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Experts say land use plan needs consensus
MOHAWK ’Äî At a recent forum in Mohawk, three experts on land use planning told a crowd of about 120 area residents and local government representatives that a Comprehensive Land Use Plan (CLUP) for Keweenaw
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Chris Grobbel, Michigan State University Extension Citizen Planner Program director, speaks at a land use forum held September 23 in the
Mohawk School. Seated at the left table is forum host Mark Pavolich, Keweenaw County Zoning/Planning Commission member. At the right
table are Rod Cortright (left), field co-chair of MSU Extension’Äôs Land Use Area of Expertise team and Timothy Bureau, president of Resource
Management Group, Inc. Environmental Planners and Consultants in Grand Haven. The three Michigan experts on land use planning addressed a crowd of about 120 local residents and government officials.
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County would require cooperation among diverse groups and interests in order to reach a consensus on the county’Äôs future.
All three downstate experts on land use planning who
spoke at the Mohawk forum concurred that a master plan, whether at the county or the township level, would not succeed without community consensus on a vision for the area’Äôs future.
Timothy Bureau, president of Resource Management Group, Inc. ’Äî Environmental Planners and Consultants in Grand Haven, said people with
conflicting points of view’Äîfrom the banker to the timber company to environmentalists’Äîmust have an open mind, open ears to listen and a willingness to compromise in order to work together toward consensus.
’ÄúThe effectiveness of the Master Plan, or the Comprehensive Land Use Plan (CLUP),’Äù said Bureau, ’Äúis directly correlated to the consensus-building effort during the development
of the plan. You cannot ignore the economics. You cannot ignore the wealth that exists here. You can’Äôt ignore the fact that you’Äôve got tourism and you’Äôve got forestry and unless you bring those two
sectors of the economy, or sectors of the population, into this planning effort, it will fail. Unless you’Äôre ready to listen to other points of view and acknowledge
their validity and work toward consensus, it will fail.’Äù
As an example, Bureau noted how residents of Lake Tahoe, when they
realized the lake’Äôs water quality was going down, got together with bankers, realtors and forest companies to plan their own and their children’Äôs future.
’ÄúThey soon realized that unless they paid attention to protecting the environment pretty soon the very basis of what attracted people would
disappear,’Äù Bureau said. ’ÄúAll over the country people are realizing that their quality of life is absolutely dependent on the environment.’Äù
Bureau said he had examined the Keweenaw County Zoning Ordinance and found that, while it has some good points, it doesn’Äôt provide a plan for the future
or give county elected officials much guidance on how to proceed in certain areas. Adding that 90 percent of his company’Äôs work is in representing
developers, Bureau said the lack of a plan leaves the county open to ’Äúpeople with money ’Ķ unscrupulous developers,’Äù who will come in and dictate to local residents what their future will be.
’ÄúIf you think the (Mt. Bohemia) ski hill is the issue,’Äù Bureau said, ’Äúbelieve me, I know developers that are looking for local units of government’Äîwhether
it be a city, a village, a township or a county zoning’Äîwhere they don’Äôt have to jump through a bunch of hoops to accomplish their ends.’Äù
He added that while development is often put under the guise of ’ÄúIt’Äôs good for the tax base,’Äù studies show that development, if it’Äôs not wise, if it’Äôs not planned, costs you money.
Bureau noted a master plan is not a regulatory or enforcement tool (as zoning is) but a guide for decision-making, for managing the land resource so
that the Keweenaw quality of life can be preserved for future generations.
’ÄúThis is a special place,’Äù he said. ’ÄúThat’Äôs why you’Äôre here. That’Äôs why you
have not left, and it’Äôs disappearing; and so I’Äôm advocating that unless you’Äôre pro-active in creating a consensus vision for the future, that the Keweenaw will
lose, your children will lose and you will see it slowly fade away.’Äù
Bureau said a land use plan should ask, ’ÄúHow are we going to manage the
land resource here so that this quality of life, this sense of place, can be preserved?’Äù In doing so, he added, the plan would create a framework for decision-making for elected county officials.
An environmental consultant and professional wetland scientist, Bureau has often vacationed the Keweenaw Peninsula and spoke at two public hearings in Mohawk on the Bete Grise South wetland issue (July 14, 1999, and May 1,
2000). He served as vice-chairman of the Grand Haven Township Planning Commission from 1994 to 1997.
Chris Grobbel of Traverse City, Michigan StateUniversity Extension Service
’Äî Northwest Michigan Regional Land Use Agent and Citizen Planner Program Director, agreed with Bureau that land use planning has to be a community effort.
