[{"_1":2,"_87":-5,"_88":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6389454,"mediaKeyId","2113315-f847f4e8ce540b55fee76a9913c95553","parentId",2113315,"title","Planning commission recommends annexation and approves site plan for 75-townhouse Robertson Brothers development; rezoning recommended with 50-foot height limit","audioSeconds",2014,"startMs",5421000,"endMs",7435000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2113315-f847f4e8ce540b55fee76a9913c95553&start=5421&end=7435","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2113315-f847f4e8ce540b55fee76a9913c95553/thumbnail_5421000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6389454/Ann-Arbor-City/Washtenaw-County/Michigan/Planning-commission-recommends-annexation-and-approves-site-plan-for-75-townhouse-Robertson-Brothers-development-rezoning-recommended-with-50-foot-height-limit","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6389454-a4271f21e691277bcad66eb2b5d145db/orig.mp4?Expires=1771191222&Signature=mHI7Ib8191w0quA1rf8apEiQhKt4FPFpqmUADangwFpfoF4Jp0K5nRekvHKnl5H4c5ZGal6dr9YZwlbjQwn-5HWqyGDdOdrylYafXjBtyQpOjfbZ7x9a00LJeAW25PAbBYeYAhtojREd3vEyG1D6XZAX9vFPQLXDyXuJr7gbL5LcMOuVDcuqYHxnzngkqIaO2Y9iMWhsuelFLVTU6V-k9bvL9qOj1-rXXa8L2NwBJZv-42UiKnjCWmVGANgvxiOQSSVZDjAymFKGQRmYGIAPvdEeY7uoDtLZbVVN~Qw6iAcVqLhWmsauvXoMD40sIRN0ybEYPBulExMyAjz5YyQc2w__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","CTN Ann Arbor","date","2025-01-07T00:00:00Z","article","The Ann Arbor Planning Commission on Jan. 7 recommended annexation and approved a site plan for a 75-unit townhouse development at 255/315/371 Silo Church Road and 2180 Ann Arbor Saline Road, and it recommended rezoning the site from township to R4E multiple-family with a voluntary condition limiting maximum height.

Robertson Brothers presented the proposal as a six-acre development of 75 three-story townhouses arranged in 12 buildings, with most parking provided in attached garages. The petitioner emphasized design revisions made after neighborhood meetings, added landscape buffering on the west property line and a five-foot pedestrian connection to Ann Arbor Saline Road adjacent to a proposed stormwater pond. The developer said the project would be all-electric, and the plans include electric-vehicle (EV) chargers in garages and in several guest spaces.

Staff recommendation and public comments: Planning staff recommended approval of the annexation, rezoning and site plan, finding the project consistent with the city\t\t\t\t\t\t\tcomprehensive-plan land-use designation for attached single-family housing. Neighbors from Audubon Drive, The Meadows and Lansdowne raised concerns during public comment about building height, privacy impacts, traffic at the Main Street/Scio Church intersection and trash collection logistics. Several neighbors asked that the project reduce building height along the shared property line and preserve view and sunlight. Robertson Brothers said it had increased the setback on the west boundary and added double-row plantings and an eight-foot privacy fence.

Rezoning condition offered: Commissioners asked whether a conditional rezoning could address height concerns. The developer offered a voluntary condition on the record to limit maximum height; the planning commission voted to recommend rezoning from township to R4E with the petitioner\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tvoluntary condition limiting maximum building height to 50 feet. Planning staff confirmed they will work with the petitioner to memorialize the condition in a formal conditional rezoning statement and to include it in materials for council review.

Votes and next steps: The commission approved the annexation by roll call and approved the site plan and development agreement. The commission recommended rezoning to city council with the offered condition; staff said the annexation will proceed through the state process and that the conditional rezoning will be included with the materials transmitted to council. City council will consider annexation, rezoning and the development agreement in subsequent public hearings.

Key project facts and clarifications: Robertson Brothers described the site as 6.3 acres and said designs provide about 150 parking spaces (the petitioner corrected an earlier figure presented in the meeting packet), attached two-car garages for most units, and several guest spaces; the developer said EV-ready garages and multiple EV charging spaces will be provided. The petitioner stated the project is intended as \"missing-middle\" homeownership product, smaller and less costly than new detached single-family homes but not rent-restricted affordable housing.

Why it matters: The project converts a Pittsfield Township island into annexed city land, adds for-sale housing near schools, transit and retail, and raises recurring local issues about scale, neighborhood compatibility, trash service for attached housing and traffic at the Silo Church/Main Street corridor.

Ending: The commission\t\t\t\t\t\t\tapproved the site plan and annexation and recommended the rezoning to city council with the 50-foot height condition; council will take the final actions on annexation, rezoning and the development agreement in future public hearings.

