Lake Linden discusses recreation plan draft
LAKE LINDEN — The Village Council held its rescheduled meeting on Thursday evening, but was preceded by a public hearing regarding a draft for a recreation plan for the village. The recreation plan came from a cooperative effort involving the Lake Linden Village Council, Lake Linden Recreation Planning committee and resident input and is made to comply with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources guidelines for the Development of Community Park, Recreation, Open Space and Greenway Plans. The plan was made with the DNR in mind was so that the village could qualify itself for DNR grants to improve and expand Lake Linden’s recreational areas and equipment. The village has not had a plan for a couple of years, and the formation of one will allow the village to apply for grants for five years after the adoption.
“The focus most recently in the last couple years in addition to having very local parts of the plan like we’re developing here right now is to create a network of a lot of recreational opportunities within an area,” Village Clerk and Administrator Robert Poirier said.
He said that when forming the plan that other areas and regions were observed for better understanding throughout the Keweenaw.
“A lot of the plans that we looked at included regional and area recreational facilities that are just not possible for a little town like us,” Poirier said.
The plan laid out the types of activities residents and visitors tend to partake in the area to further understand what types of recreation are most likely to be sought after in Lake Linden.
An example of a new activity that some are looking to partake in for Lake Linden is pickleball, and this would require the creation of a court. The village has areas that can support the facility needed for that recreational activity, but will need the plan to pursue grants to pay for the construction.
Poirier also mentioned that multi-use pavilion facilities could also be something to pursue, but the goals before new construction would be updating and maintaining all currently existing facilities and adding possible expansions.
The plan goes over each of the recreational areas found within the village and lists the restorations and additions that are desired. Areas such as the dock and marina are listed with the projects centered on them including restrooms, a paved parking area, benches along the shoreline and adding surveillance to the area.
The overall draft of the plan will be discussed throughout the rest of the year.
“The idea would be to get everything sort of a good idea on how are we going to finalize by probably the end of the calendar year,” Poirier said. “So that in January, February, we can go through the process of being approved and finalized for February.”
After the public hearing the general meeting commenced with numerous topics being discussed. A New Jersey-based solar energy company called AC Power contacted the village to possibly construct a solar energy facility to which a negotiation was held and property will be held for the company’s future solar projects.
The police department was approved for their MCOLES grant of $26,000 in partnership with Copper Shores. The grant aids training for law enforcement including crisis issues with any potential for violence. There will also a community outreach event that will encourage trust in law enforcement so that youth feel comfortable that they can speak to the authorities regarding abuse.
The fire department reported that their request for a FEMA grant for a brush truck was not approved and the current brush truck does not have working headlights. The department will rework their grant and try to reapply. The department also informed the village of Houghton County pursuing a grant to replace all 800 radio systems and asked if the fire departments wanted to be included in it. Each department wishing to participate would have to pay $2,000. The village approved to put $1,000 towards the application with the fire department paying the other $1,000.