To gain insight to the planned development character of the area,
the adopted master plans of the Leelanau County Planning Commission and
adjacent jurisdictions have been reviewed. The following summarizes the
recommendations of these plans.
Leelanau County
"It is the principle goal of the Leelanau General
Plan to establish a strategy for guiding growth that protects, and where
possible, enhances the unique character of and quality of life on the
The plan is framed by a series of land use policies and action
statements that provide direction to the various functional parts that make up
the county. It is supported by fifteen working papers that examine county
demographics, land use patterns, transportation and public facilities, natural
resources, citizen attitudes, and the economy.
The Leelanau General Plan
proposes a compact land development pattern to protect renewable resource lands
(such as orchard land and forests) as well as sensitive environments (like
wetlands and dunes). It proposes policies to encourage future development to
locate in and near existing villages as well as near
The plan identifies the county's rural character as the driving
force of the local tourist economy. The plan further finds that low density
residential sprawl (characterized by the fragmentation of large parcels into
lots of between one and 20 acres with frontage on a county road) is a major
threat to the county's rural character. The plan emphasizes that the future
quality of life on the peninsula will depend to a great extent on the degree to
which the particular rural character of the peninsula is protected.
The Future Land Use Map for
The Leelanau General Plan
urges each local plan to specify substantive policies addressing the issues of
growth according to type, location, rate and timing, total amount, and
infrastructure capacity to support additional development. The plan further recognizes
that a degree of uniqueness should be maintained between the local
municipalities and, as a result, there should be a corresponding degree of
flexibility between a local plan and the county-wide plan.
Suttons Bay Village
The
Ø
Locate
all commercial and industrial uses south of
Ø
Encourage
retail and office uses to locate in separate areas of the central business
district; and
Ø
Permit
office uses to occupy residential structures along M-22 provided the
residential character of the building is maintained.
The plan suggests that Village boundaries should be expanded as needed to accommodate the following types of development requiring public utilities:
Ø
To
the north for residential and waterfront development;
Ø
To
the southeast and east along M-22,
Ø
To
the south along Elm and Pine View Roads for commercial, industrial and public
purposes; and
Ø
To
the northwest along M-204 for low-density residential development.
The Village Planning Commission is updating its land use master
plan concurrent with the Township's planning effort.
Leelanau Township
The Leelanau Township Master
Plan was adopted by the Township Planning Commission in May, 1990.
Generally, the Plan recommends that future development largely occur around the
The largest planned land use along the jurisdictional boundary
between
The Leelanau Township Master
Plan calls for lot sizes in this category to be large enough to provide the
separation between single-family dwellings and spraying activities and normal
noise, dust, and odors associated with agricultural uses. In addition, parcels should be large enough
to preserve the agricultural character of the area, and to allow normal type of
agricultural activities.
Almost 160 acres are dedicated for Agricultural/Residential uses in the southwest quarter of the southeast quarter in section 31, the southeast quarter of the southwest quarter of section 32, and the south half of the southeast quarter of section 33. The Agricultural/Residential area provides for low intensity uses which include single family residences as the primary use and also includes farming activities on a smaller scale than those usually found in the Agricultural/Conservation area. It includes public and private outdoor recreation uses when approved with special conditions to ensure that development is appropriate.
The Leelanau Township Master
Plan calls for lot sizes in this category to be a minimum of 3 acres with a
frontage of 250 feet on major county roads.
Bingham Township
Along the northern
The intent of the Residential District is to accommodate
residential properties of a low density which will be compatible with natural
resources and environmental characteristics, such as hillsides, scenic areas,
wetlands, and shore lands; which will preserve open space and the rural
atmosphere; and which will not require public sewers. The minimum lot area for
residential properties is one acre.
