Two recent letters to local newspapers.
The
Cheboygan Tribune’s report “Mullett Board OK’s fixing property” is the reason why we
cannot trust the government to report on themselves. According to Mullett
Supervisor MaryAnne Gale, the property recently purchased by Mullett Township
from the DNR to enlarge the Topinabee Park really belonged to the Nissley
trust. She referred to a deed that alleged the Nissley property ran to the
railway property. The legal description clearly states that, but Ms Gale
ignores the fact the former railway owned 50 feet east from the railbed
centerline, clearly placing the disputed driveway squatting first on railway
property, then on DNR property, and finally on Mullett taxpayer owned property.
Supervisor
Gale and the township attorney statements are contradictory. Ms Gale states
that Nissleys owned the property and Mr MacArthur discusses adverse possession.
If Ms Gale was correct, a party can hardly take adverse possession of their own
property. The DNR had an Encroachment
Resolution Initiative in place in 2012 allowing legitimate claims against the
DNR for historical structure encroachment to be resolved at no cost. The
Nissleys apparently avoided this action as the DNR would have surely told them to
remove the drive as it is neither structural nor permanently affixed.
Topinabee,
and in fact all of Cheboygan County has many examples of disputed boundary
lines resulting from old survey inaccuracies. Ask Supervisor MaryAnne Gale if
she would be so quick to acquiesce to a boundary dispute if her own property
line was in dispute. The taxpayers should receive the same treatment and not
lose the few publicly owned assets she has sworn to protect. It is very telling
that all of this action occurred in a hastily called Special Meeting held on a
Sunday night, the political equivalent of thieves in the night.
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Thank you for the Saturday Tribune
article on the Topinabee Park and for not using the word shunned by many in
Topinabee-TDA. The Topinabee Development Association was clearly the “we” and
“our” referred to in the piece. The DNR
Grant Application contained support from the Lakeshore Drive Owners
Association, Giauque Beach Owners Association, Inland Lakes School Board,
Indian River Chamber of Commerce, and the Cheboygan County Commissioners. None
of these groups are the people who actually use the park and beach.
It is now a pretentious and pompous
little concrete laced park that clearly reflects the attitude and ideals of
those who worked on the design. I would be pleased if it better accommodated
any actual users, but it does not. The much touted ADA access is an overly long
sidewalk with a 5% grade, avoiding any need to actually accommodate the
disabled by having a compliant ADA ramp. A trip from the beach to the restrooms
and back by this circuitous route is over 1/4 mile long. The alternative route
is a grand staircase, 20 steep concrete steps with no safety landing to rest,
catch your breath, or break a fall.
The actual users of the park will
have to adopt. Snowmobile access, in fact all winter access will now be closed.
Seems none of the designers thought to accommodate the hundreds of winter
sportsmen who walk onto Mullett Lake at this park for ice fishing. The public’s
biggest issue has been the removal of most of the 100+ year old oaks. No, most
were NOT diseased and our old friends, diseased or not, still provided shade.
With virtually no shade the Topinabee Beach Park will surely be the hottest
place to be this summer.
With apologies to Mr Joyce Kilmer;
Parks are made by fools like these, who pour concrete in place of trees.
