The Suttons Bay Township Planning Commission meeting was well attended Tuesday night, as some township residents wanted to comment on a proposed “open space land development” northeast of Stony Point and Smith roads in the township that would include eight new housing units.
The planning commission did not take any action on the proposal at the Feb. 4 meeting because they did not have an “administratively complete” application to review yet, Zoning Administrator Steve Patmore said.
A consultant and realtor working for the property owners previously made a pre-application presentation to the planning commission at their Dec. 3 meeting. Their letter to the planning commission says that the property owners – Mark and Karen Drake – want to divide their 65-acre farm to include eight parcels for housing units.
“The Drakes are preparing to divide a portion of their existing farm to provide a retirement income and to then also allow their family to continue farming the remaining properties,” the letter explains.
As the letter also points out, the Suttons Bay Community Joint Master Plan anticipates farmers to divide their land for “placemaking” while allowing generational farming to continue. It describes selling land as “the only retirement option for farmers.”
If the final proposal still aims for an open space designation, the developer will be required to protect the surrounding natural resources, including wetlands, scenic views, and woodlands, per the township zoning ordinance.
Although the planning commission doesn’t have a proposal to consider yet, some of its members have already received an anonymous letter opposing it. One of the letters says this “dense” housing development will cause a “plethora of problems,” including traffic, noise, and possibly accidents.
Mark Drake declined to comment on the development to the newspaper because a complete application has not been submitted yet. Patmore said that once the application is ready, the planning commission will review it at a future meeting.
