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Printer-Friendly ModeRezoning to include Trautner Rd expansion
July 19, 2005 —
The proposed Sub-Area Plan #1 includes an extended Trautner Road, a new accesss road off of Tittabawassee Road, and rezoning of much of the adajcent land. The positions of Trautner's expansion and the future Multi-Use Path may differ once constructed.
A proposed road construction plan in Kochville Township promises to provide more opportunities for commercial and residential development, as well as preventing a sprawling business district by centralizing it.
The plan, currently operating under the title "Kochville Township Sub-Area Plan #1," would entail the construction of a new road bisecting Tittabawassee and Kochville roads. The northern boundary of the new Sub-Area Plan #1 would be the future Multi-Use Path, which will extend from the Krossroads Park area to Center Road and beyond. The road would eventually be connected to Trautner Road – which currently ends at Bay Road – and run all the way to Center, a distance of more than two miles.
The new road would open up additional land for development, according to Kenneth P. Bayne, Kochville Township supervisor and zoning administrator. Zoning regulations require developments to have roadside access, which means small businesses off Tittabawassee prevent the majority of the land behind these properties to lie fallow and undeveloped. It would also encourage residential construction by placing a new road in the heart of Kochville Township, adjacent to the area's business and shopping activity.
"The property owners have shown enormous interest about this project," Bayne says. He also states that the road, and all of its accompanying utilities are being developer-driven, meaning the Township is not initiating any of the construction, and as such, is not paying any of the costs associated with the proposed new road. In order to enable construction to progress on the new road, new sewer and water lines would have to be laid down, something the Township would not be paying for.
Not all of the land would be developed solely for commercial interests, however. Much of the land from Mackinaw Road to Center Road would be zoned R-1, or Low Density Residential. The southern part of this area would primarily be zoned B-1, or Office Business Commercial.
From Mackinaw Road eastward to the current retail developments, the northern section of land would be zoned multi-family, which would enable condominiums and apartments to be constructed. The remaining areas would be zoned either Neighborhood Commercial or Community and Regional Retail, which would allow continued development of the business district, as well as preventing the business district from spreading out too far westward.
The Sub-Area Plan #1 will also entail some modifications to existing Kochville Township roads and infrastructure.
A connecting road would be built west of Kokomo's off Tittabawassee, to both help traffic flow smoother and to provide another gateway to the new developments. The road would also connect to Bueker Drive – the access point to Meijer from Bay Road – as well as Kabobel Drive, where much commercial activity exists just past the corner of Bay and Tittabawassee roads.
While there has been a flurry of construction in recent years, Bayne regards this proposed new plan, not as the major driving force in Kochville Township in coming years, but rather as a supplemental tool to the township's master plan of continued development.