Midwestern Consulting

The new Ann Arbor area, height and placement regulations include a new zoning district, R4E/multifamily, that targets parcels that front on “significant transit corridors” as identified in the Master Plan.  These corridors, identified on the map above in blue, (the DDA boundary is shown in red) are:

• Plymouth Road from US-23 to the DDA boundary
• Jackson/Huron Road from I-94 to the DDA boundary
• State Street from I-94 to the DDA boundary
• Washtenaw Boulevard from US-23 to the DDA boundary

 The new R4E zoning regulations include:

• Minimum 580 square feet per unit; maximum 75 dwelling units per acre
• No height limit
• Minimum 14,000 square foot lot area
• Minimum 120 foot lot width
• Minimum 40 percent “usable open space”*
• Minimum 15 foot front yard setback/ maximum 40 feet
• Minimum 10 foot side yard setback**
• Minimum 30 foot rear yard setback***

The intent is to provide higher density residential along major transportation corridors.  The challenge is to achieve 75 dwelling units per acre while providing parking usable open space.

There is no established parking requirement at this point. The Ann Arbor Planning Department has this on their “to do” list and for now defers to the old R4C/D requirement of 1 ½ spaces per unit.   

The challenge for an off-campus student housing project is even greater since each unit may have up to six unrelated adults living in it and parking demand could be much higher. Some form of structured parking is likely to be required.   

Clarifications:

* There is no definition for “Usable open space” so the Planning Department defers to the definition for “Open space”: “The portion of a lot which is devoted to outdoor recreation space, greenery, and space for household activities.  Open space area may include, but shall not be limited to, lawns, landscaping and gardens, wooded areas, sidewalks and walkways, active and passive recreational areas, unenclosed accessory structures used for recreational purposes, permanent or seasonal water surfaces and protected natural areas.  It shall not include area covered by parking lots, driveways, refuse facilities, or enclosed accessory structures.”

**plus 1 foot additional setback for each foot of building height over 30 feet when abutting residentially zoned land; and 3 inches per foot over 35 feet height and 1 ½ inches per foot over 50 feet width

**plus 1 foot additional setback for each foot of building height over 30 feet when abutting residentially zoned land

 Earl Ophoff is a senior project manager and a registered landscape architect at Midwestern Consulting, LLC in Ann Arbor.  Contact Earl at 734.995.0200.

“ZORO” is the City of Ann Arbor project to “clarify and reorganize the Zoning Ordinance and development-related Ordinances.”

After 40 years, the ordinances are riddled with revisions and overlapping and contradictory provisions.  Unclear ordinance definitions are often controversial and are subject to interpretation by the Planning Commission, Council, or the public. Departmental “policy” may substitute for clear and enforceable standards.  Recent site plan projects, for example, included major battles over the definition of “building height”, the definition of a multifamily unit, and the requirements for open space versus usable open space.

“ZORO” began with the consolidation of four area master plans into one.

The second phase is to:

-  make each chapter comprehensive and not rely on references to other chapters

-  provide clear, consistent standards, and definitions and formats

-  make chapters usable by laymen and professionals

-  make requirements enforceable and legally defensible

-  provide a structure that is easy to amend in the future

Major revisions so far:

• Chapter 55, Zoning, and Chapter 59, Off-Street Parking: these were revised in January 2011 when revised Area, Height and Placement Amendments were adopted. Approved Area Height and Placement Revisions
• Chapter 62, Landscaping and Screening: draft revisions are currently under review. Primary amendments impact conflicting land use buffer requirements and interior parking lot landscape design and function.  Draft Landscape Revisions

Ann Arbor developers hope these crucial revisions will foster a better understanding of the business and community benefits of their proposed real estate development projects.

To find out more about how new Ann Arbor ordinances can help your development project, please contact Earl Ophoff, Associate and Senior Project Manager at Midwestern Consulting, Ann Arbor, Michigan (734.995.0200).

Staff at Midwestern Consulting recently proposed plantings for a green roof and courtyard project.  The plants included something unfamiliar, White Snakeroot (eupatorium rugosum).  So we looked it up.  

Snakeroot is pretty, but toxic

The plant is pretty but toxic.  It causes “milk sickness” in people who drink milk from animals that eat it.  White Snakeroot killed thousands of people, including Nancy Hanks the mother of Abraham Lincoln, in 1818 at the age of 34. Abe was nine at the time.

While it isn’t likely that cows or goats will be grazing on the roof or in the courtyard of this particular project, a lesson was learned.  It is important to check proposed plantings for toxicity for particular uses and locations.

It’s surprising how many plants are toxic to people or to cats and dogs. Buttercups and azaleas are toxic to cats.  English ivy is toxic to dogs.

The fact is that many ornamental plants, or parts of plants (leaves, berries, bulbs, roots), are toxic to some extent and during different stages of their growth.

Most home gardens contain at least some toxic plants. Some of the most popular ornamentals are toxic including shrubs like Rhododendrons and Hydrangeas, trees like Horse-chestnut and Holly, house plants such as Dieffenbachia and Croton and other perennials and annuals.

So are some of the things we grow in the garden.  Ingesting rhubarb leaves can be fatal.  A few Daphne berries can kill a child. A couple of castor beans can kill an adult (the toxin “ricin” is derived from castor beans).  And eating the foliage on the common yew can be fatal. 

And to make things a bit more confusing, some plants are safe to eat at some times and potentially fatal at others.

Poke salad is featured in “Poke Salad Annie” or “Polk Salad Annie“, a 1969 song written and performed by Tony Joe White. Its lyrics describe the lifestyle of a Southern girl. Make sure you know what you are picking. Poke, phytolacca/pokeweed, is toxic when it gets over a foot or so high.

So plant selection and an awareness of plant toxicity are important! 

For more complete plant toxicity information, please go here:  http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/lawn_garden/toxicson/toxicson.html

Earl Ophoff is a senior project manager and registered landscape architect at Midwestern Consulting in Ann Arbor, Michigan.  Contact Earl at efo@midwesternconsulting.com.

Only approval of a brownfield tax credit from the Michigan Economic Development Corporation stands in the way of the start of a 10,430 square foot expansion project at the historic Zingerman’s Delicatessen in Ann Arbor. Last week the Ann Arbor Historic District Commission approved the proposed $6.7 million project.

A couple of years ago, the city appeared willing to fight this project to its death.  Now apparently the owners plans work and the project appears to be on track. 

We’ve heard lately that the city of Ann Arbor is becoming more developer friendly.  Perhaps the expansion of one of the city’s flagship businesses is proof of that.

The Michigan Legislature passed the Complete Streets transportation legislation yesterday.  Governor Granholm is expected to sign the bill into law soon.

The legislation is designed to make transportation engineers and city planners think about the needs of users of roadways other than motorists – mainly bicyclists and walkers.  If any of you have had the misfortune of riding your bike in the street and having rude motorists hog the roadway or honk at you in anger you know where this legislation is aimed.

We generally support this new design effort.  But what will it mean to cities, counties and townships?  Will the costs of acquiring new ROW access for sidewalks or bike paths, and their related constructon costs, be worth the effort to encourage residents to ditch their cars? 

If Michigan’s transportation engineers and city planners are serious in their efforts to promote a healthier lifestyle through walking and bicycle riding, there needs to be safe non-motorized pathways for people to use. 

But, we ask, at what cost?

What do you think?  Please leave a comment on this site.