Hello friends. We just walked back from today’s City Council meeting. The primary issue involved questions about a meeting held last Thursday with the City Clerk called by the Mayor and joined by Councilmember Reeve and former City Manager Tom Richards.

The stated purpose was to ask about next steps with the City Manager. An issue so urgent it did not appear on today's agenda.

The Mayor and Reeve acknowledged under questioning that they did not reach out to invite the current City Manager. They also did not reach out to any other Councilperson, with the express purpose of avoiding compliance with Open Records laws (Three Councilmembers is a quorum). At times, the Mayor and Councilperson Reeve's recollections conflicted with the City Clerk.

Tomorrow, November 4th, is Election Day in Harbor Springs. There are five candidates running for City Council. Several have a track record of public service and will provide the city with some much needed stability, answering to us all-not a loud few.

I think you all know which candidates stand with whom. It is not hard to tell given where the signs are placed. Will three members of the Council live on East Bluff after tomorrow? It is up to us to decide.

Off-year elections are hard. Turn out is not as high as years with national candidates on the ballot. But it is up to each of us to take the time to vote. I encourage you to vote for steady hands on the tiller. Our community needs to right itself and return to common sense and good faith.

The polling place at City Hall will open at 7am and close at 8pm. Please make a plan to vote. I appreciate you and all your efforts to move Harbor Springs forward.

For the past couple of years, our civic conversation and attention have revolved around the zoning code. I kinda don't want to think about how much time I have devoted to the discussion. When I think of the time I’ve spent, my heart goes out to the volunteers on the Planning Commission.

The bottom line is, as a community, we have spent A LOT of time on the zoning issue.

I was thinking about that yesterday as I walked past the giant home being built next to Shay Park on my way to watch the Halloween Parade.

Today's letter is from John Lio, resident, stalwart volunteer, community leader and 2025 nominee for Harbor Springs Citizen of the Year. John writes about a letter from the Mayor and his son that perhaps many of you have received. It is written on Graham Real Estate letterhead.

𝙅𝙤𝙝𝙣 𝙬𝙧𝙞𝙩𝙚𝙨:

"𝙄 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙜𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙣 𝙖 𝙘𝙤𝙥𝙮 𝙤𝙛 𝙖 𝙡𝙚𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙬𝙧𝙞𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙣 𝙤𝙣 𝙂𝙧𝙖𝙝𝙖𝙢 𝙍𝙚𝙖𝙡 𝙀𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙩𝙚 𝙡𝙚𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙨𝙞𝙜𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙗𝙮 𝙈𝙖𝙮𝙤𝙧 𝙏𝙤𝙢 𝙂𝙧𝙖𝙝𝙖𝙢 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙉𝙖𝙩𝙚 𝙂𝙧𝙖𝙝𝙖𝙢.

𝙏𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙡𝙚𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙞𝙨 𝙖 𝙥𝙤𝙡𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙘𝙖𝙡 𝙚𝙣𝙙𝙤𝙧𝙨𝙚𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙩𝙬𝙤 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙘𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙞𝙙𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙨 𝙘𝙪𝙧𝙧𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙡𝙮 𝙧𝙪𝙣𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝘾𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙘𝙞𝙡. 𝙄 𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙥𝙚𝙘𝙩 𝙖𝙣 𝙞𝙣𝙙𝙞𝙫𝙞𝙙𝙪𝙖𝙡’𝙨 𝙧𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙨𝙝𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙞𝙧 𝙤𝙥𝙞𝙣𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙤𝙛 𝙖 𝙘𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙞𝙙𝙖𝙩𝙚. 𝘿𝙪𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙢𝙮 𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙪𝙧𝙚 𝙖𝙨 𝙖𝙣 𝙚𝙡𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙤𝙛𝙛𝙞𝙘𝙞𝙖𝙡 𝙄 𝙛𝙚𝙡𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙄 𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙚𝙣𝙙𝙤𝙧𝙨𝙚 𝙖 𝙘𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙞𝙙𝙖𝙩𝙚 𝙞𝙣 𝙖 𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙤𝙣𝙖𝙡 𝙘𝙖𝙥𝙖𝙘𝙞𝙩𝙮, 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙞𝙩 𝙬𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙗𝙚 𝙞𝙣𝙖𝙥𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙥𝙧𝙞𝙖𝙩𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙞𝙣𝙘𝙡𝙪𝙙𝙚 𝙢𝙮 𝙤𝙛𝙛𝙞𝙘𝙞𝙖𝙡 𝙩𝙞𝙩𝙡𝙚 𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙚𝙣𝙙𝙤𝙧𝙨𝙚𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩.

