Plans for the Michigan Department of Natural Resources to redesign the East Bay boat launch on Old Mission Peninsula – strongly opposed by some residents – must now go through a Peninsula Township review process, giving the township more leverage over the project but potentially delaying repairs until 2026 or beyond. The Ticker has the latest on that and other Peninsula Township news, including discussions about becoming a charter township and efforts to build a new fire station.

Boat Launch
The Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR) must go through a special use permit (SUP) approval process in Peninsula Township to proceed with plans to redesign the boat launch at the corner of Center and East Shore roads, both township and DNR officials confirm to The Ticker.

The DNR plans to upgrade the boat launch area – which has long been in disrepair – but has met with public backlash over plans to change the existing Center Road combined entrance/exit into an entrance-only driveway and install a second driveway onto East Shore Road to serve as the park’s lone exit. The DNR says the new design will improve traffic flow and reduce accidents, but residents have criticized the proposal for perceived safety risks to pedestrians and cyclists on East Shore Road, among other concerns.

The DNR was ready to proceed with the project – state officials in fact put it out to bid bundled with repair work at the Bowers Harbor boat launch – but were forced to pump the brakes due to citizen and township pushback. When attorneys for East Bay Township recently determined the DNR had to obtain township approval to proceed with plans to redesign the Traverse City State Park, Peninsula Township officials concluded they could also require a township review for the DNR boat launch redesign. “We told them they’re going to have to get an SUP,” says Township Supervisor Maura Sanders. “The current boat launch is a prior nonconforming use, so any changes have to get approved.”

While the DNR is still grappling with the ramifications of obtaining local approval for projects – something that may prompt additional legal review in the future – the state is nonetheless preparing to submit an SUP application to Peninsula Township, says Kasey Cline, Cadillac district supervisor for the parks and recreation division of the DNR. “We stopped the bids; we do not have a contractor on board,” she says. “We can’t put out a contract if we don’t know if we can do the work. We didn't know how long it was going to take to get the application materials together and do the review process...the timing is a little up in the air.”

An SUP review can be a time-intensive process requiring multiple meetings and public hearings that can sometimes stretch on for several months. Accordingly, Cline now says that the earliest construction would likely start on the East Bay boat launch is this fall, though that could also be pushed to 2026. It’s unclear whether work on Bowers Harbor will still progress this year; the DNR hoped to bundle those projects together to save costs, Cline says, but could potentially separate them if East Bay gets held up.

Any delays are likely to increase project costs as construction and wage rates continue to increase, Cline acknowledges. There’s also the possibility for further delays and expenses if Peninsula Township rejects the SUP application, which could require the DNR to either explore its legal options or go back to the design drawing board. Cline says there are significant “health and human safety issues” that need to be addressed sooner rather than later at the boat launch, including bringing the site up to ADA standards and creating enough parking room and turning radius for modern boats and trucks. “We’re hopeful we can still move these plans forward, but we’ll see what happens in the planning process,” she says.

In other Peninsula Township news...
> Trustees will discuss a report from consulting firm Maner Costerian at their 7pm meeting tonight (Tuesday) on Peninsula Township potentially converting from a general law township to a charter township. Officials have been exploring the possibility since 2023, which would give the township greater flexibility with taxation and staffing and protect it from annexation, among other changes. Maner Costerian concluded Peninsula Township should “seriously consider” the conversion, saying the township’s over-reliance on volunteer help and “weak” financial position is “increasingly inadequate for addressing the complex demands of modern municipal management.”

Sanders notes that trustees tonight will also discuss undertaking a community survey this year through consulting firm Epic MRA. The township’s last such survey was in 2019. Getting residents’ input on a potential charter conversion would be key before taking any steps forward, she says. “I think it would be a disservice (to do anything) until we knew what the temperature of the community is,” she says. Other hot-button issues – such as zoning updates and major events like the Bayshore Marathon, which was approved again for 2025 but has generated continued discussion about impacts – will also likely be covered in the survey, Sanders says.

> Finally, trustees will discuss an option to acquire private property for a new fire station at a special board meeting at 1pm Wednesday. Officials last year were exploring plans to replace Station 1 in Mapleton next to Peninsula Market with a new one on township property directly north of the township hall on Center Road. However, Sanders says the projected costs for preparing the township land for a station were significantly higher than expected. Officials have since been putting out feelers to owners of vacant property within a half-mile of the existing station to see if a more cost-efficient alternative could be found. One owner has approached the township with a potential offer. Sanders declined to identify the location, but said it will likely be disclosed at Wednesday’s meeting. “It’s an ideal location,” she says. “It’s just a matter of if the township can get to a price that’s reasonable and responsible.”