Saugatuck City Council deems proposed marina basin 'contrary to public interest'

SAUGATUCK — In a now years-long battle to keep a developer from constructing a marina basin that advocates argue could be detrimental to environmental and historical interests, Saugatuck City Council members have adopted a resolution deeming the project "contrary to the public interest."

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That's according to a release from David Swan, president of the Saugatuck Dunes Coastal Alliance. Swan said, during its Monday, Oct. 24, meeting, city council adopted a resolution asking the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to make an independent review of the need for NorthShore of Saugatuck's proposed marina "from the perspective of overall public interest."

Five council members voted in favor of the resolution, and none voted against — although Mayor Pro-Tem Scott Dean abstained, citing a potential conflict of interest due to his employment with the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy. EGLE is involved in the permit process for the proposed marina.

In the 65-point resolution, the city maintains the proposed marina basin is "contrary to the public interest" and the cumulative, permanent detrimental impacts of excavation and construction to adjacent properties and the local economy outweigh any benefits.

“The council’s resolution articulates the collective voices of Saugatuck and the Tri-Communities — and for the people who visit the area,” said Bobbie Gaunt, board chair of the Saugatuck Dunes Coastal Alliance. “We sincerely appreciate the thorough and thoughtful deliberation the city council and staff have given to the resolution and their decision to engage in the public comment process.”

The Coastal Alliance has been tied in a legal battle since 2017, when it appealed the township's issuance of a permit for the project to the Zoning Board of Appeals. The ZBA said the group didn't have standing — a decision appealed to the Allegan County Circuit Court, the Michigan Appellate Court and the Michigan Supreme Court.

The Michigan Supreme Court clarified what constitutes "standing" and remanded the case back to the Allegan County Circuit Court in July. The court said, to meet the standard of an aggrieved party, the Costal Alliance must:

• Participate in the proceedings in some way, including taking a position before the public body making the decision.

• Have some sort of stake in the issue, whether financial or property-related.

• Show they will be harmed by the zoning decision in a way unique from others in the community, whether in the type of harm or the degree of harm.

Swan told The Sentinel the Coastal Alliance was given 45 days in September to submit a brief to the Allegan County Circuit Court. The plaintiff will have 30 days to respond. Swan anticipates a hearing will be set for January.

Meanwhile, the state permit for the project is set to expire in January, Swan said, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is still in the process of conducting permit reviews.

Perhaps one of the most historic claims to the property is the potential site of the lost city of Singapore. Experts agree the site is located somewhere within the NorthShore of Saugatuck development, which includes 43 waterfront homes and the marina from landowners Jeff and Peg Padnos.

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"That's been the source of a great deal of controversy," Eric Gollannek, director of the Saugatuck-Douglas History Center, told The Sentinel in February. "There's been a lot of interest in the site over the past decade-plus as it's passed through different hands and development plans. It seems likely that, when they built the channel, a lot of the earth they removed may have been shoveled onto the (Singapore) site — so it's a complicated problem. Without extensive archeology, it's hard to know what survived and what didn't."

The Saugatuck-Douglas History Center issued a position paper on development in 2010, revised in October 2017.

"The built environments of our towns and the natural lands, vistas and historic and archeological sites of the Lake Michigan lakeshore and along the Kalamazoo River are irreplaceable assets," the paper read.

"They are vital to the quality of the community's cultural life, as well as to its economy. The history center asserts that any development that devalues the historic townscape, landscape or view (or) sheds or diminishes our ability to understand or commemorate our varied history should be considered a 'taking' from the people in the region."

— Contact editor Cassandra Lybrink at clybrink@hollandsentinel.com. Follow her on Twitter @CassLybrink.

This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Saugatuck Council deems marina plan 'contrary to public interest'