COLDWATER, MI (WTVB) – Members of the City of Coldwater Planning Commission spent over an hour Tuesday night reviewing an audit prepared by Giffels Webster of Detroit to see if some city zoning ordinances could be streamlined and brought up to date in the future.
Coldwater Mayor Tom Kramer said during a May 2019 Planning Commission meeting that various Commission members were frustrated with some of the ordinances, processes, rules, and policies that have developed over the years.
Consultant Jill Bahm said one of the nine priority items listed in the 25-page audit was updating the sign ordinance to make it consistent with case law.
Another priority was updating certain districts, to permit places of worship that would be consistent with permitting other places of assembly.
Bahm added parking and landscaping standards could definitely be updated.
Another priority was exploring opportunities to enhance housing choices in the city, particularly close to downtown.
Other priority items were updating provisions for wireless communications that would be consistent with federal and state laws; developing the new district for the transition areas on Chicago Street near downtown as described in the Master Plan; updating time frames for development review and developing lighting standards for non-single family residential properties.
