The Honor Area Restoration Project

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Residents in the village of Honor have banded together to form the Honor Area Restoration Project (HARP) to restore their home to the magical place they once knew. Formed only seven months ago when three local businesswomen decided to hold a meeting to stop the decline of what they saw as a dying town, HARP has big plans for the small village’s future. HARP knows that in order to get the entire area on board, they have to show villagers they can get things done. And that first step towards a brighter future is putting in a sidewalk that will connect the downtown to the shopping plaza, making the short trip safe to walk or cycle.

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Michigan Supreme Court Decision in Au Sable River Case Shores Up Protection for Environment

Circle of Blue: By siding with the Anglers of the Au Sable in a long-running lawsuit over a state permit that threatened the celebrated trout stream, the Michigan Supreme Court has strengthened protection of all state waters in the process, according to lead attorney Jim Olson.

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Does Sugar Loaf have a new suitor?

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Leelanau County’s “elephant in the room”, the long-shuttered Sugar Loaf ski resort, is back in the news following a quiet autumn season after the eccentric Las Vegas boxer-turned-businessman Liko Smith returned to the West Coast empty-handed. Resort owner Kate Wickstrom has been courted in recent months by at least two suitors, including David Skjaerlund, from Owosso, near Grand Rapids.

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Ray Franz favors cutting “Pure Michigan” funding

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State representative-elect Ray Franz favors cutting “Pure Michigan” funding by as much as 80 percent, the soon-to-be legislator from the 101st District told the Leelanau Enterprise last week. Franz said he would reduce funding from $25 to $30 million down to $5 to $6 million, while comparing Michigan’s tourism economy to keeping the books at the Onekema grocery store he owns.

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What’s killing the birds?

Avian botulism returned to Lake Michigan this year, killing more species and lasting longer than other recent outbreaks, according to state wildlife officials and researchers. The increase came after a two-year lull. The outbreaks first hit Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore in Benzie and Leelanau counties in 2006. The die-offs rapidly spread across northern Lake Michigan shorelines and killed an estimated 8,000 to 10,000 birds in 2007.

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Taking shots at the Leelanau County sheriff

Late last month, U.S. District Judge Janet Neff refused to throw out a lawsuit filed against Leelanau County Sheriff Mike Oltersdorf. The lawsuit was filed last year by several current and former members of the sheriff’s department who accuse Oltersdorf of listening to conversations on what employees believed to be private lines starting in 2006.

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Great Lakes Threats Go Beyond Asian Carp, Invasive Expert Says

Community ecologist Reuben Keller has made a career out of studying aquatic invasive species in freshwater systems like the Great Lakes, and measuring their ecological and economic costs. Now a lecturer with the University of Chicago’s Environmental Studies program, Dr. Keller outlined the threat posed by invaders like Asian carp in a presentation to attendees of an Alliance for the Great Lakes webcast in mid-November.

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Heritage Trail dream becomes a reality

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The Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, which celebrated its 40th birthday in late October, can almost count the days until work will begin on one of the Park’s biggest achievements — the Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail. The project is a 27-mile, multi-use trail that promotes access and safety for bikers, hikers, rollerbladers and wheelchairs

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Missouri’s Katy Trail, a crushed limestone, multi-use bike trail

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By Nic Halverson Sun contributor In light of the ongoing debate about whether or not to pave the Sleeping Bear Heritage multi-use bike trail that will soon run through the National Park, we solicited this perspective from an avid rider on Missouri’s “Katy Trail”. If I learned anything the first week I moved to rural […]

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News from the north: weekly roundup

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From staff reports The Glen Arbor Sun is catching its breath this week as the summer season turns toward autumn (we’ll publish our fall color edition on Sept. 16). Nevertheless, there’s still plenty of news happening in these northern woods. Here’s a rundown of stories that have caught our eyes: • Glen Arbor resident and […]

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