|
LAC LA BELLE -- The Lac La Belle Resort, including The Landing restaurant, which closed on June 14, has just been appraised
and awaits bank review before an asking price can be established. Meanwhile local residents and visitors speculate
about the fate of Lac La Belle's only restaurant, which had recently become a community center for the area. The resort also
includes the small store attached to the restaurant, three housekeeping cabins, gas pumps and boat docks.
|
|
|
Sandy Britton said this lawn near The Landing is green thanks
to the birds. "In the winter I take all the seed that falls off the feeders and spread it on
the yard on the snow," she said. "The spring migration comes in, and the birds eat it.
They spread out all over the yard. The snow melts, and the seeds that were in their droppings
fertilize it. And that's living proof they do good work."
|
|
"It has not been sold. The bank has just recently received the appraisal, but we have not had a
chance to review it," said Jim Johnson, cashier of the First National Bank of Calumet-Lake Linden, which
now owns the resort.
Sandy Britton is The Landing restaurant's founder
and most recent former owner of the resort, which was a familiar stop for fishermen and boaters from
the time it opened in 1939. More recently, the restaurant attracted fishermen in summer and
snowmobilers in winter and served as a gathering place for local residents -- and for birds, both local
and visiting, whom Britton fondly calls "the kids." The Landing has large picture windows that allow
patrons to watch birds feeding from feeders all along the deck.
"I'll be very interested to see what develops," Britton
noted. "I would like very much to continue operating it for the new owners, but it would depend on who buys it."
Britton bought the operation in 1992, bought the land in 1994 and opened the
restaurant on January 18, 1997. With a mortgage debt of over $300,000 on
the resort and restaurant, Britton was unable to
|
 Sandy Britton, founder and former owner of The Landing restaurant in Lac
La Belle, shows Lac La Belle resident Gary Barker the special tee-shirt, "The Landing's
Last Stand," made for her farewell party by Annie and AshleyKipfer of Eagle Harbor.
|
|
keep the business going.
Regular patrons speculated about The Landing's future as they filled the restaurant
to capacity on June 13 for The Landing's Last Stand, a party honoring Britton and a reunion
for the Lac La Belle community. Year-round Lac La Belle residents Pam and Don Thomas both said they would miss The
Landing if it didn't re-open.
Said Pam, "I would like to see ... the same
comfortable atmosphere ... a place for people to meet and have a nice meal. I
think the way Sandy has it now, with the deck around it for watching birds, is really nice."
Sue Le Blanc of Betsy said she hopes the new owner feeds the birds. Sue and
her husband, Vern Le Blanc, are residents of Betsy and regular visitors to Lac
La Belle. She noted Britton's friendly attitude is part of the community atmosphere at The Landing.
"If the new owner doesn't embrace the people in the (same) way, then the
local people will stay away," Sue said. "It's just a nice, casual, friendly place where you can be yourself."
Lac La Belle resident Guy Snyder noted the resort serves both the community
and boaters. Shortly after the closing of the restaurant, Snyder and his wife,
Betty Snyder, offered their Lac La Belle home as a meeting place for those
circulating the petition for a referendum on Mount Bohemia.
"Boaters from Pt. Abbaye (would) come here for the day, gas up and go back," Guy said.
Both visitors and local residents depended on the gas the resort supplied for
both vehicles and boats. Now that gas is not available at The Landing, the
nearest gas for vehicles is 15 miles north in Copper Harbor or 15 miles south in Phoenix.
Said Britton, "Boats are another matter. About 37 miles to Copper Harbor by
water, around Keweenaw Point, which can be treacherous, or about 40 to South Entry!"
Lac La Belle Fire Chief Howard Lahti called The Landing "a nice gathering place." His wife, Joanne Lahti, agreed.
"We just finally got someplace where the local people can congregate," she said.
John Grohs of Calumet, a regular visitor to Lac La Belle, also commented on
the sense of community that drew people to The Landing.
"I would like to see it stay the same," he said. "It's kind of a down-to-earth,
grassroots place. I've been able to meet a lot of the local people here and
establish friendships. When I came up here I didn't know anybody, and I've met a lot of good people here."
Like many local residents, Grohs noted the Mount Bohemia Ski Hill
development, if realized, could change the atmosphere of the resort and restaurant.
"There'll be a large influx of out-of-the-area people. It'll take away a lot of the intimacy of the place," he said.
|
|
|
The docks at Lac La Belle Resort were a
favorite spot for boaters stopping for gas.
|
|
While Britton said she still intends to reside in Lac La Belle, the Mount Bohemia Ski Hill could change her plans.
"If just the ski hill goes, I can deal with that," she noted,
"but if the attendant development goes through, I'm history. That's not why I came to Lac La Belle."
Britton indicates why she came here in her "Mendota Musings." These diary entries with her personal
observations on living close to the forest, the lake, weather and wild things appear regularly on
http://www.mendotalighthouse.com.
"It's a quiet place at the end of the road," she explained.
- Michele Anderson
|