’ÄúAs Mr. Bureau said, it’Äôs the common ground, identified through working together, from which you plan for the future,’Äù Grobbel noted. ’ÄúGet involved,
because you really don’Äôt have much excuse later on if you don’Äôt.’Äù
Grobbel said good community planning is based on good information, which
includes knowing what the community has and what is worth saving, knowing what the people feel and knowing the culture or historical resources.
’ÄúDevelopment is inevitable. Change is good,’Äù Grobbel said. ’ÄúYou have to rise to the occasion to guide it, or you will find change that really results in the
loss of your local character.’Äù
Grobbel concurred with Bureau that Keweenaw County lacks an effective plan to do effective zoning.
’ÄúIf there is inappropriate development that occurs or you have a large plan unveiled that you’Äôre not ready for, (if) you go back and you look at your zoning
ordinance and the standards aren’Äôt strong enough to deal with it, (then) you need to re-do the plan ’Ķ to re-do those standards,’Äù he said. ’ÄúBut most
importantly you have to have the fortitude and the community will to say no.’Äù
Grobbel gave an example from his experience with planning in Charlevoix
County, where, he said, the township board voted against the planning commission to accept a project that did not fit the plan to protect open space and farmland.
’ÄúThat’Äôs something that shouldn’Äôt happen if you do good community planning,’Äù he said. ’ÄúA zoning ordinance is only enforceable if it complies with
the master plan. The zoning ordinance is the law part. The master plan is the community part of where you want to be in 20 years or 10 years. You do it to
protect the environment ’Ķ to protect your investments and your properties and ’Ķ to protect your quality of life.’Äù
Grobbel pointed out the need to build local capacity to continue the process of guiding development. He noted developers can be ’Äúpotential partners,’Äù who
help build the community by paying for services and infrastructure.
Keweenaw Today guest columnist and researcher Richard Reese, noting the
division between property rights proponents and people interested in community, asked what strategies can be used to make these groups work together and what legal mechanics were involved.
Grobbel replied the intent is to plan for communities, to plan for a better future and to make it happen without treading on private property rights.
’ÄúThere is a balance that has to be struck,’Äù he said. ’ÄúIt’Äôs certainly legal to plan and zone, and it’Äôs important to do it the right way.’Äù
Grobbel said he could offer, as early as next spring, courses such as Basic Planning, Basic Zoning, Legal Foundations of Planning and Zoning and
Techniques of Planning and Zoning if Keweenaw County residents or officials requested them. The cost for a course would be $35 a person or $25 if the
majority of the planning commission takes the course. A business owner, Grobbel is a member of the Suttons Bay Township planning commission in
Leelanau County. He holds a doctorate and a masters degree in environmental policy and law and community development, and he has designed, coordinated
and taught an ongoing curriculum providing basic land use and environmental training for locally appointed and elected officials making land use decisions.
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Rod Cortright, field co-chair of MSU Extension’Äôs Land Use Area of Expertise team, explains design zoning to local residents and government
officials at September 23 land use forum in the Mohawk School. |
Like Grobbel, Rod Cortright, field co-chair of MSU Extension’Äôs Land Use Area of Expertise team, has worked extensively on land use education efforts, specializing in innovative
land use techniques. Following Bureau’Äôs and Grobbel’Äôs definitions of planning and zoning and their emphasis on the need for community involvement and
consensus, Cortright zeroed in on the problem facing communities whose ordinances fail to maintain the character of an area because of the tendency
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Cortright displayed this parcel of farmland, forest and wetland to illustrate the two types of zoning that could be used to develop it. |
toward a ’Äúspatially based’Äù design. He said 95 percent of the communities in the United States follow this pattern.
Cortright showed contrasting pictures
of Petosky in the 1880s and in 1990 to illustrate how the character of a community is lost and the natural environment negatively impacted when zoning is spatially based.
’ÄúThey built communities back then. What we do today with the zoning is we build warehouse districts,’Äù he said. ’ÄúThis is the type of zoning that we have
throughout the country. We do not build communities anymore. We build districts.’Äù
This zoning model developed, he noted, from an effort, begun in the
1880s, to deal with sanitation problems in cities. Cortright displayed graphs showing how, since 1970, the increase in developed land areas has been proportionately much higher than the increase in
population. He also contrasted means of transportation in European countries with those in the United States, noting much higher incidence of walking, biking
and public transportation in countries where development is less spread out.
