Proposals for Equestrian Center, Driving Range on State Land Will Be Reconsidered
By Karen Gould

Proposals for an equestrian center and a golf driving range on state land north of the old burn pile off British Landing Road will be considered by the Mackinac Island State Park Commission in March. The new site was proposed at the commission's January 9 meeting after it was learned that two spots suggested last fall would not work.

Last summer, the Mackinac Horsemen's Association (MHA) had asked to lease the old city incinerator site for a community stable and turn-out area, and Wawashkamo Golf Club had requested land east of British Landing Road near the solid waste facility for a driving range. Both parcels are on state park land, but both have been deemed unsatisfactory, the stable site for environmental reasons and the driving range because of safety issues.

The new, combined site, on the old Early homestead near British Landing on Mackinac Island, will be reviewed after plans are submitted over the next several months.

The proposals were discussed at the Mackinac Island State Park Commission meeting Wednesday, January 9, in Lansing.

Scrap metal, glass, and other debris made the planned community stable site environmentally unsuitable, according to an environmental study conducted by Mackinac Environmental of St. Ignace. MHA had sought to use about three acres of state land west of Harrisonville for a stable and corral. The land was used 40 years ago by the City of Mackinac Island to incinerate garbage.

The equestrian organization knew the potential hazards, but had hoped the property might be eligible for industrial clean-up funds.

Mackinac Environmental, said park director Phil Porter, "determined the site was unsuitable for the proposed development as an equestrian center" because there was so much debris that could be damaging to horses.

Mackinac Environmental was hired by the horsemen's association to conduct the testing.

Steve Rilenge, an MHA board member, asked the Mackinac Island State Park Commission to now consider allowing use of a new site, which once was farm land, just off British Landing road and south of Burn Pile Road. The land is flat, he said, and has very few trees.

"We don't have many more options on Mackinac Island to put an equestrian center," he said.

Also attending the meeting was Leanne Brodeur, executive director of MHA.

The search for a new home for horse stalls and a place for the 4-H program began last summer, when property used by MHA became slated for housing development.

"Our space is limited," said Mr. Rilenge, "and we're running out of time."

The new plans call for a 200- foot by 100-foot arena for riding lessons and, eventually, a community barn to stable horses. The area would be used by the 4-H horse club and for equestrian training and education offered by MHA.

The group would like to construct the arena this spring and then begin fundraising for the barn.

More concrete space requirements, the number of structures, and timelines will be presented to the commission at its March meeting. The commission would then consider a land lease, although Mr. Porter had reservations about building another riding arena, noting that one already exists on state park land at Great Turtle Park. He suggested that the lease require structures be built within a certain amount of time.

"I don't think the commission is interested in just creating another ring," said Mr. Porter. "I think the idea is to build an equestrian center to preserve the horse culture on Mackinac Island."

"We are going to build a barn," Mr. Rilenge said. "We have to have a barn. Without a barn, we won't have an equestrian program on Mackinac Island for the kids."

Funding to run the stables and programs, say MHA board members, would come from an endowment, sponsors, paid memberships, and fundraising.

The same area being eyed for the equestrian facility could also accommodate a driving range, commissioners decided, after both the park staff and Wawashkamo Golf Club members decided a site originally proposed, just east of the golf links across British Landing Road, would pose safety and aesthetic problems.

Commissioners agreed to have Mr. Porter work with club members to develop a new plan, which would include a 12-foot-high net enclosure to contain golf balls on the southern section of the land proposed for the community stable. Commissioners also asked Mr. Porter to follow the same guidelines he used when considering the club's first proposal.

When suggested in September, the commission asked Mr. Porter to consider safety, visual impact, preservation of archeological resources, public recreational benefit, and compatibility with the surroundings.

The golf club tested the site and found it easy to hit golf balls into a road side park on British Landing road.

"That is a major safety consideration," said Mr. Porter, "and in and of itself, would invalidate this request."

Erecting a 65-foot-tall fence could contain about 85% of the golf balls, one golf expert advised, but such a fence would tower 20 feet over treetops in the area.

"We don't want that," said Mr. Rilenge, who is president of Wawashkamo. "We all love Mackinac Island and want it to stay the way it is."

The commission's next meeting is scheduled for March 19 in Lansing.