I have just spoken to Rick Harland who told me that the meeting April 25 is a planning council meeting at which time a decision on the marina project may or may not be made. Township officials have 90 days from the public meeting on March 28 to make a decision and the Township board may or may not be required to vote on the planning council's recommendation. The planning council may also meet prior to the April 25 meeting to consider additional information presented by Mr. Lapworth relating to the proposed marina. The planning council may accept, accept with conditions, or reject The members of the planning council include:Jerry Gosnell, James Cox, James Robson, JoAnn Michal, and Mark Dedenbach. Mr. Robson has not attended either public meeting and is moving downstate. The township board may have to vote on the planning council's recommendation. Those members include Rick Harland,Supervisor, Monica Ashton,clerk, Cindy Olson,treasurer, and trustees Dennis Long, Dwayne Brooks, Jeri Selthoffer and JoAnn Michal. It will be very important for as many people as possible to attend the scheduled meeting on April 25, 2018. Mr. Harland tells me that he is preparing a packet of materials to present to the township attorney to advise him of the defendability of township's position. General Comments About the Meeting:
The Lake Margrethe Property Owner’s Association (LMPOA) president, Chuck Spencer, has been meeting with legal counsel and gathering information over the past month regarding the proposed marina on M-72. LMPOA Directors wanted to be sure we had accurate information before we made any public statements. These are the comments presented by Chuck at the township meeting on March 28th. You can see by these comments that we are vigorously opposed to this marina due to the effect it could have on the lake, surrounding neighbors and the environment as a whole. Comments presented to the Township Planning Council March 28, 2018 by Chuck Spencer Thank you to members of the township planning council for time for consideration of this contentious issue: whether to grant a special use permit to a commercial business in an R-2 general residential district on the shores of Lake Margrethe at the far western end of the lake opening off M-72 West. This is a privately-owned section of lake frontage which is located very close to a residential neighborhood. I will be referring to Article 7, Article 18 and Article 19 of township regulations in special permits. This special use permit is not for a seasonal dock as stated in the Avalanche, but for a privately-owned marina which proposes to sell slip space to dock 12 boats, at this point to individuals who may or may not own property in Crawford County or in the State of Michigan. Only those who can afford to pay the going rate will be able to use the facility. This commercial operation therefore constitutes a marina and not a “seasonal dock”. No marina of this type is allowed on Lake Margrethe since shores of this lake are not zoned for commercial purposes. This special use permit is required because this is not a “seasonal dock”. As you can see by the attendance this evening, there are many tax-paying residents who are here to oppose the granting of a special use permit for the operation of a commercial marina which is in a residential area. Under township regulations Article XVIII Special Use Permits, Section 18.01- Purpose Part A states: “The proposed use (A MARINA), is one listed as a special permit use for the district in which the use is to be located.” Unless a marina is listed, a special use permit CANNOT be issued. The next issue which would argue against the approval of a special use permit is the problem of traffic on M-72 West, a two-lane highway at the location of the proposed marina, with no viable pass through lane. Vehicles on M-72 travel at 60 mph and to try to make a left turn while traveling west is especially dangerous in the summer. The potential for a serious accident at the proposed location of this marina would increase exponentially for vehicles traveling in either direction. Article VII Section 7.04 (special permit uses) states “special use permit shall be issued only on lots fronting on and with principal driveway access to a public street, and located and designed to avoid undue traffic…”. This area is not a private driveway but is designed to provide parking for as many as 12 vehicles, at a distance of less than 20 feet from M-72. The site plan presented does not provide an accurate assessment of the per foot scale. Further objections to approving this special use permit would include Article VII of General Residential District R-2 Section7.04 Special Permit Uses B: “Recreational facilities compatible with the intent of the district.” A marina is not compatible with the intent of this district, which is residential and constitutes a neighborhood. Article XVIII- Special Use Permits Section 18.02 Part C: “Be designed to protect the health, safety, welfare, social and economic well-being not only of those who will use the land, but also residents and landowners immediately adjacent to the proposed land use…” Living next door to or in the neighborhood of a public marina will significantly reduce the property values of those residents nearby. Article XVIII- Section 18.03 Part B states that the use is to be harmonious with the character of the general vicinity. A marina is not. The character of the general vicinity is a neighborhood in a residential district. In the same section, it states “the use is not to change the essential character of the area.”. Operating a public marina will change the character of the area, which is now an undeveloped wetland with woods extending to the lake shore. Further objections to issuing a special use permit are derived from Article XIX-Section 19.02: Standards for Site Plan Review, parts B, D, E, F, and G: Part B- “Storm water will not adversely affect neighboring properties.” According to the site plan, water from the parking lot is to flow west, directly onto the nearest neighbor’s property. Part D- The nature of this use is definitely in conflict with the immediate neighborhood. Part E- The use will create a major traffic problem or hazard, as referenced earlier. Part F- The use is certainly objectionable to adjacent and nearby properties. Part G- The use will discourage and prevent the development and use of adjacent premises and neighborhood. For all of the aforementioned reasons, I strongly oppose the approval of a special use permit for this proposed marina. I do hope that this council will strongly consider not only what the township would gain, but also consider carefully what Grayling Township would lose by granting this permit. Sent from an LMPOA Member
