Park Acquires Lundgren Bluff To Continue Preservation Efforts

By Ryan Schlehuber

Another piece of Mackinac Island property has been acquired by the Mackinac Island State Park Commission. A 0.22-acre bluff, along M-185, was acquired from Susan Lundgren through several state grants, to continue the Commission’s mission of land preservation on the Island.

The parcel has been appraised at $197,000 and the Commission will pay for it with money from the Michigan Department of Natural Resources Land Trust Fund and the Michigan Department of Transportation TEA 21 Enhancement Grant Program. The land is immediately adjacent to the old Rex Humbard ski hill and just north of a scenic conservation easement, also owned by the State Park.

The parcel is heavily wooded and includes 87.5 feet of Lake Huron frontage and features a 115-foot high rock outcropping that provides scenic vistas of the lake.

The Commission approved acquisition of the Lundgren Bluff at its regular meeting Friday, September 24.

“This continues our quest to protect Lake Shore Boulevard,” said Commission Chairman Dennis Cawthorne.

Mackinac State Historic Parks Director Phil Porter credited Greg Hokans, the agency’s development and marketing chief, for his persistence in securing the state grants to acquire the land.

Roughly 83 percent of land on Mackinac Island is owned by the state.

In other action at the meeting, commissioners approved a rate of $150 to sub-lease cottages on state land. The fee will cover the costs of processing and administering a sub-lease for cottage owners, which has been determined by the park staff to be $152.34.

The Commission, according to Jim Riley, the assistant attorney general assigned to the Commission, is not empowered to charge more than the costs to process and administer the service.

The revised rate will be effective January 1, 2005.

The Commission approved a revised airport fee policy for 2005, that rounds the fee to the nearest dollar. Last year, airport fees were increased according to the Consumer Price Index and resulted in a daily landing fee for a turbo-propellor jet, for instance, of $29.05, forcing the customer to dig for change. Mr. Porter said it was also inconvenient for the airport to accommodate customers paying the awkward amount.

“We’ve rounded it off for next year so we can avoid that situation,” he said.

Daily landing for turbo-propellor planes now will be $29, effective January 1. Other rates will also be rounded to the nearest dollar. There will be no increased revenue from the revised changes to airport fees, Mr. Porter noted.

The Commission approved the transfer of a West Bluff lease held by Brian Dunnigan, Mary Eileen Dunnigan McWilliams, and Dan Dunnigan to Dan Dunnigan, and a lease renewal for two parcels of land for Grand Hotel’s golf courses. One parcel, at the Grand Nine golf course, has been leased to the hotel since 1916, while the second parcel has been leased since 1993. Annual rent for the two parcels is $10,078.

During discussion of the two lease requests, Commissioner Robert Traxler asked Mr. Porter to keep commissioners posted on major building projects on State Park property.

“I want to avoid someone walking up to me on the sidewalk and asking me about a project I don’t know anything about,” Mr. Traxler said.

Two-year use permits of State Park land were approved for James Bogan’s boathouse on M-185, for Mark Timmons’ shed and stone wall on Winnebago Street at his East Bluff home, and for Charter Communications’ encroachment of a concrete foundation for a satellite dish antenna.

The Park Commission approved the annual snowmobile use resolution with no changes. The resolution was first approved by Commission in November of 1972, allowing snowmobile use on designated park land during the winter seasons.

Commissioners also approved 37 museum collection acquisitions that were either donated or purchased. Chief Collections Curator Steve Brisson showcased a few of the new items at the meeting, including advertisement cards from the movies “Somewhere in Time” and “This Time for Keeps,” films that were shot on the Island in 1979 and 1947, respectively.

The Commission’s next meeting is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Friday, January 28, in Lansing.