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Record of Proceedings

Portage Planning Commission Meeting – July 16, 2026: Zoning Map Amendment & Officer Elections

Planning Commission — Thursday, July 16, 2026
BodyPortage, Michigan
SessionPlanning Commission
DateThursday, July 16, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 42:26

Transcript — Verbatim
0:02

Good evening, everyone, and welcome.

0:04

Uh, at this time I'd like to call the order.

0:06

This is the City of Portage Planning Commission, and it is Thursday, July 16th, 2026.

0:12

Uh, if you are able, we could all please stand for the Pledge of Allegiance.

0:18

I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America.

0:24

For which it stands.

0:26

One nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice.

0:33

Thank you all very much.

0:35

Uh next item is the roll call.

0:38

I'll start with Chair Corradini.

0:40

Here.

0:41

Vice Chair Baldwin will be absent tonight.

0:44

Commissioner Urban.

0:45

Here.

0:46

Commissioner Adams and Cop will be absent tonight.

0:48

Commissioner Orwig.

0:50

Here.

0:50

Commissioner Cosisto.

0:52

Here.

0:52

Commissioner Miller.

0:53

Here.

0:53

And Commissioner Crowwell.

0:56

At this time, I would like to make the motion to excuse Commissioners.

1:00

Uh Baldwin, Cop, and Adams.

1:03

Support.

1:04

Second.

1:05

Motion made and supported.

1:06

All those in favor say aye.

1:08

Aye.

1:09

Anyone opposed?

1:10

All right.

1:10

Motion passes.

1:12

Next item on our agenda is the approval of minutes from the July 2nd meeting.

1:17

There are any comments from anyone or additions, deletions, corrections.

1:23

If not, then I will make the motion then to approve the minutes from the July 2nd, 2026 meeting.

1:30

Second.

1:32

Motion made and seconded to approve the minutes.

1:35

All those in favor say aye.

1:38

Anyone opposed?

1:39

All right.

1:42

Tonight, our first item will be public hearing.

1:46

This is for the rezoning 26 slash 27-1 to amend the code of ordinances of the city of Portage Article for zoning of chapter 42 and chapter 44 by adopting a zoning map amendment to effectuate a citywide rezoning as more specifically described in ordinance 04-2026.

2:11

Mr.

2:11

Pelt, it's all yours, sir.

2:13

Thank you, Chair.

2:19

Good evening, Commissioners.

2:21

For the record, my name is Eric Pelt, planner with the City of Portage.

2:26

This presentation and the slides in front of you should look very familiar.

2:34

This is part of the overall unified development ordinance process, where module one, which was the text amendment, was recently approved by City Council on June 23rd, just a few weeks ago.

2:49

The next step is today's proposal in front of you, which is a zoning map amendment.

2:55

Now keeping with the text amendment, today's amendment is focused around everything that is residential, residential zoning districts, etc.

3:07

Similarly, it also requires a recommendation from this body and then a final vote in front of the city council.

3:16

Part of the overall unified development ordinance is everything non-residential.

3:22

So commercial districts, industrial districts, mixed use districts, and the procedure of those.

3:28

And so that will be discussed under module two, the next phase, and this uh set of standards will come back to this board later in this calendar year.

3:43

So many of these bullet points should be familiar to you.

3:48

It is just the general um lengthy purposes of the overall unified to development ordinance, such as modernize existing development standards, create new standards to better guide future growth, implement the Portage Forward Together 2045 master plan, address patchwork of development standards as well as other items.

4:13

So under today's map amendment, it is primarily summarized around the existing residential zoning districts, which you can see that there are seven of them on the screen.

4:23

Majority of them are one family residential, one through four.

4:27

R1T is an attached residential district, primarily permitting duplexes as well as single family detach.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Zoning Regulations█████████████████████████████████████████████72%
Procedural██████████████22%
Affordable Housing███4%
Environmental Protection█2%
Summary of Proceedings

Portage Planning Commission Meeting – July 16, 2026

The Portage Planning Commission met on Thursday, July 16, 2026, to conduct a public hearing and vote on a citywide residential zoning map amendment (Rezoning 26/27-1) as part of the Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) process, followed by the annual election of officers. The meeting was chaired by Commissioner Corradini with six members present due to three excused absences.

