By Joanne Bailey-Boorsma
joanne@wktv.org

After determining a developer had followed all the proper procedures required, the Wyoming City Council gave tentative approval to its first plat proposal in more than two years.

At its July 5 meeting, the Wyoming City Council followed the lead of the city’s Planning Commission and approved a tentative preliminary plat proposal, called The Greens of Wyoming, for a 13.15-arce parcel located off 56th Street not far from Gezon Parkway. Developer of the site is Sniper One LLC.

The tentative proposal calls for 39 lots to be built on the property with a straight road running about the full length of the site with a cul-de-sac at the end. The development is designed to connect with the Palmer Park subdivision to the east of it with Mulligan Drive being extended. Mulligan Drive is designated by the city to eventually link all the subdivisions over to Burlingame Avenue.

Many of the residents in the Palmer Park subdivision attended the meeting in opposition of the project citing a number of concerns including that the full engineering on the plan was not included and existing drainage problems that could increase if the plat is put in.

“I really don’t see how we can deny this project,” said City Councilmember Dan Burrill, who sits on the Planning Commission as the council’s representative. Burrill pointed out that the plat meets all the requirements set forth by the city including fitting the zoning for that area which is R-1 Residential.

City Manager Curtis Holt said it has been some time since the city council has had to review a plat. In fact, the last plat project brought to the city was the Rivertown Valley III located just south of 56th Street on Nile Drive. That plat’s final approval was in 2014.

For the City of Wyoming, the platting of property is a three-step process. The first step is the tentative preliminary plat which authorizes the basic lot sizes and orientation and street layout. The second step is the preliminary plat approval which will include the engineering detail for the construction of the plat. The last step is the final plat approval.

City Planner Tim Cochran said the city has a number of similar blocks of land like The Greens of Wyoming that could be developed especially now that the housing market seems to have stabilized. In fact, just west of The Greens of Wyoming property is another undeveloped parcel of land.

Residents especially were concerned about the overall layout of the plat and drainage issues. Because of the narrowness of the property, staff said there is not much more the developer could do as far as layout. The property does meet zoning with its 10,000-square-foot lots, which residents noted does not fit in with the current lot sizes of the existing properties.

As for drainage issues, Wyoming Department of Public Works Director Bill Dooley said after the June Planning Commission meeting, his staff investigated if it had received any complaints and did not find any on record. Mayor Jack Poll said staff will get back with residents on the drainage concerns.

Dooley said it’s good when residents do voice their concerns as it makes city staff and officials aware of what has been happening in a specific area and to make sure those concerns are addressed.

The developer can now move forward to get engineering and other requirements for the preliminary plat approval. This includes having the plan reviewed by the Kent County Drain Commissioner’s office.