Development could rival size of Saline if fully built
Geoff Larcom and Tracy Davis
Ann Arbor News, January 3, 2005

Biltmore proposes 2,500 to 4,000 homes

A proposed development just south of Saline could more than match the city's current population of 9,180, if it is built to its maximum proportions.

Biltmore Holdings LLC, a Troy company that has long been a player on the regional development scene, has proposed 2,500 to 4,000 homes on 20 parcels totaling 1,060 acres in northeast Saline Township. With 2.64 people per household that the township currently averages, that could bring 10,650 more people to one of the county's most rural townships.

Some residents have balked at the idea, saying it will destroy the township's rural, agricultural character. They have formed a group - Neighbors for Preserving Saline Township - and at least one member has said they will seek a voter referendum if officials approve the development.

But developers say 4,000 homes is a maximum number, with a more likely figure between 2,500 and 3,500. It would be phased in over time - likely 15 years - giving the area time to adjust.

And the scale of such a project ultimately allows for a better planned community with preserved parks, open space and wetlands, as well as land set aside for a new township hall and a library, developers say.

The project vaults another community into the debate over growth in the Ann Arbor area, where proponents cite the need for new, thoughtfully planned communities and opponents say development will irrevocably alter the landscape and farming heritage.

Signs of growth

Saline Township, southwest of the city of Saline, is home to many historic family farms that produce milk, apples, corn, soybeans and wheat.

While some homes have recently cropped up close to the city, the township, which has the lowest collective taxable value of any township in the county, changed little between 1900 and 2000. During that time, the population increased only 20 percent.

But according to estimates from the Southeast Michigan Council of Governments, it has grown more over the past four years than it did during the previous century.

The current population is estimated at about 2,000, up 54 percent from the 2000 Census.

David Stollman, Biltmore's senior vice president for development, said the firm chose Saline Township because of recent growth and the number of commuters who head to Ann Arbor.

He also cited Ann Arbor's Greenbelt program, which creates additional pressure for development elsewhere in the county. "There is a large regional need for housing in the area," Stollman said.

The land slated for development is zoned for agriculture. But the township's master plan calls for an eventual residential area with one house per acre. Biltmore, which has options on about two-thirds of the land, is seeking to rezone the area at 2-4 houses per acre, said Alan Greene, an attorney who represents Biltmore.

Stollman said the scale of the development will allow for a better-planned community. He said it would include housing for a range of demographics, including seniors, empty nesters and young families. Single-family homes would come in a variety of sizes, including townhouses and duplexes.

The housing would be clustered amid parks, wetlands and open space. Clusters would be linked by paths, and the development would include property for a library and a township hall, Greene said.

Prices would start in the mid- to high $100,000 range and go as high as $750,000, Stollman said.

The number of homes built depends on negotiations with the township, Stollman said, adding that 4,000 is an "absolute maximum." Construction could begin by 2007 if the project is approved.

Biltmore has hired a consultant to study how to handle increased traffic on what are now dirt roads. The company plans to help pay for improvements.

The area is not currently served by municipal water and sewer. But Greene said Biltmore would look at options including a central community well, or connecting to Ypsilanti Community Utilities Authority or Saline city lines. Officials say they have had informal discussions with both entities.

Biltmore says the project will provide revenue to a township that the previous supervisor characterized as having a hard time making ends meet.

Will it be built?

When large developments are proposed, they sometimes don't materialize. Developers change plans, residents protest, there are legal challenges and the market changes.

Growth has been pivotal in many recent elections, including Saline Township. In many places, incumbents have been ousted in favor of slow-growth candidates. In others, challengers who oppose development find themselves in the minority.

In Saline Township, a slate of three Republicans supported by the neighbors group lost to two incumbent trustee candidates and an allied supervisor candidate, all farmers with roots in the community.

Grass-roots efforts have also turned away developers, even when proposals are approved by officials.

In Northfield Township, residents collected signatures for a referendum on a plan that originally proposed 5,000 homes on 1,100 acres. Voters rejected the proposal in May by a 2-to-1 ratio. So far, the developer has sought approval for only 450 homes. The company sued the township this fall, asking a judge to overturn the referendum and let it build the 450 homes on 212 acres.

