It's never pretty when public officials in the same town start suing one another, but eventually a resolution is achieved. In the case of the City of New Buffalo versus the New Buffalo Planning Commission the resolution came today from the gavel of Berrien County Circuit Court Judge John Donahue.
The case stems from a protracted battle between the two public bodies over a requested drive-thru window at the New Buffalo Pharmacy, located at 1 N. Whitaker Street in the city. When the proposed new owners of that pharmacy, Hometown Pharmacy, asked for authorization to build in a drive-thru window for the convenience of customers as a contingency of the sale.
The city's Planning Commission granted a special use permit to add the window at the beginning of December, last year. City Commissioners, however, did not concur and argued that the permitted use would lead to traffic congestion and car-stacking problems at a key intersection, interfere with traffic movement in and out of the property and parking spaces by drive-through users, and ultimately impair public safety.
Donahue, in his ruling today, notes that "most such claimed injuries are more 'hypothetical' than 'actual.'" In his brief today, Judge Donahue denies the City's request to halt the project, and, in fact, orders the issuance of a special use permit to the pharmacy as originally approved by the Planning Commission.
It wasn't a total victory for Hometown Pharmacy, however, inasmuch as Donahue also dismissed their claim for damages, saying that Zoning Administrator Rob Anderson, who is also the New Buffalo City Manager, "although having acted erroneously, did so in good faith."
Last month Donahue had already ruled that the permit was legal, however his action today does no longer leaves the door open to sending the issue back to the Planning Commission for consideration — he ordered the permit to be issued and implemented.
The City had contended that the Planning Commission failed to follow the proper procedures for the permit as well as their argument about traffic congestion headaches.
At the beginning of last week, Donahue strongly encouraged the two sides to resolve their own differences, but that apparently was unsuccessful and his ruling was handed down today.
