Work Begins on Mission Condo Project
By Karen Gould

Horses meander about their corral Monday, May 21, ignoring foundation work that has begun on the property. Ground preparation for one of the homes can be seen near Mission Street. Three condominium housing units are planned for the lot.

Foundation work began less than a week after Mackinac Island Planning Commissioners approved a new condominium development in the Mission during their Tuesday, May 15, meeting. Once completed, the project will include three two-story homes on property used as a horse corral by the 4-H Club and the Mackinac Horsemen's Association.

Commissioners approved the condominium development and the construction of one of three homes on the site, pending architectural review. By city ordinance, the home does not require architectural review, being 1,500 square feet in size, although the final decision to submit the plans to city architect Rick Neumann of Petoskey rests with the commission. The ordinance stipulates that homes 3,500 square feet or more must be sent through the architectural review process.

A new Mission Street condominium development was approved Tuesday, May 14 by the Mackinac Island Planning Commission. Three homes are planned for the property. (Site plan by architect Todd Seidell of Gaylord)

Commissioners also agreed to allow excavation work to begin for the one home, although construction work was not authorized until the architectural review process is complete.

Construction of the two remaining homes are expected to come before commissioners this fall.

Property owner Robert G. Benser of Mission Street Properties presented the site proposal for the condominium project. A barn, that sits on an adjacent lot and is owned by Brad Chambers, houses the horses that roam in the corral on Mr. Benser's property.

Both Mr. Benser and Mr. Chambers have made the land and barn available to the 4-H Club and the Horsemen's Association for their horses.

When the development is complete, the land will hold three houses and result in a smaller corral for the horses. Once the first home is built, the number of horses that can use the corral area at one time will be reduced. Rather than turning out five to six horses into the corral, Leanne Brodeur, director of the Mackinac Horsemen's Association, later told the Town Crier, three or four horse will be able to meander about in the fenced area.

"We just will rotate them more often," she said, adding that both men have been "very generous" to allow both groups free use of the lot and barn.

"I am really sorry to see another open space gone and another space for horses no longer available," Trish Martin, a planning commissioner and member of the Horsemen's Association told the Town Crier Monday, May 21. "I had to vote 'yes' because there's nothing in the ordinance to prohibit it. He [Mr. Benser] did everything by the book."

The condominiums are being constructed in three phases, said Mr. Benser during the Planning Commission meeting. Once completely developed, Ms. Brodeur estimates the corral only be large enough for one horse.

In the meantime, the Mackinac Community Stable Committee has been formed, she said, and it is seeking a new location for the both the 4- H and Horsemen's Association horses. She also said the committee would like to be able to offer stables for additional horses owned by other Island residents.

Just off Main Street, the land being developed sits on Mission Hill along Mission Street, while the Chambers barn faces Truscott Street.

The property is zoned R-3, high density residential, said Dennis Dombroski, city building inspector. The proposed lot coverage of the three buildings is 28 percent; 40 percent coverage is allowable on the lot, according to the zoning ordinance.

The footprint of the homes will be 22-feet deep by 40-feet long and have a 'Mackinacesk' appearance, said Mr. Benser.

In response to commission concerns that a stable must be 100 feet from a dwelling, city attorney Tom Evashevski told commissioners the ordinance only addresses the distance issue when construction of a barn is proposed near a home. Then, the 100-foot distance applies, he said. The ordinance does not address the distance when a home is built after a barn.

Commissioner Mary Dufina said she thought commissioners already had asked the city council to review this ordinance gap.

The first home will be build this summer, said Mr. Benser, and the other two may be built this fall, depending on demand. The homes will be 25 feet tall, he said. Zoning sets a 36 foot height limit.

The Mackinac Island Planning Commission next meets Tuesday, June 12, at 3 p.m. on the second floor of Community Hall on Market Street.