How Big How High A downtown development divides Petoskey voters

April 27, 2005

The fate of a proposed $50 million development in downtown Petoskey is
a classic Northern Michigan confrontion between residents who are
passionate about a sense ofTT small town charm and those who believe
it’s time to move forward.
When city voters go to the polls on May 3 for a referendum election on
Ordinance 692 and the zoning of the Lake Street Project, they’ll arrive
with a set of persuasive arguments on both sides of the issue. It’s
been a consuming issue in Petoskey for months with more than 50 letters
on the subject published in the local newspaper.
Yet even those on opposite sides of the controversy concede that they
can understand and appreciate the opposing view. The devil, for some,
seems to be in the details.

EARLY IMPRESSIONS
Dean Fleury, for instance, says that initially many welcomed the idea
of a $50 million project that would bring new residents downtown to a
new hotel, condos, shops and a bank (see sidebar). But concerns arose
over the size of the project and the public’s share of paying for a
parking structure for a private developer. Those concerns prompted the
retired schoolteacher to join a grassroots committee called “Repeal
692. Vote Yes,” which hopes to repeal an ordinance change that makes
the project possible.
“The big thing for me was the mass of the project,” Fleury says. “If
you look at our master plan, it says the city is supposed to keep the
historic charm and quaintness of Petoskey. But when they approved a
PUD (planned unit development), they threw out all of the zoning and
our master plan. At 76 feet high, this is going to be a massive gated
community.”
Carlin Smith, executive director of the Petoskey Chamber of Commerce,
says he understands local concerns, but it’s time for the city to move
on.
“It’s so rare for a developer to want to come into an urban area with a
plan to invest more than $50 million,” Smith notes. “So much
development today happens outside of urban centers in sprawl areas.”
Smith says that he too has concerns for Petoskey’s small town
character. “It’s a legitimate argument,” he notes. “This is a
particular issue because views will be affected and I recognize that.”
But he also notes that nearly a century ago there were 1,000 hotel
rooms in downtown Petoskey during the town’s heyday as a resort
destination. The long-gone Cushman Hotel had a veranda very similar to
that of the proposed Lake Street Project, and the Arlington Hotel had
800 rooms. One by one, the hotels burned down, literally reducing
Petoskey to a small town level.
“The Arlington Hotel rivaled the Grand Hotel (on Mackinac Island) in
size,” Smith notes. “Imagine the heyday of Petoskey in the early
1900s.”

SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT
In that respect, many of its supporters feel that the Lake Street
Project is a return to the glory of Petoskey’s past, as well as a
chance to bring new jobs and residents downtown.
On its website, a group of supporters called Partners for Petoskey
states that the project will bring $40 million in construction
contracts downtown, along with a $14 million construction payroll and
close to 200 permanant new jobs. The project is also expected to
generate more than 127,000 new visits downtown annually.
Although his watch and clock business would seem likely to benefit from
the influx of new residents, Grant Dittmar says he’s not pleased with
the idea of having the new project across the street from his shop.
“A lot of downtown businesses have problems with the size and the mass
of it,” Dittmar says of the project. “It will be seven stories right
on the highway and that’s what’s going to greet you when you come over
the Mitchell Street Bridge into town.”
Dittmar, who has been in business since 1989, says he doesn’t believe
supporters’ claims that downtown Petoskey will die out if the project
goes under. Moreover, he says, “I don’t feel the project will do what
its proponents think it will do,” in terms of benefiting the city.

BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD
Some opponents would like the developer to start over with a
scaled-down project in mind. And they’d like to ditch the public’s
contribution of $6.2 million or more in a bond issue for the parking
structure, which they claim will provide little in the way of public
parking.
Those sentiments resonated in Petoskey’s recent city election when the
mayor and two city councilmen who voted in favor of the project were
removed from office by voters.
Dawn Daras-Cartwright of Repeal 692 has called for a new developer for
the project to replace the Lake Street Petoskey Associates of
Farmington Hills. The idea would be to downscale the project.
But a rosy outcome is unlikely under such a scenario, says Lyn Jenks, a
public relations and fundraising specialist who serves as an adviser to
Partners for Petoskey.
“This land has been vacant for over 20 years,” Jenks notes. “And there
have been some failed attempts at development through the years. I
think it’s overly optimistic to think that another developer would come
in, considering that other development ideas have failed in the past.”
Jenks also noted that those who oppose the project don’t have an
alternative proposal or a developer in mind. The current project also
has the support of 75 businesses in the downtown area.
Despite that level of downtown support, Jenks says it’s unclear as to
how the election will go.
“I think it’s close,” she says. “I would like to say that everyone is
agreeing with us, but it seems to be a case where one-third are for it,
one-third against, and one-third are still thinking about. It’s very
typical of how an election goes.”
Some feel that any change would be an improvement over a site that
hardly ranks as attractive. “This entrance to our city has been an
eyesore for almost 25 years,” notes jeweler Mike Teska in a letter in
this week’s Express. “Through the years three other projects were
partially developed for this site. The site is still undeveloped.”
So, how big, how high? Small town character or a new vision for the
city? Petoskey’s 4,000 or so voters will call the shots this May 3.
As Carlin Smith notes, “Some people are saying maintain Petoskey’s
small town character while others are saying bring back the glory of
the past.”

sidebar:
Just the Facts: The Lake Street Project

Here’s the rundown on the project, provided by the Partners for
Petoskey on their website. For more information, see
www.partnersforpetoskey.com.
Located on a city block bordered by Lake, Petoskey and Mitchell streets
along US 131, the proposed $50 million development will include:

• A hotel with 102 rooms.
• 67 residential condo units.
• 20,638 square feet of office and
retail space.
• a 4,563 square foot conference
center
• a 3,389 square foot multi-
purpose room
• 193 public parking spaces
• 200 private parking spaces for
hotel and condo owners