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HARBOR SPRINGS
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Harbor Springs is Beautiful!
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The town of Harbor Springs voters repealed Ordinance #439 and these decisions will give our town back the right to Decide for ourselves as a community our future within the city.
It’s time now to organize the building a new zoning code that reflects the Master Plan, the Community Surveys and to build new legitimate surveys that will ask the tough questions of the community to provide answers in deciding the towns future.
Ask yourself the question – how do you imagine the City for your children and grandchildren?
Now with the November vote, the repeal of a zoning code behind us and to disengage from certification by the Redevelopment Ready Community (RRC)/Michigan Economic Development Corporation. (MEDC)- the Planning Commission Chairman and commission members need to explain to the community members the premise of each of the zoning changes that will be brought forward at the upcoming meetings. Please go to the City of Harbor Springs website to find the calendars, agenda’s and zoning schedules.
Are the reasons for zoning changes to build better living conditions, weather resiliency, infrastructure protections, visitors opinions, tourist attractions, downtown businesses expansions for more money into pockets or for reasons the property owners are asking the zoning administer to attend to? Are these ideas for envisioning the future? Are they products of the people ? Changing dynamics or ?
A sensible discussion might lead with ” the zoning reforms were based on our findings…”.
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What's the State of Our Community by We Love Harbor Springs
How we come together - State of our Community
In 2024, Harbor Springs experienced its largest voter turnout in 15 years - 75% of our 1,240 registered voters participated in the November election. It’s a sure sign that our community is engaged in our City’s local governance as well as State and National issues.
Key issues addressed in 2024 included:
Zoning Board of Appeals: Identified gaps in the Zoning Code regarding wetland protection, impacting decisions like allowing a boardwalk extension over wetlands.
Tree Board: Contributed to the Bluff Stability committee and continued efforts on tree canopy awareness and maintenance.
Planning Commission: Aligning the zoning code with the 2022 Master Plan. The first attempt to update the zoning code was repealed however new attempts are being made by Planning Commission and the Community through better exchange of needs, ideas and solutions for a zoning code that is easier to follow, that reduces undesirable risks to our neighborhoods and a code that protects preserves and stewards our environment for generations to come.
Parks and Recreation: Opened new park amenities, including the Sk8park and Beach Playground, funded by generous donations, with Kiwanis Park receiving $500,000 for upgrades. (Our donors have big hearts - Thank-you!!)
Harbor Commission: Had a busy season bringing in $170,000. Both Ford Park and the Harbor Master buildings will be needing upgrades and renovations to ease usage for the boaters and the general public facilities alike.
Downtown Development Authority: Moved forward with infrastructure projects, including the Merchant Walkway and Third Street fabulous lighting, with TIF payments from Emmet County. The DDA can move along with the new Director Goodman at the helm.
Ongoing discussions included board representation for non-voter property owners and tax payers, the feasibility of a bike path in the ravine, and the potential boardwalk extension through the woods. Additionally, aligning the zoning code with the 2022 Master Plan remains a focus.
Guided by a brand new Mayor and brand new City Council Member along 14 new board, commission, and authority members, our 41-member community advisory group will assist our 5-member City Council as we forge ahead to make our big-hearted community even better in 2025- together!
Looking toward the future:
As the community looks for new ways to work together, suggestions abound:
How to expand the pool of participants on boards and commissions to all those with addresses in Harbor Springs rather exclusively voters!
How to combine talents of like minded organizations to create well attended and funded events throughout the City among The Harbor Chamber of Commerce, the DDA, the Historical Society and the Parks and Recreation schedules.
Working together to coordinate the calendar of events throughout the year and by working together aligning donors and volunteers who are often the same folks, efforts by the Parks and Recreation Director, the Harbor Chamber Director, the Historic Society and the Downtown Development Authority could be shared.
The focus that we are all sharing could not have been done without the dialogues from two sides and City Hall. Let’s find common grounds.
Thank you for reaching out, we are grateful to have been asked this question today !