","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Ann Arbor City Planning Commission 1/7/25","oneSentenceSummary","The commission voted Jan. 7 to recommend annexation of four parcels in a Pittsfield Township island, approved a site plan for 75 townhouses and recommended rezoning to R4E subject to a voluntary condition limiting building height to 50 feet.","taxTitle","Ann Arbor City, Washtenaw County, Michigan","taxId",5773,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6389458,"Ann Arbor planning commission approves FY2026–31 capital improvements plan after weeks of debate over Sunset sidewalk and trail underpasses",4723,677000,5400000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2113315-f847f4e8ce540b55fee76a9913c95553&start=677&end=5400","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2113315-f847f4e8ce540b55fee76a9913c95553/thumbnail_677000.jpg","/articles/6389458/Ann-Arbor-City/Washtenaw-County/Michigan/Ann-Arbor-planning-commission-approves-FY202631-capital-improvements-plan-after-weeks-of-debate-over-Sunset-sidewalk-and-trail-underpasses","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6389458-c07378757ee7a11d68503722731e1117/orig.mp4?Expires=1771191222&Signature=k0b4aXdXlfUwV2fGNZwyjX3EwyAQIa7qAuTrVozfGhQn8GYF9OUpuavl9Pho39b41~DV5PoUb06TWq4UJ3TL~-gjOhkoS7KoiScEz6zblQ2tVbP~SlRMiPy4AZjlTiLciquu-Shag~DYBj7OISWLL0qaOWZhGjwdGI5kRZLw219BPFTMTiSXhA~ix-4tg1Cjdy9KC9yvLg2KVfmCsmcj~5kaOFZFMKheyq8WvzNlg46AQZZ4Vx7V3Hm6mZcu~dGlk2Il9aYHG~PG82WMlLAYPsA1B-8NaIxL2ooCuHIhv03ibe9~mMOLjTZ1Fu~4SchN-dKhRSnVM1bs5CVOQyz3wQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Ann Arbor City Planning Commission voted to approve the fiscal years 2026 through 2031 capital improvements plan on Jan. 7 after an extended discussion over project prioritization, sidewalk projects and unimproved trail connections.

The plan, presented by Kayla Coleman, capital projects asset manager, lays out a six-year schedule for municipal buildings, transportation, utilities and other infrastructure. Coleman told the commission the CIP includes about 510 projects and more than $1 billion in identified needs across the six-year window, with 128 projects new to this cycle and roughly 61 projects placed on hold or removed from the six-year programming. The plan will be used as the basis for the city\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tbudget process for FY2026 and FY2027.

Commissioners spent the bulk of their time on one long-running local controversy: the Sunset Road sidewalk gap between Newport and Brooks and related proposals to reconfigure Sunset. Commissioner Michael Adams urged the commission to decouple the sidewalk project from a larger, unfunded reconfiguration effort that staff said had been created after community feedback in 2021; that administrative change, Adams said, pushed a shovel-ready sidewalk project out of the near-term CIP and left schoolchildren without a safe route to Wines and Forsyth schools. Coleman and other staff explained the decision reflected coordination with anticipated underground utility work and pavement resurfacing and that some projects had been moved to the \"beyond 2031\" column because funding and coordination needs made them unlikely to happen in the six-year window.

Adam Goodman, a resident testifying during the public-comment period, also urged the commission not to remove Border-to-Border Trail underpasses at Fuller and Maiden Lane from the CIP; Goodman said the missing underpasses are \"linchpin\" connections in a regional nonmotorized network and noted potential private funding partners such as Huron Waterloo Pathways. Commissioner debates repeatedly returned to whether leaving projects in the CIP\t\t\t\t\t\t\tbeyond column or placing them on hold was a clearer public signal.

Commissioners considered a motion to postpone action to Feb. 4 to allow staff to re-score, decouple projects and present additional detail. That postponement failed on a voice count. After further discussion the commission directed staff to prepare a memorandum to accompany transmittal of the CIP to city council describing concerns about Sunset and the Fuller underpass/medical center connections and asking that those items be reexamined in the next CIP cycle. With that commitment the commission approved the CIP. Recorded roll call votes in the final motion show multiple commissioners voting yes; two commissioners recorded a no vote. The commission\t\t\t\t\t\t\tapproved the CIP and will forward the plan and the requested transmittal memo to city council for consideration during the FY2026 budget process.

Why it matters: The CIP steers where the city will seek capital funding and how it sequences major public works. Commissioners and residents said the Sunset sidewalk and several long-standing projects have been deferred repeatedly; supporters argued including them sooner is a matter of student safety and public trust, while staff emphasized competing infrastructure needs, available funding and project coordination.

Quotes: Kayla Coleman, capital projects asset manager: \"When we plan for capital improvements in the city of Ann Arbor, we follow this general flow of our order of operations: identify, prioritize and program considering funding availability and staff capacity.\" Adam Goodman, resident (public comment): \"Removing these projects from the CIP would do the exact opposite of that. I'd ask that you, by whatever means you can, reconsider this decision.\" Larry Schmidt, chair, Wolfpack Climate Action Team (public comment earlier in the meeting): \"DTE does not have any capacity issues either in the generation or distribution of electricity. They are planning for an all electric future.\" (speaking about building electrification capacity).

Actions taken: The commission approved the fiscal year 2026\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tthrough\t\t\t\t\t\t\t2031 capital improvements plan and directed staff to include a transmittal memorandum for city council highlighting the Sunset sidewalk scheduling concerns and the status of the Border-to-Border trail underpass projects.

What comes next: The CIP will inform FY2026 and FY2027 budget development at city council; items in the beyond-2031 column will be re-reviewed in next year's CIP cycle. Staff said they will rescore the Sunset sidewalk as a standalone project if the commission asks and will prepare the transmittal memo for the commission's review before it is sent to council.

Ending: The commission's approval ends the Planning Commission's statutory step in the city CIP process; council still must adopt the capital budget and appropriate funds for the first year of the plan.

","The Ann Arbor City Planning Commission on Jan. 7 approved the city\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFY2026\t\t\t\t2031 capital improvements plan (CIP), endorsing a six-year funding and project list after lengthy discussion about delays to the Sunset Road sidewalk gap and whether to keep Border-to-Border Trail underpasses in the plan.","actionData","errors"]

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Planning commission recommends annexation and approves site plan for 75-townhouse Robertson Brothers development; rezoning recommended with 50-foot height limit

Ann Arbor planning commission approves FY2026–31 capital improvements plan after weeks of debate over Sunset sidewalk and trail underpasses