WLKM Radio 95.9 FM
A re-zoning request that would pave the way for development of a Dollar General in Nottawa was denied Tuesday by the Nottawa Township Planning Commission.
The vote followed more than two hours of discussion and comments from nearly two dozen people opposed to the project. Those against the proposed rezoning said Dollar General does not fit within the community’s character. Several also questioned the need for a Dollar General in Nottawa, as the Tennessee-based company has a store less than four miles west in Centreville, as well as locations in nearby Mendon, Colon and north of Sturgis.
Meanwhile, a number of audience members worried that the presence of Dollar General would cripple locally owned businesses such as Sand Lake Party Store and Nottawa Lumber.
In the end, the commission’s six members present Tuesday voted unanimously against the request to rezone a 1.6-acre property from agriculture to commercial. An area within the proposed rezoning includes a plot on the north side of M-86, east of Nottawa Lumber, that Dollar General has identified as its proposed site for the Nottawa store.
A key matter cited in the denial centered on a conflict with the township’s master plan. The planning commission’s conclusion is a recommendation and will eventually be fielded by the Nottawa Township Board for a final vote.