Subject: Proposed Dock Special Use Permimt Attached is the most recent drawing submitted by Brad Lapworth to Grayling Township Planning Commission which I obtained from Lacey Stephan/Rick Harland. After reviewing the diagram, I noted the following issues and questions: - Porta John would be next to the lot with the white trailer all season - Native Protection strip calls for 20 ft to be maintained in natural state he has 15 ft from parking to lake - If water off parking area is to run to the west - what is the proposed containment to avoid it running in the lake - What kind of parking paved/cement/gravel? - There is no distance from M-72 and M 72 passing lane noted as to where the property starts in the diagram - There is no length(s) and width(s) of the property - Will they be using this as a launch? - Is there ADA Handicap parking since it is a commercial business? I also attached the rules for Special Use/Recreational from Grayling Township. After reviewing them my thoughts include reasons it should not be approved: - this causes undue traffic - turning off M 72 (55 mph) causes undue danger - may cause undue noise to the neighbors Please share this information and attend the meeting on March 28th at 7pm to voice your opposition. Thanks, Heather Hutton The Lake Margrethe Property Owners Association would like all property owners and friends of the lake to be informed about Grayling Township's plans to hold a public hearing to hear comments and respond to questions regarding the proposed marina to be constructed in North Bay adjacent to M-72. As you may know, the subject marina project has now been approved by both MDEQ and MDOT.
Information as to the subject meeting follows:
LMPOA President, Chuck Spencer requested an extension of the comment period. Matt Kleich's response is below: Chuck,
There is no mechanism to officially extend the public comment period. However, with a public hearing to be held that extends the deadline on the application to March 20, 2018. Comments can be submitted up until 10 days after the public hearing. The hearing has not been scheduled yet, so there is still time to provide comments. It may not be possible to submit comments online through MiWaters now that the public notice period is over. But, folks can e-mail comments to me to be added into the file. Also, please realize that DEQ authority on the proposed project is limited to that as provided under Part 301 Inland Lakes and Streams. Comments should be tied to criteria in Part 301. There are other issues surrounding the proposed project that are outside of DEQ authority. Part 301 can be found at http://www.michigan.gov/deq/0,4561,7-135-3313_3681_28734---,00.html Matt Kleitch Department of Environmental Quality kleitchm@michigan.gov 989-619-2443 The Lapworths have proposed a marina for 12 boats off their property on M-72. The link to voice comments is: https://miwaters.deq.state.mi.us/miwaters/#/external/publicnotice/info/-7244205550945389806/details
There is a small "add comment" tab on the top right. You need to click on that. The cafeteria at the high school was packed, standing room only. Many Lake Margrethe residents were in attendance.
Representatives from all concerned groups were represented: Governor Snyder's personnel, DNR, DEQ, Army National Guard (both state and federal), state health officials and scientists. They repeatedly gave guarantees that no one is trying to walk away from this problem and everyone is committed to working together. The main focus is investigative and making sure everyone has clean drinking water. Residential well testing is only for safety and health concerns. The DEQ is involved in a scientific investigation involving other testing measures, including soil borings. For the most part, all of the information was the same as reported in the Nov. 23rd edition of the Avalanche. However, foam concerns were repeatedly brought up by residents and it appears the officials present do not know why it is occurring. The extremely high level of 30,400 parts per trillion of PFOS in one sample is clearly distressing. At this time they could only advise residents to stay clear of it. The guard camp wells tested well below the 70 parts per trillion threshold (they stressed that this level is VERY conservative and errors on the side of extreme safety for all individuals who might be exposed, including pregnant or nursing women.) They also stated that the wastewater facility on the guard camp ground is lined and monitored. If you haven't signed up to have your well tested... the link is www.michigan.gov/campgrayling If you were at the meeting and think I missed something please email me at sandralmichalik@gmail.com. I will post all comments and concerns. Sandra Michalik, Director, LMPOA This is copied directly from the mailing sent out by the District Health Department #10.
The Public Meeting is at the Grayling High School Cafeteria, 1135 N. Old US 27, Grayling, Monday, November 27, 6 p.m. Residents should fill out an information card at District Health Dept. #10 to have their well tested or got to www.michigan.gov/campgrayling. |
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