This Ann Arbor City Council meeting was held in person at City Hall. Members of the public can participate in public hearings and public comment either in person or via phone.
CM Cornell was absent
A2Council Update Video
Ann Arbor City Council Meeting Summary
APPROVED: The City Administrator is directed to select and contract with a commercial real estate brokerage or seller’s agent for the sale and development of the City-owned property at 415 West Washington. (Legistar)
- In April 2023, City Council unanimously approved zoning and development regulations for the 415 W Washington property as a Planned Unit Development (PUD) so that it could be marketed to developers in a public and competitive process led by the City. The PUD zoning requires a minimum of 15 designated affordable housing units or 15% of the total units or a contribution in lieu of units, whichever number is greater. The PUD also requires 60% open space amenities, such as the extension of the Tree Line Trail. https://a2council.com/ann-arbor-city-council-april-17-2023/
- On June 3, 2024, Council directed staff to pursue 6 months of exclusive negotiations (plus 12 months of due diligence right) to developer 4M LLC to purchase 415 W. Washington. https://a2council.com/ann-arbor-city-council-june-3-2024/
- A2ELNEL: 415 W Washington: A “Unique Opportunity” for a Campaign Donor
- Since earning Council approval six weeks ago, developer 4M LLC abandoned the project. From the staff memo in the resolution this week: “The development team recently withdrew its offer for the site.”
- The City Administrator is now authorized to choose and execute a contract with a broker/agent, the terms of which will be approved by the City Attorney, rather than Council. The private broker/agent will solicit competitive offers for the site “based on the requirements of the PUD and will identify any additional affordable and sustainable elements desired by the community.” Proposals will be received and considered privately, through the broker/agent, rather than publicly through the City.
- This is the second time in as many months that City Council directed a private process for disposing of City-owned property. In July, City Council unanimously approved the use of a private broker to sell the property at William/Ashley (sometimes called the Kline lot). https://a2council.com/ann-arbor-city-council-july-1-2024/
- A2ELNEL: From Public Process to Private Broker: Selling and Developing the Kline Lot
- https://www.mlive.com/news/ann-arbor/2024/08/developer-withdraws-proposal-for-blighted-site-ann-arbor-to-start-new-search.html
APPROVED: An area of 27.65 acres at 3380 Nixon Road will be rezoned from R4A (Multiple Family District) to R4D (Multiple-Family District) to allow the construction of a five story residential building with 131 apartments. This will expand an existing residential community called Owl Creek, which currently has three three-story apartment buildings and 264 apartments. The rezoning includes conditions: a maximum height of 75 feet and a contribution of $81,875 to parks. (Legistar)
APPROVED: Site plan and development agreement for the Owl Creek expansion project at 3380 Nixon Road. (Legistar)
- The developers held a public engagement meeting about this project in March 2023: https://a2council.com/owl-creek-resident-participation-meeting-march-30-2023/
- The Planning Commission approved the rezoning and site plan for this project in February 2024: https://a2council.com/ann-arbor-city-planning-commission-february-22-2024/
- https://www.mlive.com/news/ann-arbor/2023/03/135-more-apartments-proposed-in-northeast-ann-arbor.html
- https://www.mlive.com/news/ann-arbor/2024/02/proposal-for-131-all-electric-apartments-advances-to-ann-arbor-council.html
- https://www.mlive.com/news/ann-arbor/2024/08/5-story-all-electric-apartment-building-approved-on-ann-arbors-north-side.html
POSTPONED: By resolution, Council would direct staff and the City Planning Commission to study potential ordinance amendments to the Unified Development Code (UDC) to allow more flexibility for home occupations in residential neighborhoods. (Legistar)
- This resolution was postponed to the September 3, 2024 Council meeting.
- Possible amendments:
- Increase the maximum permissible floor area
- Increase the number of customers per day
- Increase the number of customers at a time
Increase the allowed number of non-resident employees - Allow uses that are not customarily incidental and secondary to a residential use
- The resolution proposes that these changes be “prioritized ahead of the Comprehensive land use plan.”
- In September 2021, this section of the City code was amended to increase flexibility for home occupations when staff proposed changes to the Ordinance Revisions Committee of the City Planning Commission. https://a2council.com/ann-arbor-city-council-september-7-2021/
- https://www.mlive.com/news/ann-arbor/2021/09/ann-arbor-gives-final-ok-to-relaxing-rules-for-home-based-businesses.html
- The 2021 amendments were unanimously approved by the City Planning Commission. City Council removed reference to specific uses but included these terms:
- Occupation can consume no more than 25% of gross floor area of a dwelling unit
- Occupation is limited to a maximum of 2000 square feet in an Accessory building
- No more than 24 client visits per day
- No more than four clients at a time
- Hours of operation limited from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m
- No more than one nonresident employee permitted
- Heavy vehicles (more than 10,000 pounds) may not be regularly parked on-site
- Uses may be terminated if they present a safety hazard
- https://www.mlive.com/news/ann-arbor/2024/08/granny-flats-where-granny-can-sell-some-jam-among-ideas-ann-arbor-is-discussing.html
APPROVED (First Reading): Proposed amendments to the City Planning Commission bylaws will address outdated, potentially offensive, and gendered language with more neutral terms. Other amendments will reduce the number of votes required for approval. The current threshold of six votes will be reduced to five. The text of the resolution explains that this is needed due to the number of recusals that now happen due to conflicts of interest: “As the Planning Commission is comprised of many land use professionals, occasionally these members appropriately recuse themselves from discussion and deliberation, which can lead to challenges in achieving a vote or outcome.” (Legistar)
- In July 2023, the Planning Commission unanimously approved referring these changes to the City Attorney for review. According to the meeting minutes (link), the Planning Commission also asked the City Attorney for “The investigation of alternative ethics, conflicts of interest and recusal language as discussed and directed.” https://a2council.com/ann-arbor-city-planning-commission-july-18-2023/
- Note: this week’s proposed bylaw changes do not include any “alternative” policies regarding ethics, conflict of interest or recusal.
- These amendments were approved by the Planning Commission in November 2023: https://a2council.com/ann-arbor-city-planning-commission-november-14-2023/
- The current chair of the Planning Commission is Wonwoo Lee who (according to LinkedIn) is the Chief Real Estate Officer for Oxford Companies. Since his appointment to the Planning Commission in November 2020, Lee has been recused from twenty votes: when Oxford Companies was the petitioner requesting policy changes or when Commission decisions would impact specific property holdings of Oxford Companies.
A2ELNEL Voting Chart
