March 29, 2024

High Rises, Piers and Dead Fawns

Aug. 7, 2015

There are big plans afoot in Traverse City. At least proposed big plans. Tall plans and long plans.

Meanwhile, there are troubling actions directed at the Grand Traverse County Board of Commissioners.

Traverse City’s Commission is in the preliminary and examination stages of proposals that would put not one but two nine-story buildings on Front Street and a 550-foot fishing pier out into West Bay.

One would think TC would have some kind of height ordinance for its downtown area so these debates would be easily resolved. Oh wait, there is exactly such an ordinance that restricts building height to 60 feet, five or six stories depending on how the thing is constructed.

The ordinance was created in an effort to maintain the essential nature of the downtown and to protect sight lines to the water.

It’s an ordinance that has served the city pretty well and developers have consistently found ways to work within its constraints.

Now come proposals for two structures at least 90–feet tall. The developer claims the projects are not economically viable without the extra height. This isn’t a small exception to the ordinance, but a whopping 50 percent increase.

Zoning ordinances are in place to be followed. In Traverse City, they have become an inconvenience to be avoided, a high-priced game in which those seeking exceptions always make the same argument – it just doesn’t pencil-out unless my project gets a bunch of exceptions. Please.

If the height ordinance is so inconsequential that it can be dramatically exceeded for one or two developers, then there is no ordinance at all. If we can go 50 percent above, then why not 60 or 70? If two high rises are acceptable, why not three or five or ten?

At the same time the commissioners are still doing preliminary investigative work on the dreaded fishing pier, a monstrosity that will forever change West Bay.

There is a solution here that would allow Traverse City residents to control at least part of the future of their city. When someone proposes something that would dramatically alters the skyline or shoreline to forever change the way we view the city, put it on the ballot. If you want buildings that exceed the height ordinance by, say, more than 20 percent (that would be about 12 feet, or one additional story), put it to a vote. The City Commission can do their appropriate due diligence and then let the people who will live with the ultimate decision make the ultimate decision.

The pier is a similar situation. It might be that city residents believe a pier would be a swell idea, at least in the abstract. But it will forever change the way we view and use the West Arm of Grand Traverse Bay. Put it on the ballot and let residents make the decision.

City Commissioners are forced into all kinds of delicate and difficult decisions. This and previous commissions have done a good job of carefully moving the city forward, realizing as they must, that many of their decisions will long outlive their terms.

Meanwhile, there is a different concern at the Grand Traverse County Board, one that has taken a disturbing and completely unacceptable turn.

The new Board is off to a rocky start with internal dissension and a seeming inability to clearly explain to the public what the hell they are trying to do. Board Chair Christine Maxbauer has been media unfriendly (and vice versa). There has been plenty of criticism from all corners, including this one.

But now some numbskulls have added threats to the debate. Throwing a dead animal on someone’s lawn, as was done to Ms.

Maxbauer, is an act of willful ignorance that is unacceptable as a protest or anything else. That she has also received threatening letters just adds to the stupidity. And she’s not the only one.

We’ve arrived at a place and time where spirited public discourse has devolved into vitriolic, anonymous comments on social media and personal threats directed at elected officials. Those so engaged apparently think they are cute or clever. They are neither.

One wonders if the dead-fawn-thrower even bothers to vote or has ever attended a County Board meeting or expressed concern with a rational phone call or letter.

You know, the kind of exchange that takes place in a civilized society as opposed to the anonymous nonsense engaged in by rabble.

Elected officials are our neighbors, have families and deserve better than this ugliness. Threats further no cause, support no issue, right no wrong and accomplish absolutely nothing.

Trending

Mysterious Michigan Reads

We can’t think of a better way to spend spring break than with a great book. Northern Express asked local bookseller... Read More >>

Heirloom Recipes With Heritage, History, and Nostalgia

Before we begin to stash our coats and put winter behind us, let us remember what years past have taught us…fake sp... Read More >>

A Floral Family Affair

In the quaint downtown of Elk Rapids sits Golden Hill Farms, a shop where the artistry of floristry meets the rustic charm... Read More >>

A Look at Originalism

O Tempora O Mores! Oh the times, oh the culture. This Latin phrase relates to both the 18th century and our current times.... Read More >>