“Save the Mill” vote wins zoning referendum
From staff reports
“Yes” votes to approve Glen Arbor Township’s rezoning of the Brammer parcel next to the historic grist mill on the Crystal River as “recreational” won a special zoning referendum today, August 3, with 342 votes in favor and 229 opposed.
Leelanau County Clerk Michelle Crocker emphasized that the results are unofficial until they are officially certified on Thursday. A total of 574 voters turned up today (3 votes didn’t register in the zoning referendum) — a 63.57% turnout.
Turner Booth, the mill’s new owner, enjoyed the support of many in the Glen Arbor business community, including Cherry Republic owner Bob Sutherland (scroll down to read an excerpt from Sutherland’s letter of support this past Friday.)
Glen Arbor voters thus approved the Township Board’s decision on February 16, by a 4-1 vote, to rezone the Brammer parcel next to the historic, 1870s era Kelderhouse-Brammer grist mill on the Crystal River from “residential” to “recreational.” The outcome will impact the stretch of M-22 northeast of Glen Arbor, where the river makes an oxbow before heading north toward Lake Michigan.
Click here to read the Glen Arbor Sun’s full coverage of the Mill debate.
A recreational zoning designation allows the mill’s owner, Turner Booth, to build a parking lot that would supplement whatever commercial activity he pursues for the restored mill. Booth acquired the decaying mill from The Homestead in 2018 and has repaired the roof and taken steps to renovate the interior. He has floated several possible commercial uses for the mill—including a museum, a café, a community center, a health and wellness yoga studio, or a restaurant. According to Booth’s website, the mill may accommodate “small weddings or similar events during reasonable business hours.” However, Booth has not publicly committed—or has not yet decided—how the mill will ultimately be used.
Booth’s permit application to Michigan’s Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy, seeks a new kayak dock in the lower level of the millwhere it meets the Crystal River and a parking lot on the neighboring Brammer parcel, which he and the Township Board consider zoned “recreational.” Booth also approached neighboring landowners with property on the corner of M-22 and Bay Lane in September 2020 and sought, unsuccessfully, to acquire their property.
Many locals view Booth as a savior for his bid to revive the old mill, which deteriorated for decades. Before moving to Glen Arbor three years ago, where his family has long owned property at The Homestead, Booth played football (and majored in philosophy) at the University of Michigan, then worked for Cantor Fitzgerald in New York City.
Booth has said that the Brammer parcel must be zoned “recreational” in order for the mill to become a viable and profitable venture.
The opposition and their case
At issue for the group “Love Old Glen Arbor” (LOGA) isn’t the restoration of the mill, per se, but the status of the neighboring land parcel and the process by which the Glen Arbor Township Board rezoned it as “recreational.” LOGA gathered more than 100 signatures in March—15 percent of the 666 people who voted in Glen Arbor Township during the 2018 gubernatorial election—to put the issue before voters on Aug. 3.
LOGA charges that the rezoning conflicts with Glen Arbor’s 2019 Master Plan, which seeks to keep new commerce within the unincorporated village, itself, and curb sprawl. The citizen group also contends that the Township Board bypassed procedures, dismissed neighbors’ concerns, and ignored calls for transparency when it rezoned the Brammer parcel. LOGA states that its objection is “not about the mill.”
Visits to Farmer’s Market. Posts on Instagram
In response to LOGA’s ballot initiative opposed to the rezoning of the Brammer parcel, Booth and his team ran a carefully crafted public messaging campaign all summer, which included uplifting and inspirational photos posted to Instagram and Facebook which offer a sneak preview of the mill’s interior restoration. Through the month of July, Booth also appeared at Glen Arbor’s Tuesday morning farmers markets to appeal to voters to support the rezoning effort and the mill’s future plans. His website, TheMillGlenArbor.com, calls on citizens to “join us in saving The Mill and vote yes for our community and future generations to enjoy access to this rich history and beauty along the Crystal River.”
Turner Booth and the “Save the Mill” campaign appeared to benefit from support among many in the Glen Arbor business community, including that of Cherry Republic owner Bob Sutherland, who this past Friday wrote a letter of support for a “yes” vote. Read an excerpt below:
“The Mill will be another asset in a community that has an abundance of them. And because we have so many much bigger destinations, this one won’t increase visitation, it will just tastefully divert a few people on their way to the Dunes, the Homestead, Glen Lake, The Heritage Trail, Palmer Woods and Sleeping Bear Bay.
“A community needs to trust and thank God you had trust in me 30 years ago, and Mike Wiesen when he renovated Art’s and Bob Kuras before Art’s, and in Major Huey before the Homestead, and in DH Day before the Leelanau School and camps.”
“From Anderson’s market, to the Cannery in Glen Haven, to our township hall, to Lake Street Studios and Becky Thatcher Designs, to the Sylvan Inn, and the Old School, Glen Arbor, more than any town I know, has been a place for tasteful restorations. Knowing Turner’s talent and passion, his Mill, will fit right in.”
Reaction from Love Old Glen Arbor
Tina Mehren, a spokesperson for LOGA offered this statement following the election results:
“Of course we’re disappointed we did not win. But we are very pleased to have won over 40 percent of the vote. A significant percentage of Glen Arbor voters recognized the concerns we have with our Township government, in general, and zoning in particular. We want to thank all those who helped us and lent their support. Obviously this is a complex issue. People in Glen Arbor have taken the opportunity to learn about it. We believe this nine-month process has afforded everyone the opportunity to learn more about the zoning process. That can only benefit our community.