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Gaines Twp. appeals board denies Dollar General request for fewer parking spaces




Jason Raleigh of AR Engineering and Mark Zawatski of Swartz Creek BTS Retail discuss plans for a new Dollar General with the Gaines Township Zoning Board of Appeals.

Jason Raleigh of AR Engineering and Mark Zawatski of Swartz Creek BTS Retail discuss plans for a new Dollar General with the Gaines Township Zoning Board of Appeals.

GAINES TWP. — A lot of Gaines Township residents are not happy about a new Dollar General proposed for the corner of Morrish and Grand Blanc roads, and they let their feelings be known at a special meeting of the township Zoning Board of Appeals on Monday, Nov. 22.

“I am absolutely opposed to this,” said Sandra Cawood. “There’s no need for it; Isaac’s is right there. If you want to go (to Dollar General), you can drive three miles down the road (to Linden and Grand Blanc roads). I don’t think this will serve the community well.”

Representatives from Swartz Creek BTS Retail, the company that would own the building and lease it to Dollar General, and from AR Engineering, appeared before the appeals board to request a variance to the zoning ordinance requirement regarding parking spaces.

The store would be built on 1.65- acres at the southwest corner of Morrish and Grand Blanc roads.

Jason Raleigh, from Kalamazoo-based AR Engineering, said the requirement for one parking space per 100 square feet of retail space is “excessive.”

BTS would have to install 85 parking spaces for the building that would measure 10,640 square feet including storage and office space. The developers have proposed 36 spaces.

Mark Zawatski, of BTS, said the proposed count is based on “data from 16,000 stores all over the country.”

“Dollar General is a convenience retailer,” he said, adding that, on average, there are only four to five customers in the store at any given time, and most only stay 15 to 20 minutes.

He pointed out that the Dollar General in Mundy Township, just three miles away, has 30 spaces, as do the stores in Lennon and Durand, both of which are about nine miles from the proposed store. The Byron store, which is about 12 miles away, has 26.

“We don’t want a huge lot that’s vacant,” he said.

The large parking lot would create unnecessary additional runoff, and reduce the opportunities for landscaping on site, he said.

ZBA Chairman Chad Morey expressed concern about providing sufficient space for delivery drivers to maneuver the large tractor-trailer trucks on the premises without blocking traffic on either Grand Blanc or Morrish roads.

Board member Donald Sinkler pointed out that, after Dollar General’s lease is up in 15 to 35 years, another business could occupy that space and need the additional parking.

When all was said and done, the board determined that the spokesmen for Dollar General did not demonstrate the “hardship” that the township’s ordinance requires for granting the variance.

The board voted 4 to 1 to deny the applicant’s appeal, with board member Bill Harris casting the dissenting vote.

Harris said he felt 36 spaces was a good number for the proposed use, and he is concerned about the environmental impact of the extra runoff.

Harris also noted that “there are additional hurdles” that the developers must clear at the Planning Commission and Board of Trustees levels.

The appeals board decision drew applause from the crowd of 30 to 40 residents, many of whom turned out to support the owners of Isaac’s Grocery.

Quoting a recent article published by Consumer Reports magazine, resident Robert Henderson said dollar stores are threatening the smaller, locally-owned stores that survived the “Walmart invasion” and officials in many areas are concerned that it can be a detriment to the local economy.

Resident Chad Peck agreed, asking where the money that Dollar General makes goes, and pointing out that the earnings from locally-owned businesses stay largely within the immediate economy.