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Here the parcel is zoned according to the conventional, or spatial, model, resulting in considerable loss of natural features. |
’ÄúThe United States requires every man, woman and child in this country to have a car,’Äù he said.
Cortright told of a colleague who, as
an experiment, gives people a set of scale models and asks them to build the type of community they would like to live in. They tend to build models of small villages and towns, he said.
’ÄúThe solution to most land use problems’Äînot all’Äîis in the design,’Äù Cortright said.
Cortright projected images of a parcel
of partially forested land, contrasting the conventional, spatially based design with conservation design. The conventional design takes an agricultural and forested area and converts it entirely to residential
use, he noted, while the conservation design allows interjecting residential use in a forested area, with more variety in parcel sizes.
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 At left, conservation design
zoning is used to conserve natural and scenic features by developing around them rather than on them. The parcel can hold the same amount of development as the spatial design without
losing the natural character of the land. (Images courtesy Rod Cortright. Copyright Center for Rural Massachusetts.)
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’ÄúConservation design ’Ķ is a zoning where natural, scenic and cultural resources are conserved by developing around rather than on top of these features,’Äù he explained.
At left, conservation design zoning is used to conserve natural and scenic features by developing around them rather than on them. The parcel can hold the same amount of
development as the spatial design without losing the natural character of the land.
Noting commercial development could be more aesthetic if it followed
conservation design, Cortright showed a photo of a building in Freeport, Maine, that has the appearance of a large home or a bed and breakfast, but is, in
reality, a MacDonald’Äôs fast-food restaurant. Because that community had rules in place, the developer was obliged to use an existing building rather than tearing it down to build something new.
’ÄúA community can say, ’ÄòIf you want to come in here, you’Äôre welcome to come in, but you’Äôre going to play by our rules,’Äô’Äù Cortright said. ’ÄúGrowth cannot
be stopped; it never has. The only hope is to shape it into a more benevolent form.’Äù
Like Bureau and Grobbel, Cortright has been a member of his local
township planning commission; but he noted planning is much too important to
leave just to the planners.
’ÄúThe community has to be involved,’Äù he said.
Sandra Harting, president of the Association
Working Against Keweenaw Exploitation (AWAKE) noted many decisions in the area are made by the large landowner (International Paper/Lake Superior Land Company). She asked how, in this situation,
community planning can take place’Äîhow community values can become a priority for a large corporation.
’ÄúWhat they decide to do, in many ways, shapes
what happens in the entire community,’Äù she said.
Harting also answered a question from Paul Mihelich of Eagle River concerning the reason for the recent failure of a
proposed land swap between Lake Superior Land Co. and the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. Had the exchange succeeded, the Michigan DNR would have acquired 20,500 Keweenaw acres in exchange for 36,200
acres of state land in the southern half of Houghton County.
Said Harting, ’ÄúA lot of people (in Houghton County) didn’Äôt want to see this
landowner get more land down there because of what we’Äôve seen of their (logging) practices.’Äù
Bureau noted one reason for the failure of the swap was that Michigan law
does not allow the state to swap land where the state incurs a deficit, and the DNR considered the Houghton County land more valuable at that time.
Mihelich, who said he didn’Äôt want to see public access to Keweenaw lands denied because of sales to private owners, added he believed Keweenaw
County residents would have to make concessions ’Äúto appease the people who own the majority of (Keweenaw land).’Äù
Said Grobbel, ’ÄúUndertaking community planning without the biggest
landowner in the community is not a good idea. It has to be a partnership ’Ķbut provide incentives (for the landowner).’Äù
Bureau added, ’ÄúIf they’Äôre morally conscious they’Äôll consider it ’Ķ If you’Äôre trying to create sustainable economics, you don’Äôt want to drive that economy
away.’Äù
Keweenaw County Commissioner Frank Stubenrauch of Ahmeek said he believes the county needs development such as the Mt. Bohemia ski hill, with proposed rental units, now
being developed by Crosswinds, Inc./Black Bear near Lac La Belle.
’ÄúThis county is poor,’Äù Stubenrauch said. ’ÄúIf something like the ski hill is sustainable, I’Äôm for it.’Äù
Mohawk resident Jim Brisky argued, ’ÄúThere’Äôs no money in a ski hill. It’Äôs all in the (residential) development.’Äù
Cortright noted that how a community designs its zoning will determine the most efficient use of tax dollars.
’ÄúResidential development ’Ķ is a drag on community services,’Äù he said. ’ÄúThat needs to be part of the planning process.’Äù
Mary Durfee, U.S. co-chair of the Lake Superior National Forum and Michigan Technological University associate professor of social sciences, said
Keweenaw County is not alone in facing the challenge of increased population, residential development, and the need for planning. She gave examples of other
Lake Superior Basin communities such as Wawa, Ontario, and Grand Marais, Minn.
