Maple View Condos Get OK From Island Planners
By Ryan Schlehuber

Trish Martin and Jim Pettit are the newest members of the Mackinac Island Planning Commission, each serving a fiveyear term. They replace Ed Chambers and Rosemary Lounsbury. Ms. Martin operates Bogan Lane Inn and Jim Pettit is a teamster for Mackinac Island Service Company.

Plans to convert the Maple View employee housing building into a 12 or 14 single-family condominiums are proceeding, as the Mackinac Island Planning Commission voted 52 in favor of the change of use at its regular meeting Tuesday, June 13. The issue, however, leaves some residents and politicians divided.

Building owner Ira Green told the Planning Commission that he intends to keep at least two-thirds of the building while selling the rest.

The building is a non-conforming structure in a singlefamily (R-1) zone and the highdensity housing he proposes would also be non-conforming.

"I believe this plan is better" than what the building is being used for now, Mr. Green told commissioners. "I have 100 people going in and out of the building as they please now. It cannot be pleasing for neighbors."

Condominium owners, Mr. Green said, must adhere to the association's rules and to the city zoning ordinance.

"I would have no problem putting in restrictions that say there can be no breaches, no fudge or T-shirt sales, and no rentals less than 30 days," he said.

This spring, the city turned down Mr. Green's original idea of converting the building into a hotel, not wanting to permit a commercial use there. Now the board is split as to whether to allow multiple family dwellings in the single-family district.

Planning Commission Chairman Bob Brown and Commissioner Franc Doud believe the change of use would provide more housing to families seeking yeararound homes on the Island. Newly-appointed Commissioner Trish Martin and Commissioner Bruce Lapine believe the issue should be resolved in other ways.

Both commissioners voted against Mr. Green's request, believing the change of use to a multiple family building with multiple ownerships would block any future Green's plans to convert some apartments to condominiums.

"In our judgment," wrote Mr. Shaver, "the conversion of the Maple View into a condominium structure is a further deviation from the Zoning Ordinance in that it converts a one owner, multiple family building into a multiple owner-multiple family building."

Mr. Shaver, as well as Ms. Smith, who attended the meeting, stressed their concern of having owners renting the apartments to family, friends, or customers less than 30 days, a violation in the zoning ordinance for the single family zone.

Mr. Green told the board that he intends to redesign the building's porches and add turrets, which, said the city's zoning administrator, Dennis Dombroski, may require setback and lot coverage variances.

Mr. Green is expected to

present a site plan at the chances of the building reverting to the city's intended zoned use as single family.

"I'm new to this whole thing, and I was a little torn," said Ms. Martin after the meeting, "but I believe if you're not going to keep it as an R-1, then change the zoning in that area. If you want R-1, then keep it the way it is now. By allowing this change, you're guaranteeing that it will never go back to R-1."

Chairman Brown read aloud eight letters from residents discussing the issue of Maple View. Four letters supported Mr. Green's plans and four letters objected to them.

David Hribar, Frank Bloswick Jr., Richard Coates, and Bob Gale all submitted letters supporting the idea. Objecting to the plans were Gary Lennard, Barb Fisher, Candy Smith, and an attorney for James Azzar, Robert Shaver of Rhoades McKee, who argued mostly about Mr. Planning Commission's next meeting Tuesday, July 11, at 4 p.m.