Roger Schrock, superintendent of Mackinac Island Public School, points out a rotted section of the building's trim (close up, inset) to school board and building and grounds members Trish Martin and Larry Rickley Jr. Thursday, April 24. The school received permission from the city's Planning Commission earlier that week to replace the building's trim with artificial wood. Planning Commission is now debating using the material on historic buildings, a move that would cut maintenance costs over the years. A new artificial wood trim called Azek will be allowed to replace rotting wood trim around the exterior of Mackinac Island Public School. City planners are now mulling over the idea of allowing such material on historic buildings, as well.

After hearing an Azek Building Products representative explain how low maintenance and longlasting his product is, Mackinac Island Planning Commission, at a special work session Tuesday, April 22, voted 7-0 to approve School Superintendent Roger Schrock's request to use the material to replace badly damaged trim all around the school building.

The material is said to last 10,000 years and needs only to be painted once.

The trim replacement project is expected to start June 1 and completed before school opens in the fall.

The school building was built in 1960, with a large gymnasium added in 2000.

Commissioner Michael Straus led the discussion into whether the city wants to allow such material to be used on its historic buildings.

"It all comes back to the Master Plan," he said. "What will the Island look like in 40 to 50 years? If all the siding looks like this, it would stay the same, and if people are happy with that, then so be it."

The city's nine-member master plan committee has yet to complete its revisions of the master plan, "a work in progress," said Kelly Bean, assistant to the mayor. The committee has split into smaller groups to review each section of the document. The committee doesn't plan to meet as a whole until each group is ready, and there is no timetable for that.

Azek is used on the Island more than people think, said city building inspector Dennis Dombroski after the meeting. It does not violate the ordinance, he said, because it is not considered siding, only trim pieces.

Mary Dufina is concerned that if the Island wants to be a historic resort and sell that image to its visitors, it must remain historically accurate.

"I know it's not a simple black and white thing," said Mrs. Dufina after the meeting, "but if we want to be historically accurate, we have to use genuine articles. I don't want historic buildings to just look authentic, I want it to be as authentic as it can be."

Mr. Dombroski believes buildings like the Stuart House museum should have traditional materials, but older commercial buildings should be allowed some leeway.

"I think it's a good choice for commercial building owners because of cost issues," he said.

There is still a lot of work and discussion ahead to determine where to draw the line in preserving historic buildings with modern materials, said Mrs. Dufina. More work sessions about this topic, and similar issues, like stone and cement siding, will be planned.

Mr. Straus will invite a representative from the state's historic preservation office to attend the next planning commission work session.

Orr Allowed To Demolish

Porch, Shed

Owing to a rush to finish the project before Grand Hotel opened some rooms Friday, April 25, the Planning Commission allowed Debra Orr to demolish the front porch and backyard shed of her home on Cadotte Avenue.

Ms. Orr said she is on the agenda for Planning Commission's meeting Tuesday, May 13, but asked permission to demolish the two areas now to avoid safety hazards with pedestrians coming and going to Grand Hotel. The hotel will be completely open by May 2.

Mr. Straus asked if approving her request without seeing her building plans first may set a precedent, however, Bob Brown, Planning Commission chairman, said under the circumstances, demolition should be allowed to avoid undergoing construction during heavy traffic.