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St. Clair Shores council approves rezoning, special land use and site plan for Culver’s after neighbors press for buffers
Summary
After residents raised concerns about noise, traffic and property values, the St. Clair Shores City Council rezoned parcels at Harper and Blackburn to B‑3, granted a special land use for a drive‑through and approved the developer’s site plan with conditions including a masonry wall and 68 eight‑foot arborvitae.
The St. Clair Shores City Council on July 20 approved rezoning, a special land use permit and site plan for a Culver’s restaurant at 24300 Harper and 21501 Blackburn, after residents told the council they opposed a two‑lane drive‑through adjacent to their homes.
Neighbors Michael Shar and Anne Schar spoke during the public comment period, saying the planned drive‑through and its speakers would face their house and cause “unbearable” noise and additional pollution and traffic. Shar asked the council to require a berm, evergreen plantings or a wall to mitigate impacts.
Liz (City Planner) told council the request involved three approvals: rezoning the parcel to B‑3 (which allows drive‑throughs), a special land‑use authorization for the drive‑through, and the site plan. She said the petitioner provided multiple iterations of the landscaping plan and added both a 6‑foot masonry wall and a denser tree buffer after the planning commission hearing.
Joe Paluzzi of Verus Development Group and Eric Metoyer, who said he would be the owner‑operator, presented revisions that increased brick and stone on the building, replaced EIFS with hardy‑board, and added “68 eight‑foot arborvitae” spaced to form a visual and sound buffer along the east property line. Metoyer said driveway access would remain on Harper and there would be no drive approaches onto Blackburn or Downing to limit traffic on local streets.
Councilmembers repeatedly praised the changes and the degree of outreach to residents. Councilman Rebello moved to approve the rezoning and later moved the special land use and the site plan, each motion receiving council support. Conditions on site plan approval included paving, drainage and stormwater compliance, specified parking and parking controls, installation and spacing of the arborvitae, and obtaining any necessary variances from the ZBA.
The special land‑use vote was recorded as 7–0; the site plan passed on a voice vote with the same support. Council and petitioner noted remaining permitting steps (including ZBA for a front‑setback variance) and potential utility relocation timing with DTE, which could affect construction scheduling.
