Hancock's Swedetown Creek: Is it, was it, will it be -- a park?

By Michele Bourdieu

HANCOCK -- The Hancock City Council will hold its regular monthly meeting at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Apr. 16. So far, the issue of the City's potential land sale near the mouth of Swedetown Creek, in Government Lot 5, is absent from the agenda.

This photo of Swedetown Creek, taken today, Apr. 15, 2008, near M-203, shows what appears to be a beaver dam not far from the road. A natural trail, covered now by melting snow, leads to the mouth of the creek at the Portage Waterway, a favorite kayak launching site. (Photo © 2008 Gustavo Bourdieu)

Swedetown Creek appears neither under Old Business nor under New Business, but for many Hancock residents it is "unfinished" business.

At the March 19, 2008, Hancock City Council meeting, a proposal to make the city-owned portion of Government Lot 5 a City park, which would preclude selling two potential 100-ft. residential lots near the creek, failed to pass because of a tied vote of 3-3, with one member of the Council, Bill Laitila, absent.

Councilor Lisa McKenzie, a member of the Ad Hoc Committee appointed to study the Swedetown Creek issue and make a recommendation to the Council, said today that a second vote is possible. (Any of the Councilors who voted "no" or Councilor Laitila, because of his absence, can legally request a second vote during a City Council meeting.)

During the Mar. 19 Hancock City Council meeting, Councilor Lisa McKenzie, center, a member of the Ad Hoc Committee for Swedetown Creek, explains the Committee's recommendation to confirm the area as a park. Also pictured are Councilors Tom Gemignani, right, also a member of the Ad Hoc Committee, and Sarah Baratono. (Photo © 2008 Michele Bourdieu)

"The City sometimes moves slowly, but in some cases it's good because you're more thorough in answering all the questions that are posed in these types of issues," McKenzie said. "I think people, if they're interested, should come to the meeting. The public is always welcome to attend to voice their support and concerns."

Since the summer of 2007, residents have appeared at Council and Planning Commission meetings and written letters to City officials to request that the City preserve the area in its present natural state for public access and recreation. It is a favorite spot for fishing, walking, kayaking, birding and picnicking. The Copper Country Audubon Club has offered the City $1000 plus volunteer hours to maintain it as a bird sanctuary open to the public since several species of migratory birds have been observed in the area.

Swollen with April snow melt, Swedetown Creek gurgles down to the Portage Waterway in Hancock at a peaceful spot far enough from traffic to attract birds. A woodpecker and songbirds were present today, though the video, overwhelmed by the rushing of the stream, could not quite pick them up. (Video clip © 2008 Michele Bourdieu)

In spite of a 1941 deed from the State of Michigan that states the area is "to be used solely for park and recreational purposes" and an error in the 2001 Recreation Plan (for lack of a survey) that listed the property as part of Hancock Township and the owner as the State of Michigan (perhaps because of the Department of Natural Resources maintaining the boat launch area), the City Council, on advice from the City's attorney, concluded last fall that a vote of the Council would be necessary to "make it a park."*

Last November the Council appointed the Ad Hoc Committee to study the issue and to make a recommendation to the Council.

At the March 19 Council meeting, that Committee -- Councilors Lisa McKenzie, Tom Gemignani and Ted Belej -- recommended the Council make the city-owned portion of Government Lot 5 area a park.

McKenzie pointed out that the 1941 Deed was in effect at the time the City Charter was adopted in 1988. The Charter states, "...no park or cemetery, as legally described upon adoption of this Charter, may be sold by the City unless approved by majority of the electors voting thereon at any general or special election."

This view toward the east of Swedetown Creek shows part of the area the City has proposed to sell for two residential lots of 100 ft. each. The Hancock Planning Commission recommended a buffer of another 100 ft. between the creek and the lots. In a 2003 quit claim deed, the State of Michigan relinquished reversionary interest in the property but reserved for the public the right of ingress and egress across the property for access to water. Public comments have suggested that right could make residential development on this site unattractive to potential buyers. (Photo © 2008 Michele Bourdieu)


"We're just clarifying that it is a park," McKenzie said. "We can sell it, but it needs to go to a vote of the people."

Councilor James Hainault stated several objections to making the area a park.

He said the issue was complicated by the presence of a house on Government Lot 5 (a discovery made when the recent survey of the area concluded the Hancock city limit extended farther west than the present sign indicates) and a piece of private property (known as the Mayra Exception) "in the middle of" the property. Hainault also cited a need for taxes.

"We would lose an opportunity to generate revenue we sorely need," he said.

Hainault noted the Hancock Planning Commission had recommended selling part of the property on two occasions.** He added that the Recreation Commission was not consulted in this process and the Recreation Plan does not list Swedetown Creek or Government Lot 5 in its list of 29 needs for the City. Hainault said several people present at this meeting were also at the public hearings held before the Recreation Plan was adopted.

"Hancock needs to grow," Hainault said, mentioning the need for a larger tax base to cover services. "We also have an obligation to keep our taxes as low as possible for the residents of the city."

Hainault also repeated what he had said at a previous meeting -- that the City has more parks than it can afford to maintain now.

"I can't imagine why we would want to tie up this property at this time," he said. "We as elected officials need to find the highest and best use of that property."

McKenzie expressed the Ad Hoc Committee's view that the Swedetown Creek area is already a park. She explained that the 1941 deed was in force at the time of the 1988 City Charter.

"We're just clarifying that it is a park," she said. "We can sell it, but it needs to go to a vote of the people."

The three Ad Hoc Committee members voted in favor of their recommendation, but their vote failed because the other three Council members present -- James Hainault, Sarah Baratono and Mayor Barry Givens -- voted "no."

The Committee's second recommendation at the March 19 meeting -- to make the Wright Addition/Lake Street 500-ft. waterfront parcel, 2.5 acres, a City Park -- also failed by an identical 3-3 vote.

Joe Kaplan, a member of the Hancock Citizens' Forum, said he felt the Ad Hoc Committee was correct in recognizing the 1941 deed and the City Charter that restricts the sale of legally described park land without a vote of the public.

"I believe the Ad Hoc Committee has a genuine interest in protecting this parcel," Kaplan said.

Last December Kaplan also sent a detailed list of background information on Government Lot 5 to Mayor Barry Givens and the Ad Hoc Committee members. In the attached letter to Givens, he states, "Since the Hancock City Charter requires the approval of the voters to sell city park (and cemetery) property, it is imperative that the City Council determine the current status of the Swedetown site before recommending sale of any portion of the property to private interests. To argue that Swedetown Creek is not already a city park requires an explanation of how, at the time the Charter was adopted in 1988, the property at Swedetown Creek could be held in city ownership and used for purposes other than 'park and recreation.'"

The regular 7:30 p.m. City Council meeting on Wednesday, Apr. 16, will be preceded by a Work Session at 6:30 p.m. Both are open to the public.

Gustavo Bourdieu, Keweenaw Now photographer, and Gordito, Keweenaw Now mascot, both contributed to this article today ("trail safety patrol"). (Photo © 2008 Michele Bourdieu)

Editor's Notes: * See our article of March 18, 2008, for background on the Swedetown Creek issue and a report on the Ad Hoc Committee meeting of March 10, 2008.

** See our Sept. 17, 2007, article on the August Planning Commission meeting.