable efforts” to secure secondary access; the council ultimately approved amended language that directs the developer to pursue defined efforts and allows the council to include specific conditions on administrative review if needed. Councilmember Budzinski, who voted in favor of approving the amendment, said the action was intended primarily to secure the traffic signal, which she called “imperative for the safety of the Quakertown residents and Schoolcraft students.”
Votes were recorded on two measures during the discussion. A substitute motion to change a denial into an approval passed 4–3. The final approving motion, as amended with access and signal conditions, passed 5–2 (Brockway and McDonald opposed).
The council’s action amends the site‑plan condition; it does not eliminate the prior site‑plan approval outright. The council included requirements that the driveway be relocated (to enable county permitting of the signal), that the developer continue to pursue secondary access, and that the business cannot open until the traffic signal is installed and operational. The petitioner said he would continue outreach to the neighboring property owner and pursue emergency access agreements where possible.
