To view or leave comments on this story, click HERE.
(Editor’s Note: Peninsula Township Supervisor Maura Sanders reports in with updates about Township goals and priorities, a land division involving a PDR parcel, Parks Committee candidates, the Lighthouse Keeper’s Program and more. Big thanks to Maura for these weekly updates that keep us tuned into what’s happening at the Township offices. Read on for this week’s note. -jb)
Old Mission Gazette is Reader Supported.
Click Here to Keep the Gazette Going.
January 31, 2025
Happy last day of January, Neighbors!
Let’s get right to the good stuff: Strategic Planning
The Town Board held their Strategic Planning kick-off meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 28. Here is the YouTube link to watch. Below is the chart, digitized from the written chart, depicting the goals and weighted priorities.

The Town Board and the Parks Committee held a joint meeting earlier in the day on Jan. 28. The Board did not have a quorum to discuss and move on the two applicants that the Parks Committee voted for recommendation to fill vacancies. The Town Board will be presented with an update from the Parks Committee at the next Town Board meeting. (The two candidates are Craig Maison and Christine Murphy; read more about them in the meeting packet here. -jb)
On Wednesday, Jan. 29, the Town Board held a Land Division Appeal Special Meeting (view the meeting at the Township’s YouTube link). Two appeals were presented by the appellants. One of these appeals (LDA #358) was very unique, as it involved requested splits of 10 acres of agricultural land in the Township’s Purchase of Development Rights (PDR) Program, recorded on May 13, 2005.
The Town Board moved to work with staff on drafting language to deny the appeal (LDA #358). The Town Board determined that the PDR program is not something we will dismantle in order to meet other zoning requirements for development of anything outside of the PDR ordinance or individual easements signed by the original Grantors.
The other appeal (LDA #359) involved a requested division of a Bay Frontage lot on Peninsula Drive that would result in two non-conforming lots. The Town Board moved to table LDA #359 to a future date, as there was not enough time for a full discussion.
Updates from Down the Hall:
Zoning: Dave Sanger, filling the role of Zoning Intake Administrator, Gourdie-Fraser, the Township’s engineer of record and signatory for permits, and myself have been keeping the permitting process flowing. Dave does an absolutely outstanding job of ensuring the applications are fully filled out and that the communication with the applicants is clear, educational and accurate.
Mission Point Lighthouse: Ginger Schultz, our Lighthouse Manager, has every week covered in the Lighthouse Keeper’s Program except for one. There is no shortage of applicants, but Ginger is finishing the due diligence required to allow volunteers to run our Lighthouse through the Keeper’s program!
Looking ahead to next week: The Planning Commission will hold their regular meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 4, at 7 p.m. The agenda is packed and will include discussions on Short Term Rentals (STRs), Capital Improvement Planning (CIP) and much more! The agenda and packet are posted here.
Have a great winter wonderland weekend, everyone!
Maura Sanders
Peninsula Township Supervisor
Phone: (231) 223-7323
Email: [email protected]
Office Hours: Mondays 7:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.; Tuesdays – Thursdays 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.; closed Friday – Sunday and Holidays. If TCAPS is closed due to weather, Peninsula Township offices are closed at least until 10 a.m. Please check the website homepage for any updates.
Also Read…
SUPPORT YOUR INDEPENDENT LOCAL NEWSPAPER: I started Old Mission Gazette in 2015 because I felt a calling to provide the Old Mission Peninsula community with local news. After decades of writing for newspapers and magazines like the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Family Circle and Ladies' Home Journal, I really just wanted to write about my own community where I grew up on a cherry farm and raised my own family. So I started my own newspaper.
Because Old Mission Gazette is a "Reader Supported Newspaper" -- meaning it exists because of your financial support -- I hope you'll consider tossing a few bucks our way if I mention your event, your business, your organization or your news item, or if you simply love reading about what's happening on the OMP. In a time when local news is becoming a thing of the past, supporting an independent community newspaper is more important now than ever. Thank you so much for your support! -Jane Boursaw, Editor/Publisher, Old Mission Gazette
To keep the Gazette going, click here to make a donation.
To view or leave comments on this story, click HERE.
Curt Peterson
·
Old Mission
·
12h
To be clear and fair the applicant never asked to dismantle the PDR program or go against its provisions and contract. The legal disagreement is that the requested land division would have added non PDR land to PDR acreage and the township says the newly added acreage would have to abide by PDR provisions which were never previously applied to that portion of the property. One trustee suggested getting a third opinion on that interpretation of the land division acts. That was mentioned to be too expensive for the township to undertake. ( Note the twp attorney always sides with the twp board). So a third impartial legal opinion request was not an unreasonable request.
So, if you take PDR land and divide/merge with non-PDR land, the restrictions instantly transfer over to the non-PDR land after the merge. Why?
Does this also apply to combinations? If I take non-restricted land and want to buy my neighbors farm that’s under PDR (because I want to actually “just” farm it) will my non-restricted property instantly be restricted because of the merge? If so, yikes.
The community, agricultural committee & applicant definitely need clarification from the township’s attorney on this in writing. This is a huge game changer for the current agricultural community & farmers who are considering selling their PDR rights. How can restrictions apply to non-PDR land for which the farmer was not compensated? Hopefully the township attorney misspoke & will correct the record for the citizens. This is the first land division appeal the township has faced. It’s unfortunate & concerning that a neutral third party could not review the facts. Maura explained the board is the third party which is perplexing for many reasons. And… Maura indicated that the township’s attorney is staff. So much for an unbiased appeal process.