Next Tuesday, we will have elected two Harbor Springs City Council members. After reading the candidates’ answers to questions from the Harbor Light, I’m grateful that we have five residents willing to put in the time and energy being a council member takes.

I support most of the positions expressed. A few answers from Bill Donohue concern me. Most troublesome is his statement, “As to zoning, the city spoke clearly last year and said loud and clear, leave it alone. The current efforts are simply a different way of accomplishing what was rejected last year. To me, the only justification (by the proponents) is to increase tax revenue. As a council member, I will oppose the current zoning plans put forward by the planning commission.”

Last November 478 residents voted to repeal a new zoning code, Ordinance #439. 404 voted to keep it. Does that sound like a loud and clear message to you? I’m glad that our planning commission is working to update our seriously outdated 2005 zoning code. I believe the current draft of a new code is the best way to protect the charm and character of Harbor Springs.

If you haven't seen the paper yet today, the headline announces that our City Manager, Victor Sinadinoski, will be leaving Harbor Springs in December. Victor is a kind, thoughtful, dedicated and talented leader. He will be missed.

I want to wish Victor, his wife, and adorable two kids all the best in their new adventure. He deserves better than what we gave him here in Harbor Springs. Colorado will be lucky to have him.

We have a lot to reflect on Harbor Springs. We've lost volunteers on our boards and commissions, our school superintendent resigned, and now our city manager has resigned. I know each of these losses were impacted in some way by the rancor and incivility fomented by a few in our community. I think for some it was their goal.

The resident volunteers over at the Planning Commission have just about completed their work on recommended zoning code updates for our city.

𝗧𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆, 𝗜 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗻𝘂𝗲 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻'𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗻𝗲𝗶𝗴𝗵𝗯𝗼𝗿𝗵𝗼𝗼𝗱s.

My hope is that a majority of the candidates support the needed updates to the zoning code. Further, I hope we elect candidates that, like you, value civility, kindness and are ready to move on from the rancor of the last few years.

Thanks to you all! Please support candidates who will support us all... and tune out a loud few.

It's time to move forward together, Harbor Springs!

After months of work, the Planning Commission has just about completed its work on a zoning code update for our city.

The last time our zoning code was reviewed and updated was 20 years ago. Every word of the existing code has been reviewed in a year-long process that has consumed over 1,500 hours.

Over the next few weeks, I’m going to be highlighting aspects of the update that will improve our zoning code. Today, we will be focusing on improvements related to downtown.

Here are a few updates that have made the code better and position the downtown of Harbor Springs for a bright future while preserving its past.

Last week was busy! My son had his last tennis match of his high school career. My daughter had a couple volleyball matches. Both participated in a bunch of Homecoming activities. And between church meetings, DDA, Council and, well, life...it was a doozy.

If you can indulge me a bit, I would like to brag about my son's last match. The team was playing down in Traverse City for tennis Regionals. Because there are so few boys’ tennis teams, our region stretches from Harbor Springs, through Traverse City and all the way over to the Saginaw Bay area.

Today, is Indigenous Peoples Day. Our little town of Harbor Springs occupies the ancestral, traditional, and contemporary Lands of the Anishinaabek – Three Fires Confederacy of Ojibwe (Chippewa), Odawa (Ottawa), and Bodéwadmi (Potawatomi) Nations.

In all of our conversations about how to use the land around us, we often forget to acknowledge the wise and warm people who have cared for the the area around this harbor for generations.

This morning, our little Facebook page has 485 followers. Most of the names I recognize as either local people or businesses. One is my mom. A few others are admittedly family friends. But, the vast majority are local.

I have set little personal goals for this effort along the way. Little milestones I can celebrate with a cup of coffee. We have crossed another marker. Last fall, 478 people voted to repeal the zoning code. We have now collected more followers than voted to repeal-and that means something.

