Plans for new three-story building approved

By Grace Lovins

A new three-story commercial building to be located at 36977 Woodward Avenue in Birmingham was given preliminary approval by the city’s planning board during their Wednesday, September 10, board meeting.

InvestWise Financial LLC will occupy the new building at a site that has sat vacant for decades at the corner of Woodward and Quarton Road.

Owner of InvestWise Financial Dean Thurman told the board the building would be a new home for the company currently operating in Bloomfield Hills. He said the family-owned firm is made up of roughly 20 employees, and the company will own and occupy the building itself.

City planning director Nick Dupuis presented the plans to the board, explaining that the three-story building will sit in the city’s TZ3 transitional zoning district. He said the maximum stories for a TZ3-zoned building is four stories, meaning the building is under that requirement, but it still exceeds the actual height requirements by about three feet.

Dupuis and the board also discussed the building’s frontage requirements. As the city requires 75 percent of the building frontage within five feet of the lot line, the city’s board of zoning appeals would have to grant a variance to go through with the current design.

A similar issue came about with the entrances to the building. Buildings with street frontage are also required to have an entrance on the street, but the plans did not show one proposed. The owners will either have to pursue a variance from the board of \zoning appeals or adjust their designs to meet the requirement.

The ordinance also requires the building to have 19 parking spaces, which the plans show exactly. Surrounding the building will also be required landscaping and screening as set by the city’s ordinance. Dupuis also noted that the owners plan to make improvements for pedestrians including new crosswalk striping at Woodward and sidewalks around the building.

Because of the site's previous use as a gas station years ago, board member Bryan Williams asked about any environmental concerns. Mike Valant, managing director of Newmark commercial real estate advisor, explained that the underground tanks were removed and remediation was complete in the early 2000s, but a restrictive covenant on the property states that a vapor mitigation barrier has to be installed. Valant said the barrier is already part of the plan.

Ultimately, the board collectively stated they were excited to see a new building being proposed for the lot to bring life to the corner of Quarton and Woodward. The board unanimously approved the preliminary site plan in a 7-0 vote with the conditions that they address the frontage, street entrance, as well as other minor fixes to the plans.

Board member Janelle Boyce was absent from the meeting, so alternate member Duncan Currie voted in her place.