A permit to allow what might be considered an aggressive use of Lake Leelanau shoreline — at least in the eyes of the state of Michigan — has been greatly tempered.
Craig and Annie Okerstrom-Lang of Suttons Bay began their quest to build a boathouse, accessory building, deck and raised walkway over wetlands just southwest of the Lake Leelanau Narrows with a preapplication meeting in July 2022.
“We applied for a boathouse and an accessory building and a boardwalk,” Craig Okerstrom-Lang said. “We were allowed to build a boardwalk with a small deck at the end.”
The couple purchased property formerly owned by Teresa Schaub — a Lake Leelanau icon and retired librarian who read religiously to St. Mary students — with intentions of building a spec house that overlooked what is commonly referred to as “The Pond,” a swollen portion of the lake between two no-wake zones. The property is located just south of the St. Mary Church parking lot.
They hired Grobbel Environmental and Planning Associates and an attorney from Traverse City who specializes in environmental law, figuring that lake- side structures would add value to their project.
“It just seems that the barriers being put in front of people are about impossible to overcome,” Okerstrom-Lang said.
However, he does know of a boathouse that was recently approved on the lake. And notably, new boathouses are allowed through zoning in Leland Township.
Conservation organizations and governments overseeing wetlands, however, have concerns about the effect of habitat degradation through shoreline development.
“We request that EGLE (Michigan department of Environment, Glen Lakes and Energy) require the applicant to consider alternatives to the dredging proposed in this plan,” wrote the Lake Leelanau Lake Association (LLLA) in opposing the original permit,. It called for dredging a channel into wetlands to provide pontoon access into a boathouse built 3-to-5 feet from the lake. “Dredging permanently damages sensitive ecology, such as (lake bottomlands) habitat and fish spawning grounds. This leads to the loss of species and stress on marine life.”
The LLLA comment noted that boathouses aren’t allowed everywhere on Lake Leelanau.
“A boathouse and boat well are not essential. At least one nearby township (Bingham) now has zoning which does not permit any new boathouses. Also, accessory building does not need to go in wetlands. This permit should be denied in favor of more ecologically sensitive options,” it reads.
Heather Hettinger, district fish biologist for the MDNR, agrees.
“As you know, Fisheries Division does not support construction of boat houses, as those structures are a poor use of lake shoreline habitat, particularly in river corridors or transitional habitats such as the Narrows,” she wrote.
Okerstrom-Lang, who plans to start looking for a buyer in the spring, isn’t pressing the issue.