Momentum is a real thing. We've added more followers since Labor Day than at any period since this effort began. Six of the top 10 "most read" posts have gone up in the last few weeks. Thank you for continuing to read, comment, like and share.

Today, the Harbor Light newspaper, here in Harbor Springs, has run answers the five candidates for City Council submitted to a series of questions from the editors.

There are not many opportunities between now and the election, on November 4th, to hear from all the candidates. I will post some of the answers online over the next few weeks, but please take a second to grab a paper and read what each candidate has to say on their own behalf.

The reason I am urging us all to ask questions about the actions of “We Love Harbor Springs” is to prevent what happened last year from happening again.

𝗙𝗼𝗼𝗹 𝘂𝘀 𝗼𝗻𝗰𝗲. 𝗦𝗵𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝗼𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂. 𝗙𝗼𝗼𝗹 𝘂𝘀 𝘁𝘄𝗶𝗰𝗲. 𝗦𝗵𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝗼𝗻 𝘂𝘀.

This week’s Chamber Candidate Forum kicked off the election season in Harbor Springs. The same patterns from the last election are setting up to fool us again.

Let’s go forward together.

Absentee ballots have been mailed. I’m guessing that many people have already voted. The results of the November city council election could have a serious impact on Harbor Springs.

I attended last night’s Chamber of Commerce City Council Candidate Forum. We are fortunate to have five people willing to serve. Being a city council member is a huge commitment of time and effort. The candidates answered tough questions sincerely and thoughtfully. All candidates expressed love for our city.

That brings us to yesterday's post in which we explored what 501(c)(4)s can and cannot do legally.

• 501(c)(4)s CAN engage in political campaigns. However, their “primary purpose” must be social welfare. The IRS says it may be a red flag if a majority of the organization’s budget is used for political activities.

• The State of Michigan says a 501(c)(4) CANNOT make any direct or in-kind contributions to any candidate for office.

• If a 501(c)(4) spends more than $100 to support local ballot issues in Michigan, they must disclose that spending in papers filed with the County Clerk. https://tinyurl.com/3599teyf

I want to be careful with my words here: We Love Harbor Springs may be in conflict with all of these prohibitions based on publicly available information.

Here's my way shorter take away:

Please continue to support the 501(c)(3) organizations in our community who do so much for so many, including: Harbor Springs Food Pantry, American Legion Post 281, and the Friendship Center of Harbor Springs

On the other hand, I urge you to ask questions of and scrutinize the public filings of groups claiming to be 501(c)(4) organizations. Some do incredible work to advocate for causes across the political spectrum. However, others are specifically organized to hide donors and engage in unethical activities to further their goals.

I want to be careful that what I am saying is accurate and fair. Questions have been asked as to whether We Love Harbor Springs is a 501(c)(4) non-profit because the IRS has no record of their organization. (Receipt #1)

To be absolutely clear -I really want WLHS to be a federally recognized 501(c)(4). If they are a 501(c)(4) non-profit, it is clear what rules they are supposed to follow. That makes things easier for everyone.

Things have gotten a bit muddled as to what is being asked from WLHS to prove their non-profit status. So, I want to simplify things (I hope).

These are the public documents we are asking WLHS to show the community:

1. A form from the IRS calls a "Determination Letter."

2. The organization’s Employer Identification Number (EIN) as assigned by the IRS.

"The September 18 planning commission meeting and public hearing went well. The main topic was planned development. It’s the thorniest part of the zoning code. There was hope that
those articles could be temporarily taken out and the rest of the code passed. After community input, the decision was made by the commission to hold off on the vote.

We Love Harbor Springs (WLHS) has hired their own city planning consultant from Grand Rapids. They gave commissioners a document with what they think our planned development articles should be. Harbor Springs already has a contract with a city planning expert from the firm Beckett and Raeder in Petoskey. I’m sure WLHS has a right to hire someone who represents their interests, but is it the right thing to do? It doesn’t feel right to me."

I wanted to pass along an update about last evening's public hearing and a related letter from a member of our community.

Last night's public hearing went about as well as it could. Several issues will continue to be examined. There seemed to be genuine agreement that the Planning Commission has done great work so far. There was appreciation for the countless hours put into getting it right. The Commission decided to continue to work on some of the issues raised in the Open Houses and hold another public hearing on October 16th.