One negative village council vote wouldn’t keep developers from returning to another council meeting in February.
Village Developers, who want to develop a 27 single-family unit condominium site on the west side of Newton Road, were turned down for site approval by a 3-1 Lake Orion Village Council vote on Jan. 24.
Newton Meadows had to have at least four yes votes for the approval to pass. Two councilmen, Ken Van Portfliet and Bob Hollenbeck, were absent. Council president Bill Siver asked to be excused from voting because he has a financial interest in the development.
Developers asked for another vote on the project on Feb. 14 when there is expected to be more council members present.
Councilman Tom Albert was the only one to vote no. ‘I think we’re overdeveloping this village. I don’t think it (the development) fits into the community,? he said.
Of the 27 units, nine are existing residences that will be incorporated into the condominium. Eighteen new building sites for single-family homes are proposed along a single cul-de-sac, Newton Court.
The homes, just over 1,750 square feet plus garage, would be sold for $230,000-$240,000. Newton Meadows will have underground utilities, street lighting, a fence between the old and new section.
‘I think it will serve the community well and will be additional tax base,? Jim Cummins, one of the developers, said.
Councilman Douglas Dendel felt traffic could be a problem on Atwater with the addition of more homes.
Sally Hodges, a vice president with planners McKenna Associates, told the council she didn’t believe adding that amount of units on Newton would create any traffic problems.
According to Lake Orion Village Manager JoAnn Van Tassel, Newton neighbors came to the planning commission meeting when the proposed development was being discussed and expressed support for the project.
Cummins told councilmen he prefers the road be public rather than private. ‘It’s going to be up to public road standards,? he added.
‘If it’s a public street, we’ll get extra street taxes,? Van Tassel said.
Storm water will be handled with swales and ditches.
‘Newton has had storm water problems. I’m not confident storm water will be dissipated properly,? councilman Harry Stephen said.
According to Cummins, the swales/ditches will accommodate a 10-year rain event. ‘We’ve met and exceeded all requirements,? he added.
Village engineers, Hubbell, Roth and Clark, agree that a natural grass swale would be the best way to handle storm water.
If the development is approved, council members suggested to Cummins that the developers provide a path to the nearby Paint Creek Trail. Cummins thought there would be no problem doing that.