The Lowell Planning Commission met for nearly 70 minutes last night to discuss two pieces of business. All commissioners, except Colin Plank, were present for the meeting, and they were joined by three councilmembers, City Manager Mike Burns and two business representatives.
Sign Ordinance to be Updated
Under old business, planning commissioners reviewed a draft amendment to the sign ordinance. Prepared by Andy Moore, the city’s planning consultant from firm Williams & Works, the amendment is a result of the Supreme Court case Reed v. Town of Gilbert.
In that case, the Supreme Court ruled that communities may not restrict signs based upon their content. Instead, they may only be regulated based on their size and location. As a result, the City of Lowell sign ordinance must be updated.
Currently, the ordinance regulates signs by categories such as:
- Real estate sign
- Construction sign
- Political sign
- Directional sign
In the revision, signs will only be referred to by their location and appearance. For example, sign categories will include:
- Changeable copy sign
- Feather sign
- Ground sign
- Human sign
In making his recommendations, Moore suggested limiting temporary signs – such as political or event signs – to four per residential property. Mayor Mike DeVore, who was attending the meeting in the audience, noted he had more than four signs on his property during the previous election. He thought the limit of four signs might be too low given the number of offices on the ballot in some years. He also noted that he lived on a corner lot.
Commissioners agreed to change that provision to four signs per road frontage which would allow someone on a corner lot to have eight signs total. Barring any objection from commissioners, Chair Bruce Barker said a public hearing would be held on the changes during the July Planning Commission meeting.
Auto Sale Site Plan Tabled
Under new business, West Michigan Auto Xchange applied for a special land use permit to sell used cars from the Tractor Supply Co. parking lot from July 20-29. The company held a similar sale last year at Recreation Park.
If approved, the sale would bring 50-60 used cars to the parking lot, where West Michigan Auto Xchange would set up a tent and portable restrooms. The company expects to be open from 10am-7pm daily for the nine-day duration of the event. Moore did not note any significant concerns in his memo about the proposed sales event.
While last year’s site plan didn’t face any opposition, three council members – DeVore, Cliff Yankovich and Jim Salzwedel – were in attendance last night to speak out against the permit request. None spoke in their official capacity though and instead presented their remarks as city residents. A representative from Betten Baker also spoke in opposition to the request, and Todd Landman, who owns Landman Auto Sales, sent a letter in opposition as well.
“I’m here to ask you to turn this down just from the standpoint that we have several dealerships in Lowell, and over the last years, they have spent a ton of money making their places look better,” Yankovich said. He noted that the dealerships employ people who shop and dine in town, and he didn’t see any benefit to the city in allowing another company to hold a pop-up sale here.
DeVore took issue with the fact that the representative of West Michigan Auto Xchange, Renee Peiper, attended the meeting via Zoom. He also felt the application did not meet the first site plan review standard which states that a use shall not be detrimental to the public welfare.
“I equate it very much to a Wild West snake oil salesman,” DeVore said. “Comes to town, gives you a cure for all your ailments and leaves town before you realize there’s problems with it.”
Drew Drubridge, general sales manager for Betten Baker Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram of Lowell, said his business did “not support or appreciate” the proposed sales event for several reasons. He mentioned what he thought was misleading advertising and high-pressure sales tactics.
“They set up a tent and take hundreds of thousands of dollars out of the Lowell community and nothing gets returned back to Lowell,” according to Drubridge. “Last year, many people called our dealerships angry, assuming we had sold them the cars, and many of them needed repairs after they were sold.”
Salzwedel agreed with the previous three speakers and said, “I think the community suffered last year.”
In his letter, Landman wrote, “I am not opposed to competition but should [West Michigan Auto Xchange] want to do business in Lowell, I would ask that [they] invest in a storefront and contribute [their] fair share back to the Lowell community as the rest of us do.”
Peiper responded that the company had made a local charitable donation after its event last year and pushed back on allegations that it wasn’t interested in customer service. “We are there to expand our market area,” she said, later noting that West Michigan Auto Xchange is located in Kentwood and has been holding events in different areas to the east and south to test where might be best to expand in the future.
During commission discussion on the proposal, Commissioner Marty Chambers said: “Last year, when this came to us, I found it quite odd that we heard nothing from any of the dealerships…and I think that was intentionally done so they wouldn’t have a time to say what they want to say.” He did not provide any additional context on what he felt was intentionally done, and Chambers was not present at the 2022 meeting when the permit application was discussed and approved last year.
Commissioner Amanda Schrauben asked if there was any sort of city fee associated with these types of events. Moore replied that the only fees that could be charged were to recoup city costs.
Burns asked what ramifications might occur if the special land use permit met the ordinance requirements but was denied. He also questioned whether the ordinance could be amended regarding these types of sales events.
“If the commission were to find that all the standards are met, then you’d have to approve it, in my opinion,” Moore said. He added that the ordinance could be revised for future events.
Schrauben asked if food trucks fall under the same category as the type of permit being sought by West Michigan Auto Xchange. Moore replied that there is a separate ordinance specifically for food trucks. These businesses pay a $300 annual fee or $150 one-day fee to set up on public property or a $150 annual fee to sell on private property.
Salzwedel said he felt anytime there was an established business in town, that should be taken into consideration if another business wanted to set up a special event sale like the one being proposed.
“But that’s not our current ordinances,” Barker said. He did feel that West Michigan Auto Xchange should make sure anyone who purchases a vehicle at a special event in Lowell should know that there is a location in Kentwood where they can go with any problems. Peiper later said that the dealership’s name and address was on all the advertising and paperwork that was provided to buyers.
At the end of the conversation, Chambers made a motion to deny the special land use permit on the grounds that it did not meet standard A and would be detrimental to the public welfare. Commissioner Tony Ellis seconded the motion.
Burns interrupted at this point to ask if it might be better to table the issue and get a legal opinion on any ramifications that may come from denying the permit. Barker asked if Chambers would like to withdraw his motion, and Chambers reluctantly said yes. Then Schrauben made a motion to table the permit until the July meeting, and that motion passed unanimously.
The meeting was adjourned at 8:09pm, and the next regular meeting of the Lowell Planning Commission will be Monday, July 10, at 7pm in Lowell City Hall.
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