Proposal to renovate Ford Park building creates questions over allowed uses there

A proposal to renovate a little-used waterfront city building drew some skepticism and debate at the Harbor Springs City Council table Monday night, Oct. 19.

HARBOR, Inc. had approached the city about a year ago with the idea of renovating the brick building in Ford Park using energy efficient building practices. The idea would be to highlight such construction methods like geothermal heating or a “live roof” in a public building and thereby encourage energy efficiency throughout the area.

The building is currently little more than home to restrooms. It is not heated and not useable during the winter months.

HARBOR, Inc. had suggested that it would apply for grant money and fundraise to renovate the building. It would then use part of the building for its office in a lease agreement with the city.

HARBOR, Inc executive director Danna Widmar told council Monday night that federal grant was available for some $60,000, part of the “stimulus” package. However, that grant application deadline was approaching within a few days. They had only learned of the application within the past few weeks, she said.

Widmar had estimated that another $40-50,000, beyond the grant money, would be needed to complete the renovation. She suggested HARBOR, Inc. could do the fundraising for that, if it were allowed office space in the building.

Widmar also emphasized that applying for the grant and actually getting the grant were two very different things as there were likely to be many applicants.

While open to attracting grant money to fix up the building, utilizing it for office space seemed to bother at least one council member.

“We have very limited waterfront space and I just don’t think we should enter into any kind of long-term lease,” council member Pringle Pfeifer said. Pfeifer was particularly outspoken and critical of the idea of using the building for office space.

“I think we need to get public input on this. I don’t feel compelled to use the building for anything other than restrooms.”

Pfeifer said waterfront zoning requires that buildings be used for waterfront related purposes. She expressed reservations that allowing HARBOR, Inc. to lease the building for office space would fit in with such a goal.

If the building were to be used for sailing group meetings or similar community activities, that would seem to better fit a waterfront, publicly owned building, she said.

Mayor Al Dika said he had been on the Harbor Commission since the 1980s and that they had been trying to find an organization or business that would be a good fit for the building with no success.

“The building needs to be renovated. Those bathrooms are a disgrace and not a good reflection on the city,” Dika said.

Council member Mike Heinz said he was not opposed to the idea of allowing HARBOR, Inc. to have an office there, but that all the zoning issues need to be clarified first.

With a grant deadline looming, council agreed to allow the application to proceed, yet with no formal commitment to allow HARBOR, Inc. to occupy the building as office space.

“I think we should allow some time for people to comment on the idea,” Dika said.

In an email to council members on Tuesday, Dika even suggested putting out a “Request for Proposals” for uses for the building.

“I think that perhaps as part of our public discussion about what to do with the building and how it should be used, we should put out an RFP (Request for Proposals) for a zoning-appropriate public or semi-public use of the building,” Dika wrote.

“Let’s see if there are others in the community interested in using that building.”

Comments on the Ford Park building can be directed to the city council through city manager Tom Richards. For more information, call City Hall at 231-526-2104 or www.cityofharborsprings.com

-Charles O’Neill

This is part of the October 21, 2009 online edition of Harbor Light Newspaper.

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