Office building plans headed to township board

The Bloomfield Township Planning Commission on Monday, December 2, recommended approval of a site plan for a two-story, 10,308-square foot office building in the 1600 block of Telegraph Road. The proposed building will occupy a vacant space at 1675 Telegraph, on the east side of Telegraph and north of Crestview Avenue. The plan calls for a shared access drive from northbound Telegraph to serve the property and the existing building at 1681 Telegraph Road. The building will be built on .84 acres, with 59 feet of frontage along Telegraph. The property owner, Michael McGlothlin, is requesting the property be rezoned from its current light manufacturing (M-L) to general business (B-3) zoning. The property is adjacent to general business properties to the north and south, with light manufacturing property to the east on the opposite side of a vacated street. Bloomfield Township Deputy Director of Planning, Building and Ordinance Andrea Bibby said in a memo to the commission that the B-3 district is intended to allow for a variety of automobile services and goods incompatible with uses in the community business district, and not permitted. The general business district is more diversified and often designed to serve passerby traffic. The planning commission recommended the zoning board of appeals (ZBA) approve the rezoning request, and the board of trustees approve the site plan, with six conditions. Those conditions include ensuring the plans are in compliance with all requirements of the township departments; comply with the township's landscape architect requirements; comply with the township's traffic engineer requirements; seek necessary variances from the ZBA; ensure roof-mounted mechanicals are screened from public view; and submit signage proposals to the design review board for approval.