ADRIAN — The property at 4460 W. Maumee St., which formerly was the Eclipse nightclub and for many years before that was known as the LA Cafe, is slated to become the home of a new credit union branch.

The Adrian City Planning Commission approved the site plan at its March meeting. Engineer Andrew Rossell told the planning commission that American 1 Credit Union intends to build a 3,000-square-foot branch with a drivethrough on the property. He said the credit union has worked with both the city and the Michigan Department of Transportation on details of the driveway, and the plans call for 24 parking spaces. That’s slightly more than the maximum specified by code for the proposed square footage, so the planning commission’s approval was needed. 

City staff analyzed the site plan and determined that it meets the city’s requirements for exterior lighting and landscaping. City staff also expressed the opinion that the credit union would not adversely affect surrounding properties, writing: “The current building and parking lot are in disrepair. It is in staff’s opinion this will help with the value of surrounding properties.”

Adrian College gets approval for sports practice dome

Also at its March meeting, the planning commission approved a site plan from Adrian College for a new sports practice facility. The facility will be an inflated dome. 

Planning commission chairman Mike Jacobitz commented that the facility will be viewable from the back yards of people on Renfrew Avenue and “no amount of shrubbery is going to take care of that.” At the same time, he noted that there are no height restrictions in the city’s Education, Research and Office (ERO) districts, which is what colleges are in.

College spokesman Mickey Alvarado told the Lenawee Voice that the main groups using the facility will be men’s and women’s lacrosse, men’s and women’s soccer, men’s and women’s rugby, football, and the marching band. It may also be used by baseball, softball and track.