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Youth for Christ appeals to Zoning Board, reopens ministry. Leland citizens call on officials to play long game

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As expected, Apollos Properties and “Bear Man” Jim Van Steenhouse last month appealed to the Township’s Zoning Board of Appeals their special use permit application to hold Youth for Christ’s controversial Lighthouse ministry in a building they own that overlooks Fishtown in the heart of Leland’s business district. VanSteenhouse’s attorney Robert Parker informed lawyer Thomas Grier, with the Running Wise Law Firm, on April 28 that “while the matter is on appeal before the [ZBA], Youth for Christ intends to resume its activities at the property. Meanwhile, at the April 15 Planning Commission meeting, Leland citizens called on township officials to overcome fears of future litigation from VanSteenhouse and Youth for Christ. “If you feel you are currently considering approval to avoid a legal battle, then I urge you to move forward with another option: a legislative moratorium,” said Leland resident Lauren Connor. She and other citizens who spoke during the public comment period referenced several recent examples of villages and townships elsewhere in Leelanau County enacting moratoriums to stop developments from outside players that locals opposed. Those examples include dollar stores proposed in Empire and Maple City, an RV park in Leelanau Township, and a campground expansion along Lake Leelanau.

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Cleveland Township Board stops proposed Maple City Dollar General with zoning, building moratorium

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At a special meeting tonight, the Cleveland Township Board unanimously passed a moratorium on any applications for zoning or building in the Business 1 and Business 2 zoning districts until Aug. 4, with the option to extend for another six months. The Planning Commission meeting scheduled for Wednesday, Feb. 5, has been cancelled. That moratorium stops, for now, a proposed Dollar General development at the corner of Maple City Road and Cemetery Road in Cleveland Township.

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Cleveland Township Board stops proposed Maple City Dollar General with zoning, building moratorium

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Twice in 2019 Dollar General tried to build stores in Leelanau County. Twice the discount chain goliath was defeated by local zoning and citizen opposition. Leelanau remains the only county in Michigan without a discount chain store. Midwest V, the same company that targeted Maple City and Empire six years ago, now wants to build a dollar store at the corner of Maple City Road and Cemetery Road in Cleveland Township — 0.6 miles north of downtown Maple City. The Cleveland Township Planning Commission will hold a public hearing about the proposed development on Wednesday, Feb. 5, at 7 pm at the Township Hall.

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High water, Dollar General top Glen Arbor Sun’s 2019 stories

It was the year of high water, as Lake Michigan water levels nearly eclipsed their all-time record—just six years after setting their all-time low. That made beach walking difficult; it exacerbated conflicts over beach-walking rights along riparian-owned property; it made the reality of Climate Change even more dire, and it contributed to flooding in Leland’s historic Fishtown.

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Dollar stores squeeze rural grocery stores

Among the biggest stories of 2019 has been attempts by dollar stores to gain a foothold in Leelanau County. Zoning regulations and citizen opposition in Kasson Township stopped a bid in Maple City this spring; then Empire instituted a 6-month moratorium on new commercial development on July 17 to prevent a contractor that works with Dollar General from purchasing land in the village.

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Dollar stores targeting northern Michigan towns?

Maple City and Lake Ann residents brace for potential battle with hungry national chain. Dollar stores are expanding in rural, and often economically depressed, towns throughout the United States. “Small box” dollar stores specialize in selling cheap commodities and pre-packaged food that undercut locally-owned grocery stores.

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