And in November, challengers backed by the residents' group Northfield Neighbors took four of seven seats on the Board of Trustees, including the supervisor post. The neighbors group was formed in 2002 to fight the large development.

"The bottom line is, there's only one thing people hate more than sprawl, and that's density," said Rick Hills, a University of Michigan law professor with expertise in land use.

Hills said the balance of what a developer is able to offer a township in terms of amenities and improvements, coupled with the local political climate, will ultimately determine the success of the project. And that depends on whether the developer can still make the numbers work so the project can yield a profit.

"My theorem is the ratio of yuppies to farmers depends on whether the development can go in."

Biltmore has been active in southeast Michigan. The company's housing projects include Barclay Park in Ann Arbor, Forester Square in Auburn Hills and Cherry Hill Village in Canton Township.

Biltmore was involved in the planned Water Street condominium project in Ypsilanti, but city officials said this week they are dissolving the relationship.

Canton Township Supervisor Tom Yack said that Biltmore worked very well with township officials in building Cherry Hill Village.

"It was a great relationship," he said. "I'm hard-pressed to think of examples where they didn't do what they said they would."

Like the Saline Township plan, but on a smaller scale, Cherry Hill Village mixes types of housing with open space, parks and trails. The development was built to harken back to Cherry Hill Village, a hamlet that started in the 1850s but never grew, according to Yack.

Traffic vs. retirement

Some Saline Township residents oppose the development, fearing it would ruin the area's scenic, uncluttered setting, snarling traffic on lightly traveled two-lane and quiet dirt roads. They also worry the added tax base might not cover the demand for new services.

The 15-acre Mooreville Road property of Laurie Leinbach and her husband Greg, which they chose for the peace and quiet, would be surrounded by the houses.

"When you drive down the road, you don't feel it's crying out for homes," Leinbach said. "It would change everyone in the area's lifestyle, including Saline, because of the traffic. This many homes and this many people would cause a lot of issues."

Leinbach understands that some people would like to broaden the township tax base, but she doesn't think officials should abandon the master plan's one home per acre requirement. "I just don't think this (project) is the way to go about it," she said.

Chris Patalan, who runs a horse farm at Braun and Mooreville roads with her husband Mike, has lived at that spot for 32 years. She realizes that development will come to the township, but hopes it can remain more spread out, with homes on 5- or 6-acre lots. "I don't think Saline will support that many homes," she said of Biltmore's plan.

But property owners who have sales agreements with Biltmore say it's the best option for them, and that the development will stimulate the township economy.

Susan Heusel, 53, and her husband Eugene, 59, grow soybeans, corn and wheat on their land. Eugene is a plumber who has farmed all his life and grew up in the area.

Six years ago, Susan fell off a tractor and was run over by a hay baler, fracturing both hips. "If I could get back on the tractor and drive it, I would love it," she said. "It took a long time to decide this. ... This is going to be our retirement. We don't have a lot to fall back on."

Heusel said the township can use the tax revenue from the homes, as could the Saline schools. "If the township wants parks and things like that, Biltmore would plan those elements," she said. "Those people who are (now) on 10 acres, they got their property from farmers at one time."

Impact on schools

Saline Schools Superintendent Sam Sinicropi said it's too early to tell if the development would require new schools, but he wouldn't be surprised if that were the case.

The district has space for a new middle school and elementary school on land that houses the new high school and Harvest Elementary, he said.

While district officials are aware of the Biltmore plan, Sinicropi said there hasn't been a lot of discussion. Two planning committees have talked about it and other developments generally, he said.

He noted that the 5,400-student district projects an enrollment rise of 750-1,000 students during the next five years even without the Biltmore project.

Art Trapp, a commercial real estate broker and vice president of the Saline school board, said the Biltmore project could be a positive in that it would bring in more enrollment and thus more per-pupil funding from the state.

He said the district has classroom space, and that since the pace of such developments is often slow, additional students wouldn't turn up overnight. "It could be 2010 before they even break ground," he said.

Saline Township Supervisor Jim Marion, whose own farm is adjacent to the Biltmore land, said the township has hired a planning firm to study the proposal. He said he has not heard many details yet.

"The township residents are the ones we want to listen to, and we'll go from there," he said.

News staff reporter Ann Schimke contributed to this story. Geoff Larcom can be reached at glarcom@annarbornews.com or (734) 994-6838.