Progress as Promised

The Harbor Springs Planning Commission continued its hard work last week. First, I want to recognize and applaud the way in which these conversations are taking place. The members of the Commission are thoughtful, courteous, and open to suggestions.

Last week's meeting was a perfect example of what happens when you are willing to say out loud, "Maybe there are some things we could do better."

The meeting was the start of a conversation about the actual zoning districts. The group walked through each of the 17 current zones and asked if it was needed.

A good example of their work was the "Transitional Residential (TR)" district. The "TR" included parking lots, the homes surrounding the Yacht Club, some alleys, a boat storage lot and some other random parcels.

Basically, the "TR" district was a catch-all of lots that no one knew what to do with. To their credit, the Commission went lot-by-lot and identified both the use of the parcel and where it was likely best suited. The public provided input at each step and often helped to clarify the history of some of the lots.

For instance, the homes around the Yacht Club on Bay Street are now more residential than commercial. However, at some point in our past there was some question as to what they would become-businesses or homes. The group suggested moving them out of the "TR" district and into a residential district rather than grouping them with the Central Business District (CBD). Given the value of the property on Bay St., it is unlikely they will ever convert to business uses and their "highest and best use" will be as single family homes.

It was pleasant, productive and the very definition of reasonable.

In my line of work I often say, “A good meeting is one where no one feels worse than when they arrived at the table.” As the Commission wrestled with serious questions (in front of a live audience) I think everyone felt better when they left the meeting than when they arrived.

That my friends is pretty darn impressive.

The meeting's goal was to sort through some of the issues and set up a "straw man" list of districts that reflected current and future uses that aligned with the city's Master Plan.

There are hundreds of decisions ahead. They are literally going line-by-line through the whole thing. But we should be incredibly proud of both the work the Planning Commission is doing and the way they are carrying it out.

Congratulations and cheers to Bill and the entire group. Their tireless effort is paying off and is worthy of our sincere thanks.