A major road spanning across the northern part of the Leelanau Peninsula is next up for reconstruction this summer.
The county Road Commission granted approval Dec. 19 for manager Brendan Mullane to sign agreements with KPM Engineering for engineering design services on two sections of Co. Rd 626, which goes between Lake Leelanau to Omena.
Road Commission engineer Craig Brown said that the construction on 626 will be completed in two parts in summer 2024 and 2025. The project will be funded through the Rural Task Force program, which provides funding for Michigan counties with populations below 400,000.
Meanwhile, the Manistee-Benzie Snowbirds still face two major obstacles to reopening a snowmobile trail through the county: the complete absence of snow in the Leelanau Peninsula this Christmas, and the lack of permit to use the right-of-way on Newman Road in Kasson Township.
Some Newman Road residents have asked the road commission to deny the permit over concerns about snowmobilers damaging private property off the trail or colliding with pedestrians. Snowbirds president Mark Coe argued at an earlier meeting that the trail promotes commerce, and promised to work proactively to prevent accidents before they occur.
As part of these efforts, the Snowbirds submitted an updated signage plan for the trail to reduce the risks of these accidents. Unfortunately for the snowmobile club, Mullane in his Dec. 19 update to the board said that road commission staff “still have major concerns with crossing Newman as proposed” and would like to see more detail on this map.
Mullane said that the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR) needs to approve the trail, and further concerns about liability for injuries and property damage still need to be addressed. However, he added that he began discussing possible alternate routes with the DNR on the previous day.
Also at this meeting, Brown gave an update on the construction of Co. Rd. 675, also known as South Dunns Farm Road. Between September and December, the culvert at the crossing between Fisher and Tucker Lakes was replaced with a “much wider” one that will enable larger, more natural flows to the inland lakes.
Brown said that similar replacements are still planned at three crossings along West Crystal View Road, but the schedule for these projects remains unclear. The crossing just off M-22 is tentatively scheduled for replacement in fall 2024, but if the funding for this project doesn’t go through, Brown said it’s possible that they’ll work on another bridge further east at “the tube” first.
In other business, the road commission:
• Approved year-end adjustments to the 2023 budget to reflect unforeseen revenues and expenditures.
• Authorized a 2% cost of living increase for road commissions staff, to go into effect on Jan. 1, 2024.
