Next Tuesday May 8th the City of Bloomfield Hills elects two commissioners from a field of five candidates. On May 12th The City’s Master Plan will be three years old. On May 15th the newly elected commissioners elect a new Mayor. Then they will listen to a public hearing on the City’s Proposed Tree and Woodlands Protection Ordinance.
The ordinance trimmed from 16 pages down to 11 also available on the City website. The Planning Commission passed the ordinance at their last meeting.Whether City Commission will vote on the matter on May 15th is yet to be determined. It is believed that the incumbent commission candidates if retained in the May 8th election would support the proposal giving its passage a 4 to 1 vote. If voters chose to elect any of two of the three challengers the proposal could be opposed by a 3-2 majority .
As a result words are heating up and two of the words most heard and least understood is“Master Plan.” For the City of Bloomfield Hills and like communities the State of Michigan mandates a Master Plan. The current Master Plan which can be found on the City Web site under the pull down tab of Economic Development is an eminently readable lavishly illustrated document. It is the work of a task force of four individuals who probably have not agreed on anything before or after but came together with healthy dose of community involvement to produce a masterpiece. Public participation included town hall meetings, focus groups, and survey of residents.
The Woodland Preservation Ordinance is discussed in the Master Plan. "which states, " Another concern with the trend to larger houses is the need to remove mature trees to accommodate expansions and the addition of accessory structures, such as garages, pools and sport courts. The cumulative impact of such activities can visibly impact neighborhoods and have a detrimental effect on the environment. As noted later in this chapter, some form of tree removal, woodland protection orreplanting ordinance may be appropriate to alleviate these concerns. (page 3-7)....The City does not currently regulate impacts to woodlands. One option could be a Woodland Preservation Ordinance that would help to protect “landmark” trees or tress in a front yard. Typically, such ordinances require a special approval to remove such trees and applicants are then required to plant replacement trees to help offset the impacts. The City could also establish a replanting program to replace dead/diseased trees, especially for elm and ash trees. Insensitive development practicesthat are not currently regulated, such as clear-cutting, could also be prohibited.(page 3-19)."
The key words is “some form of…. ordinance” The Mater Plan also includes an Action Plan for implementingdesired ordinances. One of the suggested Actions was to conduct an Annual Town Hall meeting to keep residents informed and to seek continued public opinion. Since the Master Plan’s inception in the spring of 2009, here have been no Town Hall meetings with residents.
The current 2011-2012 Woodlands Ordinance proposal was the formulated by the Ordinance Task force Sub Committee a group of four like minded individuals who allowed no public comment or input from the first meeting in August until a 16 page draft was ready for submission to the planning commission in January. Then a Public Hearing was held. The first of three as it so happened.
In this writer’s opinion most of those three hearings were devoted to the concerns of large property owners like the golf courses. Resident Michael Dul who is now a candidate for City Commission was not allowed to make an addition comment at the last Public Hearing because in the words of the meeting Chairman , the time for public comment had ended.
Proponents of the proposed ordinance say they are following the mandate of the Master Plan, but the Master Plan mandates no such thing. It is a guideline and a road map. Not a dictator. Proponents of the proposed ordinance often site the resident survey which favors the city’s natural features and environment. This is offered as justification for an ordinance which allows for involuntary city inspections of private property and penalties for failure to provide replacement trees or money which could result in a lien being placed on one’s home (page 10 of ordinance).
My name is Mark Kapel and I am running for City Commission. I believe the ordinance is too much Government by too few people. I support the Master Plan as written which is well reasoned, non-threatening document.
The Ordinance Task Force by insisting on regulation minutia and enforcement rules has failed to prohibit Insensitive development practices that are not currently regulated, such as clear-cutting. Since the Master Plan’s inception there has been no ordinance that prevents clear cutting. Every current commissioner or commission candidate has said they would support such an ordinance. So why don’t we have one ?
The May 8th City Commissioners election will be a referendum on commissioners who support the ordinance as written or those who want more public input from homeowners who are the majority of the city’s residents. On May 15ththere will be a Public Hearing with the new commission. The Commissioners you elect next Tuesday will comprise 40% of the decision making body that will conduct a state mandated Five Year Review of the City’s Master Plan in early 2014. Choose carefully.
