BYRON TWP, Mich. — The Byron Township Board unanimously denied a proposal Monday to rezone 58 acres at 8900 Homerich Avenue from rural agricultural to suburban residential, following pushback from neighbors concerned about traffic and the pace of housing development in the area.
WATCH: Neighbor's concerns prompt Byron Township board to reject development plans
Neighbors along Homerich Avenue, including Donna Terrell, raised concerns about the safety risks of adding more traffic to the road.
"What I'm mostly worried about is the traffic. That hill that comes down to where the line will come out for them to have traffic come out is already dangerous, even from where we live," Terrell said.
Another resident, Theresa Dekker, urged board members to consider the character of the community before approving more development.
"Please keep in mind your commitment to Byron Center and what Byron Center is all about, and the people that make up Byron Center and the good all of us," Dekker said.
Theresa also questioned whether the proposed density was appropriate for the site.
"To put too many houses in that 58-acre plot is just not going to fit. It's going to look like a paper in the wrong hole," Dekker said.
Resident Duane Grit echoed those concerns, calling for a slowdown in construction across the township.
"I think it's time to slow down some of the building going on to keep it. I mean, we're getting way too many houses," Grit said.
Not everyone opposed the project. Pat Stivey, an engineer with the development team, argued the proposal aligned with the township's master plan.
"This plan anticipates the orderly and sequential transition of development into attractive and inviting single-family neighborhoods within areas," Stivey said.
Neighbor Rita Garvelink raised additional concerns about traffic near Byron West Middle School, which sits on the same street.
"The thing that I'm seeing right now is certainly the traffic is an issue with the school system down at the end. And then you're thinking about adding more traffic," Garvelink said.
Garvelink lives down the street from the development, also pointed to existing congestion near a nearby intersection as evidence the road is already strained.
"At the end of the street where Homerich meets 84th Street, that traffic is bad trying to get across or even to turn left," Garvelink said.
Board Trustee Scott Tubergen said the township simply does not have the same need for housing growth as other communities in Michigan.
"We're not Flint where we're just dying for housing units here. That's what we have to recognize. There are townships in the state that are dying for housing units to be built," Tubergen said.
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