Through the Looking Glass
Hello ladies and gentlemen and all the ships at sea.
It's been a busy week for me personally. I apologize for my absence. Travel in the winter can really be a bear and this last week was no exception. For those of you who are following along but are not in Harbor Springs, the kids were out of school two days this week. The harbor is frozen over edge to edge (finally). We have lots of snow and cold. Skiing is pretty darn good.
Yesterday, the sledding hill at Kiwanis Park was full of local kids again. Volunteers provided cocoa and the fire department used their snow mobile to make the trip back to the top a breeze.
In other local news, the Harbor Springs middle schoolers put on their production of Alice in Wonderland this weekend (which was awesome!). As I was watching the show, there were some parallels to the work on the zoning code. Come with me through the looking glass, my friends.
As I am sure you remember, in both the book and play, Alice tackles the question of who she is and who she wants to be. She cries, “Who in the world am I?' Ah, that's the great puzzle!"
Who in the world are we, Harbor Springs? It has been a puzzle, indeed. Had you asked me in November who we would become, I would have given you an answer that might have sounded a bit like the Mad Hatter.
But this week in the frozen tundra of our little town, the Planning Commission has shown that we can and should believe in impossible things. This week, their faith in the process and commitment to listening has allowed us to show that we can be civil. We can work together. And we value community and consensus.
It was a good week for our wonderland.
But it wasn't easy or a given and we shouldn't take positive progress for granted. As the Red Queen says, "It takes all the running you can do, to keep in the same place." I think we are all trying to keep Harbor Springs the same place we love, and it is taking all the running we can do to make that happen.
We owe all the members of the Planning Commission, city staff and the public our thanks for coming to the Town Halls this week. It was freezing and snow was flying. Despite it all, they are running hard. If you haven't been able to attend, my notes on each of the meetings can be found at: https://www.forwardharborsprings.org/nubbinsblog
After spending their time listening, the Planning Commission took action at their regular meeting on Thursday to commit to drafting a new zoning code using the framework and organization of the repealed code.
They then committed to continuing their listening sessions and work through article by article to revise the code based on community input.
The review will front load the articles that are relatively mundane and are generally accepted with few changes. They would save Articles 2 and 3 which address the zoning districts (Article 2) and what is allowed in each district (Article 3). It is Articles 2 & 3 where the requested changes will need to be made for the most part.
The schedule will allow for a review of Articles 2 & 3 in May and June when many property owners have returned for the summer.
It was done unanimously and with support of the public assembled.
Friends, that is real progress. We have gone through the looking glass, and we are coming out better on the other side.
My favorite character in Alice in Wonderland is the very trippy Cheshire Cat. Alice asks the cat, "Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?" With a grin the cat responds, "That depends a good deal on where you want to get to."
Some folks have asked me what I want at the end of this process.
What I want really doesn't matter much, but if I had to answer, I want a zoning code that is fair, easy to use, and reflects our community. But more than that, I want city meetings and operations to be boring again.
As much as I loved the middle school play, I want the drama to end.
This week, it feels like we are at the beginning of the end. And that is a wonder!