MICHIGAN SITE FIGHT: WMT PROPOSAL SENT BACK TO COMMITTEE

Clinton Twp. sends Wal-Mart proposal back [The Detroit News]

Township trustees on Tuesday night sent back to the planning commission for reconsideration a proposal by Wal-Mart to open a supercenter at the busy corner of M-59 and Romeo Plank.

With the vote to send the plan back, the trustees continue to butt heads with Wal-Mart representatives. Trustees are hoping to get at least some of the concessions the corporation has given other Michigan communities in recent months. Township attorney Jack Dolan pointed out concessions Wal-Mart has made regarding reduced store hours in Livonia and traffic safety issues in Fenton and Shelby Township before board members voted Tuesday evening.

“There seems to be a lot of evidence that Wal-Mart with many municipalities displayed an attitude they’re willing to look seriously at issues that may affect the surrounding neighborhoods and communities,” Dolan said.

But Wal-Mart attorney Thomas Kalas urged trustees Tuesday to have a yea-or-nay vote, saying enough time had been spent.

“Sending it back to the planning commission in my mind is an exercise in futility,” said. One of the reasons the township was chosen for a supercenter, he said, is because the property was already properly zoned so the company wouldn’t have to submit to a series of stipulations.

“You’ve made it perfectly clear you’re opposed to Wal-Mart—to either delay us until we leave or turn us down,” Kalas told the board. Wal-Mart has already met all the requirements to put in a store, he said, and the township has no choice but to approve the plans.

About 20 people attended the meeting wearing lime green T-shirts with a circle and a line going through the word “Wal-Mart.” Several, such as Robert Baca, live near the proposed site and are afraid of the traffic dangers and congestion they believe the store will bring.

“Wal-Mart is only cooperating when they have to. With them, it’s my way or the highway,” he said. “I’m going to need a helicopter to bring me home because I’m never going to be able to get in my driveway.”

The company hopes to begin construction in the spring. Kalas said the company has no intention of bringing in anything but the 24-hour-a-day store.

“This will be a 24-hour operation store,” Kalas said. “The township does not have the legal authority on site plan approval for a permitted use, to limit the hours of operation.”

The company did agree to limit the height of stored pallets, improve landscaping, limit traffic at the rear of the store and restrict the noise from loudspeakers at a previous board meeting. Plans call for a 176,311-square-foot brick store with 800 parking spaces. The supercenter would sit next to the Mall at Partridge Creek, which is set to open next month. It will be the first Wal-Mart in Clinton Township and is set to be built between Wal-Mart stores on M-59, also known as Hall Road, in Chesterfield Township and Sterling Heights.

It would be the sixth Wal-Mart in the county. On Aug. 8, the Bentonville, Ark.-based chain opened its first supercenter in the tri-county area in Livonia.

Posted by Alex Goldschmidt on Wednesday, September 05, 2007

Click Here for a Printer-Friendly Version