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CITY OF MUSKEGON
PLANNING COMMISSION
REGULAR MEETING
DATE OF MEETING: Thursday, November 16, 2023 at 4 pm
PLACE OF MEETING: Commission Chambers, First Floor, Muskegon City Hall
AGENDA
I. Roll Call
II. Approval of minutes from the meetings of October 12 and November 6, 2023.
III. Old Business
IV. Public Hearings
A. Hearing, Case 2023-31: Request for a special land use permit to operate a Class B marihuana grow
facility at 907 and 911 W Laketon Ave.
B. Hearing, Case 2023-32: Staff initiated request to amend the form based code section of the zoning
ordinance to revise the signage types and requirements.
V. New Business
VI. Other
VII. Adjourn
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OR SUBCOMMITTEES
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meeting that is not live-streamed, and which a citizen would like to watch and give comment, they must contact the City Clerk’s Office with at least a two-business
day notice. The participant will then receive a zoom link which will allow them to watch live and give comment. Contact information is below. For more details,
please visit: www.shorelinecity.com
The City of Muskegon will provide necessary reasonable auxiliary aids and services, such as signers for the hearing impaired and audio tapes of printed materials
being considered at the meeting, to individuals with disabilities who want to attend the meeting with twenty-four (24) hours’ notice to the City of Muskegon.
Individuals with disabilities requiring auxiliary aids or services should contact the City of Muskegon by writing or by calling the following:
Ann Marie Meisch, MMC. City Clerk. 933 Terrace St. Muskegon, MI 49440. (231)724-6705. [email protected]
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Staff Report
November 16, 2023
Hearing, Case 2023-31: Request for a special land use permit to operate a Class B marihuana grow facility at
907 and 911 W Laketon Ave.
SUMMARY
1. The property is zoned B-4, General Business. The parcel measures 9,594 sf and the building
measures 4,600 sf.
2. Class B marihuana grow facilities are allowed in B-4 districts with the issuance of a special land use
permit. Class B marihuana grow facilities allow for the cultivation of up to 500 marihuana plants at a
time.
3. This facility had recently been used as a marihuana caregiver facility, which allowed marihuana
caregivers to grow marihuana for up to five patients (up to 72 plants per caregiver). There were three
caregivers associated at this address. The facility was closed earlier this year after State Police
discovered excess marihuana being grown on site.
4. The City had received several complaints from neighbors about odor over the years that it was used
as a caregiver facility. The issue was usually resolved once the property owner changed the filters.
5. Notice was sent to every property within 300 feet of this location. At the time of this writing, staff
had not received any comments from the public.
907 W Laketon Ave
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Zoning Map
Aerial Map
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Zoning ordinance excerpt:
Section 2332: Special Land Uses and Planned Unit Developments
5. Standards for Approval of Discretionary Uses
Prior to authorization of any Special Land Use, the Planning Commission shall give due regard to the nature
of all adjacent uses and structures. It shall determine the consistency with the adjacent use and development.
In addition, the Planning Commission shall find that the proposed use or activity would not be offensive, or a
nuisance, by reason of increased traffic, noise, vibration, or light. Further, the Planning Commission shall
find that adequate water and sewer infrastructure exists or will be constructed to service the Special Land
Use or activity.
STATEMENT OF CONCLUSIONS
“The decision on a Special Land Use or activity shall be incorporated in a statement of conclusions and be
placed on file with the Department of Planning.”
Staff finds that the proposed use or activity may become a nuisance, not by reason of increased traffic, noise,
vibration, or light – but by odor. However, the former caregiver facility was not as heavily regulated by the
State of Michigan as they are with Class B grow facilities. Staff has received complaints about caregiver
facilities throughout the City, but has yet to receive a compliant about a grow facility that has a MMFLA
(medical) or MRTMA (recreational) license. Staff finds that adequate water and sewer infrastructure exists
for the project.
STAFF RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends approval of the special use permit with the condition that it be revoked if there are
numerous complaints regarding odor.
DELIBERATION
The following proposed motion is offered for consideration:
I move that the request for a special land use permit to operate a Class B marihuana grow facility at 907 and
911 W Laketon Ave be approved with the following conditions based on the finding of facts pertaining to the
standards for approval of discretionary uses.
1. The special land use permit be revoked if there are numerous complaints regarding odor.
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Hearing, Case 2023-32: Staff initiated request to amend the form based code section of the zoning ordinance
to revise the signage types and requirements.
SUMMARY
1. Please see the zoning ordinance excerpt regarding projecting signs on the following page.
2. Projecting signs may only be up to 12 sf in size. However, the Planning Commission has granted
departures for some larger projecting signs (see below for examples).
3. Staff is proposing to permit these larger signs if they reference the name of the building, and not an
individual business. If a business were to close, it may not be feasible for a new business to utilize
such a large sign frame, which would lead to blight issues from the vacant sign frame.
4. These larger projecting signs would only be allowed in the Downtown and Mainstreet context areas.
They could be up to four feet wide and extend up to five feet away from the building.
Examples of small projecting signs downtown
Examples of large projecting signs downtown
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Zoning Ordinance Excerpt
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Proposed Amendments
(1A & 1 B have been modified along with Section 2009.13)
Section 2009.13
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DELIBERATION
The following proposed motion is offered for consideration:
I move that the request to amend the form based code section of the zoning ordinance to revise the
requirements for projecting signs be recommended to the City Commission for approval as
proposed.
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