Rezoning appeal
at Bond flowage
headed to a vote

By Kurt Krueger
News-Review Editor

The potential development of backlands on Bond Falls flowage will be decided at the ballot box next month as Interior Township voters get to decide whether the 1.03-acre lots created through rezoning should be repealed.

Township officials approved the rezoning in summer 2006 after Naterra Land purchased 960 acres of backlands for development purposes from Upper Peninsula Power Co. (UPPCO).

Rezoning that created a lakefront district changed minimum lot sizes from 40 acres to 1.03 acres, allowing Naterra Land to propose a 424-lot subdivision and the installation of up to 320 piers on the pristine flowage.

Opponents of the rezoning filed an appeal requesting a public referendum but were denied. In December 2009, a Michigan Court of Appeals ruled that Interior Township Clerk Mikki Dewitt erred when she declared the 33-signature petition invalid because it mentioned seasonal docks.

The court’s reversal validated the petition and paved the way for a referendum vote, which is scheduled Tuesday, Aug. 3.

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