Char-Em ISD expands co-op program to help students find careers
https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/char-em-isd-expands-co-090357071.html
Change from the Outside In as well as from the Inside Out
Resiliency — Are We Investing in the Right Kind?
“Resiliency” has become one of the most frequently used words in planning discussions today. Yet the meaning of the term deserves closer examination. Resiliency should represent more than beautification projects, marketing campaigns, or efforts designed primarily to attract visitors. It should also reflect the long-term strength of the people who live and work in a community.
Across many small towns, including Harbor Springs, development strategies for decades have been built around a tourism-driven economy. State programs such as Pure Michigan, the growth of second-home ownership, and planning models developed in the early 2000s helped shape how communities approached growth and investment. Tourism promotion and downtown beautification were widely viewed as reliable engines of economic vitality.
But the economic landscape of 2026 looks very different from the one those plans anticipated. Remote work has untethered many professional jobs from geography. Artificial intelligence is beginning to reshape labor markets across multiple sectors. At the same time, the housing supply in small resort communities remains constrained by physical limits. Harbor Springs itself encompasses just 1.3 square miles of land.
Meanwhile, workforce shortages are appearing across essential sectors—construction, public works, skilled trades, hospitality, and local services. Businesses report difficulty finding workers, and municipalities face similar challenges in maintaining their own workforce. These realities raise an important question about how communities define resiliency. If long-term stability is the goal, should more public investment be directed toward strengthening the local workforce?
Encouragingly, some regional initiatives are already moving in this direction. In the story linked above, the Charlevoix-Emmet Intermediate School District’s Career and Technical Education programs connect students with real jobs through cooperative placements and partnerships with Northwest Michigan Works!. Students gain practical experience, earn wages, and in many cases the first $1,500 of wages is subsidized for participating employers. Programs like these illustrate a different kind of resilience—one that builds a pipeline of local talent tied directly to community employers.
This raises a broader opportunity for communities like Harbor Springs. Could downtown development programs support apprenticeships in retail, food service, or hospitality management? Could municipal departments—including public works—develop structured apprenticeship pathways for young residents interested in skilled careers? Could local businesses partner more intentionally with school-based work programs so that students who grow up here can also build careers here?
Investments of this kind build something tourism marketing alone cannot: a stable workforce and a community where younger generations can see a future.
These questions also point to a larger planning issue. Many of the guiding documents used by communities today—including master plans written in the past two decades—were developed under assumptions shaped during the 2003–2010 period. At that time, tourism growth was widely expected to remain the dominant economic driver for many resort communities. Those assumptions were understandable. But they were formed before COVID reshaped work patterns, before remote employment expanded, and before artificial intelligence began altering labor markets.
Across the country, planning organizations are beginning to revisit these assumptions. The question for Harbor Springs—and for communities like it—is therefore a simple one: are we planning forward, or are we still driving by the rear-view mirror?
Downtown investments, parks, and beautification projects certainly have their place. They contribute to the charm and character that make communities attractive. But true resiliency also comes from local opportunity: jobs, skills, and clear pathways for the next generation. Before committing additional public dollars guided by older planning assumptions, it may be worth asking a straightforward question.
Are we investing in the right kind of resiliency?
A community that trains its own workforce, supports apprenticeships, and connects students to local careers may ultimately prove far more resilient than one that relies primarily on attracting visitors. Let’s do it!
Shay Park – For Example
Based on the provided City Council documents and meeting transcripts from late 2024 through August 2025, here are the details regarding the concrete sidewalk project at Shay Park designed to connect the Aha boat to the Ephraim Shay Locomotive.
1. Project Purpose and Rationale
The primary goal of the project is to create a unified historical corridor within Shay Park by connecting its two main features: the Aha vessel (already on site) and the newly acquired Ephraim Shay Locomotive #2005 (arrived May 2025).
• ADA Compliance: A major driver for the sidewalk is the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Because the new locomotive display includes an accessible path (funded by the Historical Society), the City is required to make the existing Aha vessel accessible as well to avoid liability and meet best practices.
• Connectivity: The path connects the locomotive (Southwest corner), the Aha (center/East), and the existing sidewalk on Judd Street.
2. Design Evolution and Specifications
The City contracted Beckett & Raeder to create the engineered plans. The design underwent significant changes to reduce costs and preserve green space:
• Original Proposal: Included a 6-foot wide path ending in a large 18-foot wide concrete “viewing platform” in front of the Aha boat. This was designed to prevent the path from looking like a “dead end” if future stairs to Main Street were not built immediately.
• Finalized Design (July 2025): Council and the Parks Board directed staff to reduce hardscape. The final plan features:
◦ Width: Reduced to 5 feet (the ADA minimum).
◦ Viewing Platform: Removed entirely. The path now curves simply to connect the features without the large concrete plaza in front of the boat.
◦ Material: 4-inch concrete sidewalk.
◦ Route: Connects from Judd Street to the Locomotive, then to the Aha, with a future connection (Phase 2) planned for stairs leading up to Main Street.
3. Cost Estimates and Phasing
The project was broken into two phases to manage costs and fundraising. As of July 2025, the engineer’s “Opinion of Probable Construction Cost” was:
• Phase 1 (The Sidewalk): Estimated at $21,639.16.
◦ Includes mobilization, erosion control, earthwork, and 902 square feet of concrete sidewalk.
• Phase 2 (The Stairs): Estimated at $15,087.19.
◦ Includes concrete steps (12 linear feet), cheekwalls, and metal railings to connect the park to Main Street.
• Total Project: Approximately $36,700 for both phases.
Budgeting:
• The City included $30,000 in the 2025 General Fund budget for this project.
• There was originally a hope that neighbors (the Demmers) would fund the stairs and landscaping to improve access to their property, but they withdrew their interest in the project by March 2025, leaving the City to fund or fundraise for it.
4. Locomotive Pad vs. City Sidewalk
It is important to distinguish between the City’s sidewalk and the locomotive’s foundation:
• Locomotive Pad: The Harbor Springs Area Historical Society is financially responsible for the concrete slab/ballast under the train and the immediate 5-foot sidewalk border surrounding the locomotive.
• Connector Path: The City is responsible for the concrete sidewalk connecting that locomotive pad to the rest of the park and the Aha.
5. Fundraising and Opposition
• Fundraising: In July 2025, the Council authorized establishing a Special Project Fund with the Petoskey-Harbor Springs Community Foundation to accept donations. The City promoted a campaign where a $1,000 donation would secure a name on a plaque/boulder in the park.
• Opposition: During the August 2025 meeting, Councilperson Wendy Reeve expressed hesitation about spending money on new park walkways when existing city sidewalks required repair. A resident also voiced concern about pouring more concrete and reducing green space while existing infrastructure (like the boardwalk) suffered from neglect.
6. Timeline
• March 2025: Historical Society updates Council that the site is excavated; neighbors withdraw from stair funding.
• April 2025: Council reviews preliminary plans; requests reduction in concrete (removal of viewing platform).
• May 2025: The Shay Locomotive arrives at the park.
• July 2025: Final engineering plans presented with reduced scope (5ft width, no platform); fundraising authorized.