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UPDATE: In Article #9, Harbor Springs has an added section - 9.11 Cluster Housing
In the context of Redevelopment Ready Communities (RRC) program, cluster housing, also known as conservation subdivisions, can be a valuable tool for promoting efficient land use and preserving open space, potentially aligning with RRC's best practices for community and economic development.
Another version of the explanation is: With this type of zoning, the density of the subdivision is determined early on and a large piece of the land is set aside to create a common green space for residents to enjoy. Homes typically seen in cluster zoned subdivisions are townhomes and garden homes.
How it Works
Cluster development regulations are implemented through zoning ordinance and subdivision and land development ordinance regulations. Cluster developments can be designed to provide appropriate economic returns for the tract's owner, while preserving significant open space areas and protecting natural features. Depending on the type of design and the regulations that apply to the cluster development, up to 75 percent or more of a site's land area can be preserved in permanent open space using a cluster design. The open space can include natural and historic resources, woodlands, recreational facilities, as well as agricultural activities, if appropriately located. To achieve the full benefits of this development option, natural features and existing site conditions should be given high priority early in the design process.
There could be advantages, but it is up to the good tastes of the developer that something ugly will not be built. Can we trust our neighbors? Let's talk about it.
Reading Material: Background and comparison.
Here is the agenda for Petoskey - Zoning for the RRC city. The same Articles: 7 and 9 to be reviewed. The shadowing on Article #7 is their redlined version, we believe. Article 7 Article 9
petoskeyzoning.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/03.04.2025-Agenda-Zoning-Committee-Packet.pdf
To find the Harbor Springs Articles 7 & 9, please sign up for our newsletters, or go to the City of Harbor Springs and locate the Articles for Thursday nights meet.
Suggest we read, beef up, bone up and be ready to participate on Thursday at 5:30 PM in Harbor Springs.
This memo was passed to the Planning Commissioners two weeks ago.
"More than any other subject that has come up recently, since we disengaged from the RRC, is how the City Planner Beckett & Raeder will guide us thru the Articles in our zoning code. We want a zoning code meant to steward, preserve and protect Harbor Springs."
What the community expects is the Planning Commissioners to require from Beckett & Raeder any RRC details to be visibly highlighted in the Article’s being worked on, or any zoning articles already reviewed by the Planning Commission.
We want the Planning Commission and the public to be aware and decide for themselves if the specific addition in the language of a RRC requirement is wanted - needed - consequences understood or required.
We want and ask for no further confusion.
The second subject to talk about among yourselves is the reaction we have been noticing in the audiences and on the boards and commissions.
So it’s when an audience member or a zoom speaker brings up a subject that has already been discussed, set aside, not on the agenda, or simply not timely – we absolutely cannot roll our eyes, place our arms in front of us in distain, or tell the speaker that it is “not their time’. Every person in our process is vitally important to our outcome.
We ask that we all gladly take their suggestions listen carefully, write them down and thank those speakers for being brave enough to be involved. If we do this, the community will stay involved. As we want them to.
Thank you for allowing the public with respect to speak.
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How can this possibly apply to HS ? There no such parcel of vacant land large enough within town limits to do this.
Remember - if you share, please make it public so we know where the news go. Thank you!
Horrible idea. Changes the culture. Trusting anyone to do what is not in their own best interests is lunacy.
Historically speaking....
Thank you Lisa for going to the ZBA and getting "on the record" about saving buildings. Saving history.
Going to the neighboring county planning commissions to talk about saving properties would be interesting, at least so far as gauging their interest and the interest from the community.
We want to know if public interest or political will exists for preservation.
Attached are before and after photos of a house in North Carolina in a little town that that's big into preservation. Also a link to the construction company there that specializes in such work. It's the kind of energy we would hope to spark in Harbor Springs. Such a wreck became such a beauty. Can you imagine what such a builder could do with the amazing buildings that we have here that are still in usable condition yet get torn down!?
Thank you for all your hard work and for caring!
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