Sleeping Bear applies brakes on controversial Heritage Trail extension along Little Traverse Lake
Image courtesy of TART Trails
From staff reports
Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore is putting the brakes on its planned 4.5-mile extension of the Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail, which was to run near Little Traverse Lake and conclude at Good Harbor Trail. National Lakeshore superintendent Scott Tucker announced the news today during a press conference at Park headquarters in Empire. (Watch a livestream of the news conference here.)
The National Lakeshore is pausing the design of Segment 9 following months of conversations with the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians, which opposes the route of the extension and which sent a letter of concern on Aug. 26 to Secretary of the Interior Debra Haaland and U.S. Senators Gary Peters and Debbie Stabenow. “Our opposition is grounded in serious concerns regarding the potential impacts on wetlands, tree removal, and the treaty gathering rights of our Tribal members,” wrote Tribal Chairwoman Sandra Witherspoon.
The Grand Traverse Band letter also stated, “GTB recognizes that the development of Segment 9 has been the subject of a multi-year environmental review process in which there has been public comment in advance of issuing an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act. GTB, as a tribal government, has not previously submitted public comments either in support or opposition to Segment 9, however, we are compelled to do so now based on the significant concerns that have been brought to our attention by our tribal members.”
The segment 9 extension, which would have passed through wetlands, forest and dunes, withstood a comprehensive environmental assessment with public input in 2009. Since then, the trail extension has faced opposition from members of the Little Traverse Lake Association, who sued the National Park in 2015 over the adequacy of the environmental assessment, but lost in federal court. More recently, the chorus in opposition has added the National Parks Conservation Association, Cleveland Township, through which segment 9 would have passed, and a group called Sleeping Bear Naturally. The Little Traverse Lake Association commissioned a study by Borealis Consulting which showed that 7,300 trees would be removed to make way for the trail. That prompted an uproar among some local environmental groups. However, the vast majority of those trees were saplings.
The Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail currently runs 22 miles from Empire, through the National Lakeshore, to Bohemian Road, on M-22 between Glen Arbor and Leland. The Heritage Trail’s first segment between Glen Arbor and the Sleeping Bear Dune Climb broke ground in August 2011 during a ceremony attended by then U.S. Sen. Carl Levin and National Lakeshore staff and opened to users in 2012.
TART Trails has been the National Lakeshore’s fundraising partner for the Heritage Trail.
Tucker made clear during the news conference that it was tribal opposition to the segment 9 extension that convinced him to pause the project indefinitely. Consultations with the Grand Traverse Band started in January 2024, and Tucker estimated he and his staff have had approximately 15 formal and informal conversations or meetings on this topic since then.
“The core piece of this Sleeping Bear decision focuses on the inherent responsibility I have as superintendent of these public lands and these ancestral lands of the Grand Traverse Band and the responsibility that Sleeping Bear Dunes has to honor the treaty rights and the ancestral knowledge the Band has on their ancestral homeland,” Tucker explained.
“The Grand Traverse Band, through all our conversations, were opposed to the route through this section of the National Lakeshore. Honoring that request for us to look at alternative solutions for the Heritage Trail led to this decision today. Pausing the current trail design will set the stage for future alternative trail solutions through all of Sleeping Bear. We are going to take a step back with the Grand Traverse Band and TART Trails and work on what makes sense for the future, holistically within the Lakeshore.”
Tucker added that the current tribal council and chairwoman and the previous council have been more engaged on the subject of the Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail’s expansion route than previous tribal governments.
“We hope that this is just the beginning of a stronger relationship between the National Park Service and the Grand Traverse Band for multiple projects in the future.”
Tucker said he made his ultimate decision last week to suspend the segment 9 expansion. A couple days before he made his decision, the National Park Service issued a first-ever Director’s Order for agency decision makers engaging in nation-to-nation consultations with Indian and Alaska Native Tribes. The order “underscored the NPS’ commitment to developing, implementing, and maintaining positive working relationships with Tribes based on transparency, accountability, mutual trust, and responsibility.”
The Sleeping Bear superintendent said the director’s order had “little if any impact on my decision as it was already formed. But it did give me confirmation that my decision was appropriate (on) many levels.”
TART Trails disappointed
TART Trails, which was in the process of raising money for the Heritage Trail expansion, issued the following statement following Tucker’s press conference at Sleeping Bear Dunes headquarters.
“As the fundraising agent and fiduciary for the project, TART Trails respects our partners’ decision-making process, though we are deeply disappointed by this outcome. This 4.5-mile pathway represents a critical step in creating a connected, safe, and immersive trail system that links communities, landscapes, and history within one of the nation’s most cherished natural areas. The Pathway to Good Harbor isn’t just a local priority; it’s part of a broader vision for responsible access and regional connectivity. The trail represents an opportunity to connect people to the natural and cultural landscapes of the Lakeshore, allowing visitors and locals alike to explore its breathtaking beauty at a human scale, outside of their vehicles.
“While we are saddened by the decision to pause this important project, it does not alter our commitment to the broader vision of safe, accessible trails for residents and visitors in the Lakeshore. The vision for this trail was born from community support for safe access to the Lakeshore’s invaluable resources, the opportunities a trail provides for health and wellness, and the environmental exploration it encourages. We continue to believe in the importance of the SBHT and the future of regional trail projects throughout Leelanau County.”
TART executive director Julie Clark, who attended the press conference, confirmed that no more funds will be raised for the Heritage Trail expansion. An estimated $2.6 million had been raised thus far.
“We will have conversations with donors who have contributed to this section about what will happen next,” she said.
Clark said she had no idea whether or not the Heritage Trail could be expanded in the future.
“For TART, we’re used to seeing (projects) moving at the pace of our partners, and sometimes our partners move more quickly or more slowly.”
She lamented the loss of segment 9, which TART envisioned as part of a larger trail system that could someday link Benzie, Leelanau and Grand Traverse Counties.
“Without Segment 9 we lose safe access. It is not a safe place to bike or run along M-22 in that section of the Park. We know that the community wanted separated trails. So we lose this opportunity to build a (route) that provides safe, responsible, managed access to the Lakeshore, and was in line with the (Park’s) General Management Plan. I do think we lose an important piece of a larger regional trail that serves locals and residents very well for health and wellness and transportation to one’s destination.”
Park exists both to preserve and recreate
“When Sleeping Bear Dunes was created in 1970, one of the tasks within that enabling legislation was to create recreational opportunities,” said Tucker, when asked what impact the Heritage Trail expansion freeze would have on recreational opportunities in the Park going forward. “If you look at National Parks across the country, there are National Parks, there are national recreation areas, natural seashores. Sleeping Bear’s core piece was to protect and preserve, but also provide access to recreation. Over the last 55 years, there are ebbs and flows of park planning, funding, activities. This project started well before 2009. We will continue to look at recreational opportunities in the future.
“The Park Service as a whole is committed to alternative transportation solutions. We’re also committed to interacting on a level of respect with the Grand Traverse Band. So this was not the right project at the right time. As we look at future projects with the Grand Traverse Band, I think we’ve established that relationship.
“We’ve collaborated with the Grand Traverse Band over numerous projects over the last few years, whether its wild rice reintroduction in the National Lakeshore, or working on an Otter Creek project to get funding for Brook Trout, or working with them on our maple sugaring program. They’ve been involved with our prescribed burns, especially in the Good Harbor area. We’ll continue those collaborations and cooperations.”
