KFC passes site plan review
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HOUGHTON -- A Kentucky Fried Chicken will be coming to Houghton.
The Houghton Planning Commission approved a site plan review for the restaurant, to be located on an outparcel in front of the Evangel Church building off of Sharon Avenue, near Econo Foods.
The owners of the Econo Foods property objected to the proposal. Attorney Daniel Mead said the restaurant would prevent "harmonious use," of the space taking a phrase from the site plan approval checklist. He took issue with the curbing on the property, which he said violated the agreed-upon right to unimpeded access.
Mead said the move violated the cross-easement agreement made with ShopKo after it opened in the 1990s. The agreement governs vehicle and pedestrian traffic across the properties, the border of which approximately lines up with the access road from Sharon Avenue. It also prevents erecting another building on the property without the consent of the adjoining owner.
Randy Safford, lawyer for the buyer of the KFC lot, said he did not believe the agreement was relevant now. The use of the ShopKo building is vastly different with a church present, and Econo had technically violated it before by expanding its store in 2003 and moving the Shell gas station to the middle of the lot, he said.
The outlots had been carved out of the ShopKo property in 2005, Safford said.
"They've been for commercial sale for 16 years with no objection whatsoever from anybody," he said.
A new use is irrelevant, as the agreement "runs with the land," Mead said.
"It doesn't matter whether the ShopKo is there or not there," he said. "There's no Michigan case law that basically indicates because a different owner is not present, they can't enforce that easement. That will fail miserably."
City Manager Eric Waara said the city had requested the curbing in his talks with the restaurant.
Commission members said the curbing, rather than impeding access, enhanced the harmonious use of the site.
"I think we would all agree that the last thing we would want is unlimited traffic flow across property boundaries," said Commissioner Michelle Jarvie-Eggart. "That's a more dangerous situation. And so properly curbing and directing traffic flows is the appropriate thing."
Planning Commission members are required to approve the site plan review if it complies with the city's zoning ordinance.
"If this gentleman is right, and we approve this, and it's the wrong thing, it will go to court," Chair Tom Merz said. "But I think the bigger mistake for us is not to approve this, based upon what I've heard here."