Consent Calendar

  • The minutes from the July 2, 2026 meeting were approved unanimously.
  • Commissioners Baldwin, Cop, and Adams were excused by motion.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • No members of the public came forward to speak during the public hearing, which was opened and closed without testimony.

Discussion Items

  • Zoning Map Amendment (Rezoning 26/27-1): Planner Eric Pelt and Chief Development Officer Pete Dame presented the map amendment, which is the final step to implement the previously approved residential text amendment (Module 1). The amendment converts seven existing residential zoning districts into new districts: R1A and R1B become RN (Residential Neighborhood); R1C and R1D become RE (Residential Estate); RM1 and RM2 consolidate into RM (Residential Mixed); R1T parcels were split between RN and RM based on existing conditions and future land use; and the Mobile Home Community district remains unchanged. A special inclusion was the property at 1706 West Center Avenue, a non-conforming single-family home destroyed by a tornado, which is proposed to be rezoned from Office to RN to allow rebuilding. Staff explained that the map amendment is consistent with the Portage Forward Together 2045 Master Plan, which supports diverse housing types, smaller lots, and greater flexibility while maintaining neighborhood character.
  • Commissioner Questions: Commissioner Orwig inquired about the Center Street property and potential spot zoning; staff clarified it is adjacent to single-family homes and consistent with future land use. Commissioner Urban asked about specific R1T parcels on 12th Street and Norfolk Circle, and staff explained the rationale for designating them as RM rather than RN based on existing duplex density exceeding the 35% RN threshold. Commissioner Miller asked about floodplain protections; staff confirmed flood regulations are handled through building codes, not zoning, and require elevation and no basements.
  • Election of Officers: The commission elected officers for the upcoming term: Vice Chair Baldwin was re-elected by acclamation; Brendan Cassista volunteered and was elected as Secretary; and Chair Corradini was re-elected as Chair.

Key Outcomes

  • Vote on Zoning Map Amendment: A motion to recommend approval of Rezoning 26/27-1 (Ordinance 04-2026) to the Portage City Council passed unanimously (6-0). The amendment will now go to the City Council for final action.
  • Officer Elections: All positions were filled unanimously by acclamation or voice vote (Vice Chair Baldwin, Secretary Cassista, Chair Corradini).
  • The next meeting was scheduled for August 6, 2026 (three weeks later).

Meeting Transcript

Good evening, everyone, and welcome. Uh, at this time I'd like to call the order. This is the City of Portage Planning Commission, and it is Thursday, July 16th, 2026. Uh, if you are able, we could all please stand for the Pledge of Allegiance. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America. For which it stands. One nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice. Thank you all very much. Uh next item is the roll call. I'll start with Chair Corradini. Here. Vice Chair Baldwin will be absent tonight. Commissioner Urban. Here. Commissioner Adams and Cop will be absent tonight. Commissioner Orwig. Here. Commissioner Cosisto. Here. Commissioner Miller. Here. And Commissioner Crowwell. At this time, I would like to make the motion to excuse Commissioners. Uh Baldwin, Cop, and Adams. Support. Second. Motion made and supported. All those in favor say aye. Aye. Anyone opposed? All right. Motion passes. Next item on our agenda is the approval of minutes from the July 2nd meeting. There are any comments from anyone or additions, deletions, corrections. If not, then I will make the motion then to approve the minutes from the July 2nd, 2026 meeting. Second. Motion made and seconded to approve the minutes. All those in favor say aye. Anyone opposed? All right. Tonight, our first item will be public hearing. This is for the rezoning 26 slash 27-1 to amend the code of ordinances of the city of Portage Article for zoning of chapter 42 and chapter 44 by adopting a zoning map amendment to effectuate a citywide rezoning as more specifically described in ordinance 04-2026. Mr. Pelt, it's all yours, sir. Thank you, Chair. Good evening, Commissioners. For the record, my name is Eric Pelt, planner with the City of Portage. This presentation and the slides in front of you should look very familiar. This is part of the overall unified development ordinance process, where module one, which was the text amendment, was recently approved by City Council on June 23rd, just a few weeks ago. The next step is today's proposal in front of you, which is a zoning map amendment.

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