Mackinaw City Gets Public Ideas for New Master Plan
Residents Name Ambiance as Top Asset, Year-Around Business as Top Challenge
By Paul Gingras

At left: Mackinaw City Community Development Director Steve Schnell (left) and Village Manager Jeff Lawson pause in their discussions of the future of Mackinaw City, during a master plan public information session Wednesday, September 20. Sixty-six people attended the brainstorming session, which was designed to give the public a voice in community planning.

Sixty-six people concerned about the future of Mackinaw City attended a public input session in the village Wednesday, September 20. The purpose was to help guide a full rewrite of the village master plan, a document that describes the layout, services, problems, and assets of the community as it stands now, and which will also serve as a document to steer community planning for the next 20 years.

Attendees voted the historical character and ambiance of the village as the top asset of the community, and developing diverse, yeararound businesses as the top challenge to Mackinaw City.

Amajor goal of the master plan, said Community Development Director Steve Schnell, is to create a "vision of Mackinaw City," which will guide community planners in determining how resources are used, what businesses are encouraged or discouraged, and how the village manages population densities, he said.

The session hosted roughly twice the number of attendees as the last session in 1998, said Village Council President Robert Heilman.

The last session served to update to the old master plan, whereas the village is now embarking an a comprehensive rewrite, added Village Manager Jeff Lawson.

"This [meeting] covered pretty good territory," Mr. Heilman told The St. Ignace News.

Attendees at the meeting included residents who ranged widely in age, retirees, summer residents, year-around residents, residents of nearby townships, as well as representatives from St. Ignace, such as Cheryl Schlehuber, who represented the Mackinac County Planning Commission.

Mrs. Schlehuber said whenever master plans are being developed, planning commission members in nearby communities are alerted and invited to public input sessions such as the one in Mackinaw City. In this case, it offered St. Ignace planners input regarding what Mackinaw City has in mind for strategic planning. Part of the purpose, she added, is to avoid duplicating efforts in neighboring communities.

Mrs. Schlehuber participated in brainstorming sessions at one of the tables.

"We have a lot of the same issues," she told The St. Ignace News, and noted that Mackinaw City seems to be leaning toward creating a more year-around business community, a proposition that could link St. Ignace and Mackinaw City more closely.

"It was inspiring to see the turnout," she added. "Attending those sessions means you have a voice. You can change things. People coming out in force and telling the Village what they want means they will have a definite influence over what they get."

The meeting was organized by a nonprofit group entitled North Eastern Michigan Council of Governments (NEMCOG) which divided attendees into eight tables. NEMCOG directed attendees to make lists of community assets, community problems and challenges, and a list of visions regarding how they'd like the village to appear in the future. The lists were extensive, so NEMCOG directed each table vote on the top five in each category.

Planners representing NEMCOG collected the results regarding community assets and perceived problems in Mackinaw City, wrote them on large sheets of paper, placed them on the walls, and gave attendees stickers, which they used to vote as a whole group.

The historical character and ambiance of the village was indisputably considered the top asset of the village, but large numbers also voted for "small town atmosphere." Mackinaw City's cherished waterfront views were also noted as a major asset, and residents voted for the school system also. The layout of the Central Street was cited, along with the maintenance of local police, fire, and emergency services. Finally, a host of attendees cited the village's "visitor friendly community."

Local assets that received lower numbers of votes included a lack of traffic congestion, access to the local environment, friendly people, a quiet environment, fresh air and clean water, and the commercialization of the waterfront.

In terms of problems and challenges to Mackinaw City, "developing diverse, year-around businesses" reached the top of attendees' list of concerns, followed closely by a concern over a lack of medical facilities in the area. Once again, large numbers focused on maintaining watershed viewing areas, this time as a challenge. Creating viable year-around jobs followed closely, and taxes were considered the next most pressing problem. Attendees also noted keeping utility buildings in balance with the village's aesthetic image as a pressing concern.

Other problems and challenges that received fewer votes included controlling community growth, maintaining quality of life in the area, park upkeep, exposing students to outside opportunities, maintaining water and sewer systems, improving storefront displays, keeping the village within an established architectural theme, the need for more swimming beaches, protecting the reputation of the village, encouraging recycling, zoning beach front properties, and extending the tourism season.

Attendees' lists will be posted on the village Web site at www.mackinawcity.org. When Mr. Schnell is finished assessing the list of visions generated, these will be posted also, he said.

Darryl Brown of Sault Ste. Marie, who works with the St. Ignace Chamber of Commerce, noted that village officials appeared enthusiastic about working with members of other communities.

"The bridge unites us, not divides us," he said.

Prior to the brainstorming sessions, attendees heard a lecture regarding the demographics of the village which focused, in part, on an increasing population of older people and a decreasing population of young people, in comparison to Michigan in general.

"What this means to us is a need for more health services," Mr. Schnell said.

Both Mr. Brown and Mrs. Schlehuber noted this as a link between St. Ignace and Mackinaw City.

One of the most important aspects of regional development, Mrs. Schlehuber said, is "getting people back and forth over that bridge," and she was interested in discussions regarding how Mackinaw City residents viewed the prospective $30 million hospital planned in St. Ignace.

Mr. Schnell said preparations to revise Mackinaw City's master plan have been going on for two years. They began with a village economic restructuring plan, which was used to generate grants, he said. The village also sent out surveys to residents, business owners, and others in the community to generate data.

The Village Council is preparing to set up an open house for people to view information regarding community demographics and infrastructure, but the details are not yet finalized, Mr. Lawson said. The Village is also planning to form small focus groups based on information generated at the public input session.

Mr. Schnell said that people in the community who did not receive surveys, or who wish to add input to the master plan, can still do so by contacting the village.