After election, Charlevoix hits the brakes on any plans for Stover Road parcel

Annie Doyle, The Petoskey News-Review
·3 min read
This vacant property at 229 Stover Road was the subject of much debate this fall.
This vacant property at 229 Stover Road was the subject of much debate this fall.

CHARLEVOIX — Although the election is over, the issue of what to do with the vacant city property at 229 Stover Road is still not settled.

After a divisive campaign, Charlevoix voters rejected both options offered to them in the Nov. 7 election by two competing ballot initiatives. One proposed the land be used for the development of year-round housing and the other called for a public park.

Although the land’s future use is still up in the air, city officials seem to now agree on one thing: that more time needs to be taken to gather data regarding the property in order to make a better-informed decision for its future.

At their meeting on Nov. 20, Charlevoix’s city council voted unanimously to hold any decision about the property until Dec. 1, 2024. In the meantime, city manager Mark Heydlauff has been tasked with the collection of vital information about the property.

A real estate appraisal and an environmental assessment were two of the data points suggested by council members Mark Knapp, Janet Kalbfell and Richard Spring in a memo to their fellow elected officials, who described the rejected ballot initiatives as being the result of “voter confusion, along with, a lack of answers to some very important questions."

Competing yard signs debate whether the 229 Stover Road property in Charlevoix should be used for housing or a park.
Competing yard signs debate whether the 229 Stover Road property in Charlevoix should be used for housing or a park.

The council members declared that "if a future council ever wishes to sell the 229 Stover Road parcel," the following items should be known in advance:

  • The status of any past environmental contamination on the property: It was previously used by the city as a public works location and has needed state assisted remedies for the pollution in the past.

  • A survey, title work and clear legal description of the property: There was uncertainty about the boundaries of the properties bleeding into the established roadway and being attached to the whole of the Ferry Beach waterfront property.

  • An estimate of the value of the site for various uses: A monetary evaluation of the land was never given.

In referring to the unanswered questions, Knapp, Kalbfell and Spring said, “We have heard the community speak, on both sides, about this parcel and we believe their questions can and should be answered.”

They also asked for the development of a proposal “that takes into account these factors and the goals for the community and the neighborhood.”

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Former Charlevoix Mayor Boogie Carlson and former city council member Shirley Gibson, who had initially supported the housing initiative, also wrote a joint letter addressed to Mayor Lyle Gennet and the council. In the letter, they ask the city’s elected officials to honor the wishes of the voters and refrain from action on the land.

“On Nov. 7, the city voters spoke and said 'No' to the housing plan we helped put forward. We have been on the winning side and the losing side of decisions in Charlevoix many times before. We respect the wish of our friends and neighbors and believe it is important to take the election results for what they are. We believe our community needs to move on from this division and again find the common ground we have shared in Charlevoix. We are requesting that council take no further action at this time and let this matter rest until there is a detailed plan giving more information for council to consider for the future of Charlevoix,” stated the letter.

After seeing the election results, Spring said "we decided we really did have some important questions that needed to be answered."

"It gives us an opportunity to not only answer the questions for ourselves but to be able to share those answers with the public as well," he said.

Knapp added that the timeline was also conducive to the process of a thorough environmental assessment.

Luther Kurtz, former mayor and lead advocate of the housing initiative, was not in attendance at the meeting. In response to city council's decision, he said, "It seems like a good idea to gather more data before they decide what to do with the property."

— Contact reporter Annie Doyle at (231) 675-0099 or adoyle@charlevoixcourier.com.

This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Charlevoix hits brakes on any plan for Stover Road site