Map courtesy of The Nature Conservancy A map of the Keweenaw Heartlands. Areas shaded in yellow highlight approximately 20,000 acres that will become public forestland governed by the Heartlands Recreational and Natural Resources Authority

KEWEENAW COUNTY — The final draft of the revised Articles of Incorporation for future Heartlands Recreational and Natural Resources Authority has been published and is posted on the Keweenaw County website. The 12-page document was posted on April 20.

During a public Heartlands update in Allouez last week, Robin Meneguzzo, CEO of the Keweenaw Community Foundation, said as part of the process in transitioning the Heartlands property from ownership by The Nature Conservancy (TNC) to public ownership, TNC in Michigan is in the process of designating roughly 20,000 acres in the Keweenaw as a protected community forest. To manage the forest, the Authority Board will be created, consisting of five publicly elected Keweenaw County residents.

In addition to the five elected county residents, the board will have two advisory committees. One would be a community advisory committee tasked with six identified stakeholders with different interests, such as recreation, cultural and historical development, Meneguzzo said. The other will be a governance sub-committee comprised of members of various governmental units, such as township supervisors and the Keweenaw County Sheriff.

“That is what was recommended as the structure for how the Forest Authority will operate,” Meneguzzo said.

The Draft states that the Authority is established for the purpose of owning, operating, maintaining and/or improving a public forest and natural resources area.

During the March meeting of the Keweenaw County Board of Commissioners, the final draft was discussed by the trustees, but no action was taken, because the discussion was only for information purposes.

At the April BOC meeting, Julia Petersen, project manager of the Keweenaw Heartlands Project discussed the background of the draft and how it evolved into the final document.

Keweenaw County Board Trustee Rob DeMarois motioned to approve the updates to the Current Draft Articles of Incorporation, which was supported by Trustee Randy Eckloff. The motion was unanimously approved.

The draft of the Articles can be found at keweenawcountyonline.org.