The Chelsea City Council and the Lima Township Board held a work session to discuss the proposed Lima Springs subdivision planned by developer Ron Cook on Tuesday, July 9.
The proposed 107-home subdivision is planned for an about 40-acre parcel that’s landlocked and located east of the Chelsea Ridge development and west of North Fletcher Road.
The council was shown a preliminary layout of the proposed development and both the City Council and the Township Board expressed concerns about the location of access roads both in and out of the subdivision as well as the additional traffic. Currently, the only way in and out would be on Darwin and Provincial roads that empty onto Freer Road.
Officials would like to see an access road that would bring traffic out another way, possibly to North Fletcher Road, which is about a half mile away.
Chelsea officials pointed out that a subdivision of this size would change the landscape for current homeowners who live in Chelsea Ridge and Belzer Estates. Currently, they look out onto farm fields. And the officials questioned if there would be a buffer zone between the developments or some sort of “blended transition” since the proposed lot sizes for Lima Ridge are just 60-feet.
Chelsea officials also asked about the economic feasibility of a new development since nearby Heritage Pointe has not yet been built out, and Cook, who was in attendance at the work session, said he plans a community of phased-in, starter homes for families that would be priced at $200,000 or less.
Because the subdivision is in the township, officials discussed the possibility of Chelsea supplying the development with utilities. This would require Chelsea and Lima Township to agree on a conditional land transfer, known as a 425 agreement, between the two communities because the city only provides utilities to properties within the city limits.
Currently zoned agricultural, Cook plans to request a rezone to RS-1, which would allow the homes, and his request is on the Lima Township Planning Commission agenda on July 22.
Once the request is discussed by the Planning Commission, it would go to Carlisle Wortman, the township’s planning consultant, back to the Planning Commission and then onto the Township Board.
Pending the outcome of the rezoning request, the elected officials tentatively planned to hold another joint work session.
Access only onto Freer Rd. will generate an additional 800 to 1000 trip ends per day onto a street that cannot handle it especially between 8:00-10:00 in the morning and 3:00-6:00 in the evening. If secondary access is not provided this development should be denied.
It appears to me that someone has already decided that the City will subsidize the Lima Springs development. Will that individual or whomever make a pledge that they will personally pay the liability that is heaped upon city taxpayers so that Chelsea citizens will not be burdened financially as they were in the Pulte case. Would those City Council members who favored the Heritage Point development mention that support when they also support Lima Springs?