’ÄúThere’Äôs a lot of interest in this everywhere,’Äù Durfee said. ’ÄúPeople can’Äôt
afford to live there who’Äôve lived there for generations because of huge development and rising costs ’Ķ I’Äôm not a big hunter or fisherman, but I
understand that’Äôs important. I like to take a walk, and I don’Äôt like to see house after house.’Äù
Durfee said the more the land is chopped up for development the less
people will enjoy valuable things like public use of land, fish, water quality and a decent quality of life. In an effort to get good jobs, she noted, people think development is the answer.
’ÄúI’Äôd like to be confident the people have decent jobs,’Äù she said, ’Äúand a lot of times tourism alone doesn’Äôt bring that. You still need jobs that bring higher
wages ’Ķ The thing is if you don’Äôt have a plan others are going to do it for you just by buying ’Ķ and it will be hard to regulate.’Äù
Durfee said her students could provide Keweenaw County planners with ’Äúa little leg work and advice’Äù for development of a county land use plan. Durfee
offered the free services of graduate students who will be enrolled in two courses she plans to teach during the winter semester at Michigan Tech ’Äî
Environmental Decision-Making and International Technology Policy. In the first course, students need ’Äúa live problem’Äù to work on. In the second, they examine
the question, ’ÄúHow do you combine economic competitiveness and environmentally sound behavior?’Äù
’ÄúIt would be a wonderful experience for my students, and it might be useful
for the county,’Äù she said.
Besides volunteering student help, Durfee offered to help the county obtain mini-grants from the Lake Superior Bi-National Forum, a citizens’Äô advisory
group to the governments of Canada and the United States for the bi-national program to restore and protect Lake Superior. The Forum will be meeting Nov.
3 and 4 at the Northern Lights Restaurant in Houghton, and the meeting is open to the public, she added.
Durfee said she was impressed with the land use forum speakers and the
questions from the audience.
’ÄúI thought it was positive,’Äù she noted. ’ÄúIt sounded like a county that’Äôs ready
to sit down and decide, ’ÄòWhere do we want the next 30 years to go?’Äô’Äù
Carol MacLennan, another Michigan Tech associate professor of social sciences, found the forum of interest to Houghton County residents who are interested in starting a planning initiative
for their county.
One of those, Christa Walck, chair of the Core Group Task Force for the Common Ground Initiative and Michigan Tech professor of
management, said she found the Mohawk forum very helpful.
’ÄúI thought that the speakers’Äô description of what needs to be done with land
use planning is what Common Ground has already started to do,’Äù Walck said, ’Äúso I think that there’Äôs a way to work with Keweenaw County residents to build a consensus about how they want their land used.’Äù
Eagle Harbor Township Board member and candidate for County Commissioner Don Keith said he found the meeting very informative.
’ÄúI’Äôm more so than ever convinced that the planning and zoning process for Keweenaw County must begin at the grass roots, be broad-based and
inclusive,’Äù he said. ’ÄúHopefully this is just the beginning of citizen participation in the planning process.’Äù
Keweenaw County Zoning/Planning Commission member and forum host
Mark Pavolich, who invited county and township board members to the forum, estimated about half the board members he invited showed up.
’ÄúThe feedback I got was all positive,’Äù he said.
Keweenaw County Board of Commissioners Chairman Lyle Peterson attended the forum but had no comment.
Eagle Harbor resident Paul Freshwater said the forum seemed to be a productive start.
’ÄúKudos to those who worked so hard to pull it off,’Äù he said. ’ÄúThe
attendance was a great measure of public interest!’Äù
Lac La Belle resident Anita Campbell, community liaison for the forum, said she was pleased with the presentations and the community participation.
’ÄúI was delighted with the great turnout of folks that came’Äîboth property owners and our local government officials’Äîall interested in learning about land use
planning,’Äù she said. ’ÄúI hope we can keep up the enthusiasm and momentum for public involvement. I’Äôm looking forward to continuing a dialog with our (Keweenaw County) zoning board on how we can work
together and move forward on this project. Our local MSU Extension Agent, Ralph Duffek, seems very anxious to help us begin and will be assisting in setting up meetings in the near future.’Äù
Editor’Äôs note: If you would like to be involved in land use planning for Keweenaw County contact Anita & Paul Campbell at pdcampb@pasty.com.
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