Opponents of a controversial housing development in Traverse City prevailed last night with the city commission. The proposal to allow four houses where only three can be built under current zoning rules came up one vote short.
Most of the public comment came from residents of Slabtown Neighborhood who were against the proposal. Many said it would make traffic problems worse along West Front Street. Some said that there was no good reason for the change.
One person who spoke against the idea, but is not a resident of Slabtown, was Seamus Shinners, the president of the Central Neighborhood Association. He reminded commissioners that it was less than a year since some of them came to the neighborhood groups, as candidates, asking for support.
“And you listened to our concerns at that time, Shinners said, “and we got the impression that neighborhoods matter.”
Supporters of the project said it would have fit the neighborhood perfectly and allowed for more dense housing, which is a goal of the city’s master plan in that area.
The reversal was a bit of a surprise since the commission had decided by a six-to-one vote to take up the proposal after the planning commission had already rejected it.
Commissioner Ross Richardson was one of the commissioners who changed his mind and voted no. Richardson explained that, at first, he couldn’t figure out why people were so upset at a change that would allow just one extra house.
Then he decided to look at it from the other direction.
“And I couldn’t really honestly see what the huge advantage to the city was,” he said.
Jeanine Easterday and Mayor Mike Estes also voted no. The mayor was the only member of the commission who didn’t comment before the vote.
