IRONWOOD, MI - Thursday, March 27, 2008 - On Wednesday, March 26, 2008, a Public Hearing of the Ironwood Planning Commission took place in the City Commission Chambers on the second floor of the Ironwood Memorial Building.

The Public Hearing was to review and consider action on a Site Plan Review Application submitted by Hitch Engineering, on behalf of Josephson's Nursing Home, for a proposed building expansion totaling approximately 20,000 square feet, located at 634 East Ayer Street, Ironwood, Michigan.

The meeting was called to order at 5:30 PM CST, by Planning Commission Chairman John Wyssling. Commission Secretary Jane Bowman took roll, announcing that Commissioners Mark Fitting and Bob Schomberg were both excused, while all other members of the Commission were present. Seated from left to right in the Commission Chambers were Planning Commissioners Debbie Bowles, Sam Davey, John Kasieta, Chairman John Wyssling, Jackie Powers, Eric Lytwyniuk, and Margaret Rayner.

Prior to the meeting newly-appointed Commissioners Sam Davey and John Kasieta were sworn into office.

The Commission Chairman read the Public Hearing rules prior to opening the meeting.

Once the rules were established, Chairman Wyssling asked City Manager Scott Erickson to bring the Commission "up-to-speed" about what was going on. Erickson informed the Commission of the developments of the Nursing Home expansion project. He informed the Commission that representatives of Hitch Engineering were in the audience and would be giving a brief presentation to explain the Site Plan and the project. Erickson pointed out that Jim and Pricilla Cross, owners of Josephson's, were also in the audience to answer any questions or to address any concerns.

Erickson told the Commission that the project developers were given a checklist by City Staff of twelve items to be addressed. He noted that all but one of the items on the list were corrected to the Staff's satisfaction. The last remaining item was related to water drainage from the property onto Ayer Street, but he added that this minor problem would soon be resolved.

Chairman Wyssling asked the Commission if they had any questions relating to the Site Plan. Commissioner Rayner asked the developers if there were plans for any kind of buffer between the properties along the side of the structure.

A representative from Hitch Engineering told Rayner that a fence will be constructed along the west side of the building and that the Jim and Pricilla Cross would be working closely with the property owners to the west -- Mr. and Mrs. Robert Erspamer -- to insure the fence is acceptable with them. The Hitch representative also indicated that there would be landscaping around the fence as well.

Jackie Powers asked if the only entrance to the parking lot was from Ayer Street. She questioned what appeared to be entrances from Pabst Street, and she was informed that they were fire exits.

Commissioner Kasieta questioned whether or not the plan has allowed for adequate snow removal. According to the Hitch representative, the plan is in compliance with the City ordinance. Scott Erickson asked the Hitch rep to point out where the snow would be stored, and he stated that there was adequate space to handle those concerns. (The snow storage area on the plan is highlighted in yellow.) [CLICK HERE]

Commissioner Bowles asked the Hitch representative if the correction of the drainage problem that was previously mentioned would affect the location of the parking area for the project. She was informed that the parking lot location will not change. "There will be no parking off of Pabst Street, if that's what you are asking." the rep stated.

Chairman Wyssling then asked if there were any comments from residents of the neighborhood. Robert Erspamer, 623 Pabst Street, stood up and explained that he and his wife were the property owners to the west of the project. They are very pleased with the project, Erspamer told the Commission. He said their main concern was the fence, and he explained that the developers have been very good about resolving that problem. He went on to say, however, there were two concrete pads on the plan that concerned him – one for an electric generator and the other for an electrical transformer (highlighted on the plan in red).

Erspamer asked if the pads could be moved because they were right along his fence-line. The engineers explained that moving the generator and the transformer to the other side of the building would be very costly, and impractical. Ms. Cross indicated that the State has strict guidelines on resident viewing, and moving them to the other side of the building was not acceptable to the State.

After some discussion, it was agreed that the pads might be able to be moved closer to the Erspamer's garage and farther away from his backyard. Erspamer said that would be acceptable.

Commissioner Rayner brought up the issue of possible noise from the generator. The Hitch representatives indicated that the unit was only turned on once a month for testing and would only be used in case of a power outage. According to the engineers, the generator is designed for residential areas, and it shouldn't be a major concern.

Commissioner Rayner asked if the handicapped parking could be increased for the project. There are currently two handicapped spaces out of 44 total spaces. Commissioner Powers pointed out that the law requires 42 conventional spaces for a project this size, so at the most, two spaces could be added. Because of the fact that handicapped parking takes more space than conventional parking, only one more space could possibly be added. Rayner asked if the current handicapped spaces are being used regularly. Jim Cross pointed out that they are rarely used. Pricilla Cross told the Commission that most of the handicapped visitors to the facility are brought to the home via Caring and that they are assisted by the care-giver to the front door and picked up at a later time.

Following the brief discussion on handicapped parking, Chairman Wyssling asked if there were any other questions from the Commissioners or anyone else. There were none, so Wyssling closed the public comment section of the hearing.

It was decided that three issues still needed to addressed regarding the Site Plan for the project. The Commission unanimously voted to approve the Site Plan provided the City Staff agrees that the issues at hand are resolved.

The public hearing was adjourned at 5:50 PM CST.

AUDIO 

Jim Albert