PLYMOUTH — Residents near a proposed housing development on West Ann Arbor Trail are mounting a campaign aimed at stopping the plan a century-old church says is essential to its future.
Yard signs reading “Stop the Champion PUD” are popping up throughout the neighborhood – on Sheridan Street, Penniman Avenue, and West Ann Arbor Trail – to oppose the 20-unit Champion Planned Unit Development (PUD) slated for the current site of the First Church of Christ, Scientist.
A new website, www.KeepPlymouthCharming.com, has also launched to rally public opposition and call attention to residents’ concerns.
Opponents say the plan will increase traffic and pedestrian safety, particularly near student walking routes.
“This project isn’t just a traffic concern—it’s a safety red flag,” said Sam Barresi, who served as principal of nearby Bird Elementary School in the 1980s, still lives in the neighborhood and expressed concerns about the safety of students who walk, bike and get dropped off at Bird and West Middle School. “Add a surge of new vehicles, and you’ve got a dangerous mix that puts kids directly in harm’s way.”
Other critics say the development’s density, scale and design clash with the surrounding single-family neighborhood and doesn’t offer much in the way of public benefits required under city zoning rules for PUDs.
“The zoning rules of our town require a clear and significant public benefit for this kind of project,” said David Pierce, a six-year resident of the neighborhood. “The Champion PUD simply doesn’t have a public benefit.”
In fact, he said, one of the public benefits listed in the PUD, a walkway behind residents’ homes along Tonquish Creek, is “vehemently opposed” by people closest to the path who call it a “security and safety issue.”
As currently outlined in the PUD agreement, improvements would be made to the existing trail to connect Harvey Street to McKinley Street.
But the land is public, the city says, and the path has existed for many years, although it is not in great shape.
“Part of it is really soggy and impassable,” Plymouth Economic Development Director John Buzuvis said. “It’s something the city commission has had on their radar for years: How do we work to get that improved so it’s more user-friendly.”
The developer, he said, would be responsible for ongoing maintenance of the trail area.
The developer is also proposing to install a few small pocket park-style seating areas on city-owned property along the creek, and has agreed to install two public EV charging stations on the private property as a condition of the PUD approval.
The proposal
Leaders of the First Church of Christ, Scientist say the proposed development is not just a real estate deal, it’s a lifeline.
With a dwindling congregation and an aging, oversized facility that’s no longer sustainable, church members believe redeveloping the property is essential to their long-term survival in Plymouth.
The proposal would replace the church’s current buildings at 1100 W. Ann Arbor Trail with a more efficient 3,400-square-foot worship center, plus 20 residential units: three single-family homes and 17 attached townhomes.
The plan has undergone multiple revisions since it was first proposed in 2023 with 30 units.
The site is currently zoned R-1, which limits buildings to two stories. The proposed townhomes would be 2.5 stories.
The PUD process exists, Buzuvis said, to give communities more flexibility to approve projects that provide a net positive impact, even if they don’t strictly conform to the zoning code, in exchange for tangible public benefits.
No one immediately returned a call to the church, but in 2023 church member Toni Nayback told the Planning Commission the current operation was unsustainable.
“We love the community; we want to stay here,” she said. “But either way, we’ve got to sell that piece of property. We can’t continue on the way we are.”
Others argue the redevelopment would irreparably change Plymouth’s character.
“The Champion PUD isn’t just a zoning issue—it’s a direct threat to the soul of our community,” longtime resident Hank Jallos said. “If we let this through, we’re opening the door to a future where Plymouth’s charm is paved over by profit.”
What’s next?
The Plymouth Planning Commission granted preliminary approval of the project with conditions in a 6–3 vote on April 9. Those conditions include a traffic study, enhanced stormwater controls, the EV charging stations and long-term HOA maintenance of park improvements.
Buzuvis said the developer recently submitted updated plans, which are now under review by city consultants.
The proposal is tentatively scheduled to return to the Planning Commission on July 16 for final site plan review.
From there, it could move to the City Commission for a final vote.
Contact reporter Laura Colvin: lcolvin@hometownlife.com
This article originally appeared on Hometownlife.com: Plymouth residents rally against proposed housing development on church property
Reporting by Laura Colvin, Hometownlife.com / Hometownlife.com
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
