Regular Meeting Minutes, July 17, 2025

Planning Commission Meeting Minutes - Proposed The Planning Commission met for a Regular Committee Meeting, July 17, 2025, at 6:30 p.m. at City Hall, 102 Butler St., Saugatuck, MI 49453. 1. Call to Order/Attendance: The meeting was called to order by Chair Manns at 6:31 p.m. Present: Commission members Bagierek, Baldwin, Clark, Gaunt, LaChey, & Manns, & Marineau. Absent: None. Others Present: Planning & Zoning Director Thompson, Deputy Clerk Williams, City Planner Jirousek, (Horizon Planning). 2. Approval of Agenda: Motion by Gaunt, second by LaChey, to approve the agenda for July 17, 2025. Upon voice vote, motion carried unanimously. 3. Approval of Minutes: Motion by Clark, second by Bagierek, to approve the minutes for the regular meeting held on June 19, 2025, and the minutes from the special meeting held on June 25, 2025. Upon voice vote, motion carried unanimously. 4. Public Comment (Agenda Items Only): None. 5. Old Business: A. Master Plan – Survey Questions Draft. The Planning Commission reviewed a second draft of the Master Plan survey with City Planner David Jirousek. Key points of the discussion included: 1. Survey Length: Concerns about the survey being too long, with suggestions to potentially reduce the number of questions. 2. Demographics: Debates about how to ask about race, ethnicity, and sexual orientation, with a focus on keeping questions clear and inclusive. 3. Residency and Location: Detailed discussion about how to map and categorize where respondents live in Saugatuck, including potential neighborhood divisions.

4. Community Priorities: Conversations about questions covering small town character, business availability, transportation, environmental protection, and city services. 5. Specific Topics: • Chain Ferry usage • Short-Term rentals • Potential city service consolidation • Downtown Development District • Annexation possibilities The commission agreed to have a special meeting on July 30th to finalize the survey draft, with the goal of distributing it in August and holding public forums in September. The overall approach was collaborative, with members providing detailed feedback to make the survey comprehensive yet user-friendly. B. Zoning District Review: The discussion on the Zoning District Review was very brief. The commission decided to table the discussion to a future meeting, likely the August meeting. Jirousek suggested the discussion might be a lighter lift compared to the upcoming sign ordinance discussion, which would likely require more in-depth conversation. The commissioners agreed to postpone the detailed review to ensure they could give the zoning district the time and attention it deserves, rather than rushing through the discussion at the end of a long meeting. No specific details regarding the zoning district review were discussed during the meeting. 6. New Business: The discussion primarily focused on the city’s newly forming parking task force. Chair Manns announced that the City Council is creating a task force to address parking issues in the City, and they needed a representative from the Planning Commission. The task force will include: • A council member • A business owner • A resident • A CVB representative Chair Manns was looking for a Planning Commission member to represent their perspective on the task force. After some discussion, Commissioner Marineau volunteered to serve on the task force. Baldwin supported this, noting that Auston lives on the hill where parking is an issue and would bring a good perspective. The discussion concluded with Commissioner Marineau agreeing to be the Planning Commission’s representative on the parking task force, pending final approval from the City Council. 7. Communications: None.

8. Reports of Officers and Committees: A. Planning & Zoning Project Report July 14, 2025. 9. Public Comments: None. 10. Commissioner Comments: • Bagierek – He thought they made good progress and that it was a good meeting. • Lachey – He praised Jirousek’s work on the survey revisions. He thought the revisions to the survey were considerable, and right on point, and said he had no problem capturing a lot of stuff they picked up at the last meeting. His comment highlighted his appreciation for how well Jirousek incorporated the commission’s previous feedback into the survey draft. • Clark – Thought they made good progress, and it was a good meeting. • Manns – He expressed appreciation for Jirousek’s work on the survey draft. He acknowledged Planning and Zoning Director Thompsons’s contribution, noting his last day of employment with the City of Saugatuck is August 1. He mentioned that other commissions and council members had expressed interest in seeing the survey questions. He encouraged anyone interested to review the survey questions in the meeting packets and to provide comments during public comment periods. His comments were supportive of the work done during the meeting and emphasized transparency in the survey development process. 11. Adjournment: Motion by LaChey, second by Bagierek, to approve adjournment of the meeting. Upon voice vote, motion carried unanimously. Chair Manns adjourned the meeting at 8:27 pm. Respectfully Submitted, ________________________ Sara Williams, Deputy Clerk