The Agricultural District, the Township's largest, is intended to
encourage and maintain agriculture as part of a balanced and diversified
economy, and to protect viable farmland from encroachment by other uses. It is also intended to provide a low density
rural atmosphere which will accommodate the growing demand for residential
development, while still protecting scenic and ecologically sensitive areas
which make
Leland Township
The Leland Township Planning Commission adopted a Comprehensive
Development Plan on February 15, 1994. A
Future Land Use Map and supporting text was incorporated into the plan on
December 4, 1995.
The Township is divided into five planning classifications. The least intensive is the Agricultural Area
classification. This area stretches along the Township's western border
generally between M-204 and M-22.
According to the Comprehensive Development Plan, the Agricultural Area
includes those lands within the Township where agricultural land uses are
encouraged to continue on a long term basis and are afforded the opportunities
and protection to do so. Recommended
development densities should generally not exceed approximately one dwelling
unit per 10 acres. Higher development
densities may be appropriate where site development principles are employed to
significantly lessen the impact of such development on the long term
availability of farmland, the integrity of the Township's thoroughfares, and
the natural resources and rural character of the Township.
The next classification is the Rural Residential Area. This area is intended to serve both as a
means of accommodating future residential development within a low density open
space setting and buffering more intensive agricultural operations in the
Agricultural Area from higher density growth areas. Recommended development densities should
generally not exceed approximately one dwelling unit per 1 to 5 acres. This area forms a narrow band just north of
M-22 and in the southern half of Section 24.
The Suburban Residential Area is intended to accommodate primarily
single family residential growth and development in a more urban setting than
provided for in the Rural Residential Area, but not at densities as high as the
Township's village areas. Recommended
maximum development densities should generally range between approximately 1
dwelling unit per 1/3 acre to 1 acre.
This area covers parcels along M-22.
The Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa
The trust lands owned and operated by the Grand Traverse Band of
Ottawa and Chippewa Indians in
Regional Greenways
Plan
A greenway is defined as linear open space established along
either a natural corridor such as a riverfront, stream valley or ridgeline, or
overland along a railroad right-of-way converted to recreational use, a canal,
a scenic road or other route.[2]
All greenways share the objective of providing access to a variety of amenities
and experiences. The types of resources and linkages that connect them will
vary depending on the natural landscape and community preferences. Generally
linkages will be linear in nature and can include such features as biking
trails, bike paths, city sidewalks, streams, abandoned railroad rights-of-way,
utility corridors or scenic roads.[3]
Humans are not the only creatures to benefit from greenways. A
vegetated corridor can help enrich the quantity and diversity of plants and
animals in a community. Traditional development patterns lead to severe
fragmentation of the natural habitat. As land is converted, smaller isolated
patches of natural habitat are created.
A collaborative planning effort among several partners of the
Grand Traverse Bay Watershed initiative is currently taking place in northwest
County teams were then assembled
consisting of representatives from county planning commissions, local
government, business, conservation organizations, trails/recreation groups,
sub-watershed steering committees, and historical/cultural interests. County
team members were asked to evaluate the ecological and recreational corridors
in their county according to certain criteria to determine what they felt was
the best and highest use for each corridor. The criteria were: ecological,
recreational, educational, scenic, and economic/tourism. The resulting
conceptual map for proposed greenways is presented below as Figure 2.
Representing greenway development in
Their work led to the development of the Leelanau Trail. The Leelanau Trail winds its way from
Greilickville to
The Leelanau Trail Master Plan calls for the entire 15-mile trail
to have a 10-foot wide paved surface; with more being paved as funds become
available.
Leelanau Agricultural Alliance
The
Master Plan recognizes and supports the ongoing activities of the Leelanau Agricultural
Alliance to research and establish voluntary programs and other options for
township growers to preserve productive farmland. The Leelanau Agricultural
Alliance is a non-profit grower-led organization working closely with the MSU
Extension and the Leelanau Conservancy to explore farmland and open space
options. The goals of this organization are reflected in the Master Plan’s
emphasis on open space protection through residential clustering.
