A new Elmwood Township ordinance years in the making but with no secure future is again being reshaped - and winning converts.

When released for public comment in March, the ordinance drew stern complaints from residents who were concerned that it over-reached township authority to control land use. Specifically mentioned was a 100-foot set back for lakes and tributaries, regulations over agricultural markets that owners of garden centers said could put them out of business and shoreline access restrictions.

But the township appears to be successfully converting opposition as the most restrictive provisions are examined — and dropped.

“There were a lot of things in that ordinance that were extremely restrictive,” said Mike Morris, owner of Breeze Hill Greenhouse off Harrys Road. He and other business owners directly affected by the new ordinance felt their complaints made to the Planning Commission were getting nowhere.

So what changed? Enter Chris Grobbel, who began last month as Elmwood Township planner and zoning administrator. The Township Board created a new position to fill both duties after former zoning administrator Don Witkowski retired. Former township community planner Bill Swanson applied but was not appointed to the combined position.

Grobbel, who because of previous commitments is working three days a week until July 1, has been doing more than listening to complaints, said Morris. Before Grobbel’s arrival, Morris said complaints were shipped off to a planning firm in Grand Rapids that lately had been responsible for writing most of the new ordinance. The project has been in the works in some form or another since a 2003 referendum vote, spanning two planning consultants, two township boards and several planning commissions.

Now Grobbel has taken on the work of completing the proposal — which in some cases has meant changes to eliminate provisions that residents felt were overly restrictive and Grobbel believes would be difficult to enforce.

“He has been cooperating — which has been a change. If he continues, they’ll end up with an ordinance that will be acceptable to most people,” said Morris. “The Planning Commission, to their defense, has been open to us and our comments.”

Grobbel met last week with five residents who represent the farm market and garden center block of business owners in the township. Their complaints were so numerous that they found it easier to start from scratch than work with the latest proposal, which required extensive landscaping, parking to be expanded and restricted to the rear of buildings, and an emphasis on “local” products at their businesses.

“A really good, engaged group came together of growers and those who had farm market,” said Grobbel. “I think that’s a model of what I hope to do.”

The ordinance also required 100-foot setbacks for buildings not only along shorelines, but also near tributaries. Grobbel’s research determined that if enacted, fully half of the buildings in Elmwood near lakes and running streams would be considered “non-conforming.”

The Planning Commission recently voted 5-0 to reduce the setback to 40 feet, reducing the non-conformity level to 3 percent. A reduction to 50 feet would have reduced non-conformance to 7-8 percent, and failed by a 3-2 vote, Grobbel said.

Commissioners also confined the setback to lakeshores. “I was a little surprised they had included all tributaries and any place you have running water,” he said. “Once we made the setbacks more reasonable, we lost the vast majority of non-conforming uses.”

The changes will demand time to write and incorporate in the ordinance, but not much money with Grobbel handling the project instead of the downstate consultant. Some estimates have placed the cost to rewrite the zoning ordinance since the 2003 referendum at hundreds of thousands of dollars. Grobbel is doing the bulk of the remaining work as part of his salaried position.

Still, Grobbel estimates that another 3-5 months may be required before the ordinance is approved. Because changes have been so broad, Grobbel will suggest holding at least one more public hearing before the township Planning Commission and Leelanau County Planning Commission make recommendations. The Township Board will have the final vote.

Meanwhile, Grobbel is accepting suggestions for changes while working Tuesdays through Thursdays at the township office. Residents may call the office at 946-0921 to reach him. He is available by cell phone on Mondays and Fridays.

The legal bill for Elmwood Township to continue an active role in the fight to stop an electrical substation from locating off M-72 stood at $9,000 one month ago - and is growing exponentially.
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