GRAND RAPIDS, Mich — The vote over a controversial parking lot expansion in Grand Rapids has been postponed until more community input can be heard.
When John Ball Zoo released plans to expand their parking lot, neighbors next to John Ball Park became frustrated.
Tina Femeyer, who lives nearby the park, doesn't want to see green space paved over for a parking lot.
"We just don't believe that there needs to be paved parking for a business that's only open seven months out of the year and with limited hours," she says.
Femeyer was at Tuesday's county finance and physical resources committee meeting. She hoped the vote would at least be tabled for a later date.
The committee decided just that — the vote will be held in November after at least one more public meeting where community members can be heard.
The proposed parking lot expansion is part of the Zoo's 2015 master plan, but an amendment will be discussed to expand the lot even further all the way out to Butterworth Street.
Femeyer says she sees people in that green space often.
"We can't use it for sports or special events or, you know, the deer can't graze out here," says Femeyer.
John Ball Zoo's CEO Peter D'Arienzo sent this statement to 13 ON YOUR SIDE today:
“John Ball Zoo is proud to engage with our community on ways to best serve both our neighbors and Zoo guests. Since 2017, we have been part of many informative sessions with our immediate neighbors regarding the Zoo’s master plan to come to a mutually beneficial parking plan. We are looking forward to our meeting with Kent County officials to discuss an amendment to our master plan to allow for additional parking to be created to prevent more than 200,000 vehicles that leave John Ball Zoo from going through adjacent neighborhood streets. This is a solution that was developed with input from our neighbors that also includes picnic pavilions, new restrooms, walking and biking trails and more for all to enjoy, and will prevent vehicles from parking on the grass, returning the park to the community. This amendment keeps traffic in the adjacent neighborhoods to a minimum while allowing for more parking at John Ball Zoo, which has less paved parking now than it did in the 1960s despite the tremendous growth of the Zoo and Kent County. John Ball Zoo is one of the most attended cultural attractions in Michigan, and our goal is always to accommodate both our guests and our neighbors to the best of our abilities.”
Though, Femeyer says she hasn't seen enough community outreach.
"I spent my weekend canvassing and knocking on doors and talking to neighbors and most people don't have any clue that the zoo is paving or planning to pave over a large part of the green space," says Femeyer.
In the end, she just wants more options to be discussed.
"We're not anti-growth, we're not anti-zoo. Not at all," says Femeyer. "We moved into this neighborhood [because we] like being in this neighborhood. We moved here knowing that the zoo was here, but knowing that there was a divide between what was zoo and what was park, and at this time, it feels like that line is becoming more and more blurry, and that the zoo is taking over more and more of the park space that should be preserved for the community to enjoy."
The vote is postponed until Nov. 21. 13 ON YOUR SIDE will keep you updated on-air and online with that decision.
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