Royal Oak homeowners rally in opposition to plans to turn vacant building into apartments
ROYAL OAK, Mich. (CBS DETROIT) - The proposal to turn a vacant building into apartments on W. Fourth Street is raising concerns for homeowners in one Royal Oak neighborhood.
"We've all been living with this for 10 years," said Jeanne Sarnacki. "We don't want what they're offering."
Sarnacki is one of several residents against converting the property into 25 apartment units.
"This is too densely a property for 25 units; it shouldn't be any more than seven units," she said.
Homeowners said the area is already densely packed. They added the neighborhood, which is zoned for single-family homes, doesn't have the capacity for more apartments.
"We're just at maximum capacity, so adding this high density it's just going to completely crush our vibe in the neighborhood," said homeowner Andrea Carollo.
Carollo and others have come together to voice their concerns over the potential development.
She said most people living within 100 feet of the property have signed a petition opposing the plan.
"Ninety percent of people signed a petition against this project in our neighborhood," said Carollo.
The city's planning commission recently voted to recommend a conditional rezoning permit to build the apartments.
"We need to hear them, and we need to listen carefully and understand that," said City Manager Paul Brake.
Brake said the city continues to consider the future of the property on Fourth Street.
He said the city will weigh the community's concerns and Royal Oak's need for more housing options.
"That is something we hear time and time again, that there is not enough housing here, especially for people who want different choices," he said.
The city commission still needs to vote to approve the zoning permit on the vacant property.
Carollo said homeowners have enough people who signed the petition and that any approval will need to get the green light from two-thirds of the commission.
"We as a neighborhood do not want this to go forward, and we are pursuing every single avenue possible to stop it," said Carollo. "We retained an attorney who has assured us that it is not within Royal Oak, the city's, legal capacity to simply forget about the zoning variances."
The petition many people in the neighborhood signed will be presented to the city commission during Monday night's meeting. They're hoping commission members will sit down with them and talk about a better way forward.
