http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1928997,00.html

http://www.m-bike.org/blog/2009/10/11/green-highways-you-cant-drive-55

Note: Thanks to Todd Scott at mbike.org for the link.  I posted a response to his posting on the subject at his blog.  Here is a repost on this site:

Hi Todd!

I’ve lived in Manchester, Tecumseh and Onsted. So US-12 has been part of my route to work for many years.

First off, I think that the idea of a dead Irish Hills is overstated. Visitors see the closed observation towers and think that the place is past its prime. But the true appeal of the Irish Hills is the collection of 40+ lakes within an hour of Metro Detroit. Basically, instead of towns, the area is centered on lake communities. And these seem to be holding their value better than other regional properties. These roads are clogged most weekends with recreational fishermen, campers and cottage owners. And while some attractions have died, others – like Hidden Lake Gardens, MIS, several wineries, outdoors stores like Knutson’s and Cabela’s have brought people to the area in what I believe to be equal measure to the golden days.

Jerry’s Pub on Wampler’s Lake, the Beach Bar on Clarks Lake, Co-Co-Nuts on US-12 an other night spots have very active entertainment scenes with local bands on the weekends. The Bluestage in Napoleon brings in national blues acts to Napoleon. Adrian boasts a symphony orchestra, three colleges and the longest continually operating opera house in the nation.

And there has been much redevelopment in the towns within this corridor. Clinton, Tecumseh and Brooklyn are probably models for small-town planning. All three have good long-range plans that have focused on parks, pedestrian corridors and downtown streetscape projects.

I am very skeptical of any plan to decrease the speeds on these roads to anything less than 55. The economic downturn has hit Lenawee and Hillsdale Counties especially hard. And, given the fact that many industrial jobs have left, a high percentage of people in the area commute to places like Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti for work. I don’t think that the area is sustainable without a major 55 mph roadway.

But I am very much in favor of “green” initiatives along US-12. There are now farmer’s markets in Clinton and at the Walker Tavern. MIS is implementing wetland restoration and trail systems on its 1400 acres of racetrack lands that are used only twice per years. The River Raisin in Washtenaw County has seen roughly 2,000 additional acres of land purchases for nature preserves. Clinton has just connected Tate Park to its downtown with a bridge and new trails are planned. The Sharon Mills County Park/Nan Weston Nature Conservancy Preserve/Sharonville State Game Area provide opportunities for a 10+ mile backpacking route with dispersed camping on the Washtenaw/Jackson border. The Sharon Short Hills have several preserves and very hilly terrain. The lake community at Clarks Lake hosts a yearly triathlon and is paving a privately-funded pathway all around the lake.

Much of US-12 has nice wide shoulders. And there are very few McDonald’s or chain developments. Both M-52 and US-127 have massively wide road rights-of-way with hilly terrain that would make for nice mountain bike trails if communities got behind the idea.

The wider Irish Hills is underappreciated in terms of recreational opportunities, close-knit communities, proximity to larger populations centers and value for the travel dollar.

The ever-changing cloud formations of the past few days have also made for some nice sunsets.  Here is a pic of tonight’s show.

The latest edition of the WGTE, Channel 30 TV program Eggs and Issues focused on the efforts of Michigan International Speedway and Roger Penske to “green” the racetrack lands and the racing business.  Some of these efforts have focused on changing lighting schemes and utility usage within the racetrack and adjoining buildings.  This effort has resulted in savings for the company in the six-figure range.  And, of course, these efforts help the environment.

Of most interest to me are the efforts being made by the racetrack to restore wetland areas near the racetrack.  MIS owns roughly 1400 acres of land.  This includes many woodlots, grasslands and 200 acres of wetlands.  According to the track officials on the show, the company has enrolled the site into several state programs to help conserve the land.  MI DNR and DEQ officials have helped assist the track on proper management.  Several colleges – Adrian College, Jackson Community College and Oakland University – have been enlisted to help with wetland planning and management.

And, most interesting to me, there is a long-range plan to build boardwalk and other trail along and through natural features on the property.  These, at the very least, would be used by local schools for study and science projects.  Of course, once a trail is built, it could easily be opened for tours to the general public.  I would love to go on one of these.

These efforts dovetail quite nicely with MIS efforts to be a good corporate citizen.  MIS now hosts community soccer fields.  The site hosts the state cross country championships.  Blood drive efforts are also extensive at MIS.  These are good community-oriented efforts.  And, of course, the green efforts also could potentially avert later regulatory efforts on environmental grounds.

When one considers that the adjoining Onsted State Game Area includes nearly 700 acres of land, the Cambridge State Historic Complex that holds several hundred acres of natural lands, Walter J. Hayes State Park which controls roughly 700 acres of land, a variety of public lakes in the area and the Sauk Valley Sports Park which holds hundreds of acres of basically natural land, this MIS effort is important to what could become a large, contiguous piece of managed natural area in SE/SC MI.

Here is the official MIS link on these “green” efforts:

http://www.mispeedway.com/Values-in-Action/Going-Green.aspx

Note: The Eggs and Issues program is hosted by the Toledo Chamber of Commerce.

The Detroit News published a story today about the Irish Hills.  The focus of the story was the decline of the tourist attractions in the area.  And that decline is very true.  However, I think that the story misses what has always been the best part of the Irish Hills – the geography.  The lakes offer some of the best fishing in SE Michigan.  Hidden Lake Gardens has 10+ miles of hiking trails.  And the local bars and restaurants are fantastic and fun places to visit.  I’m not sure that people really miss the big brontosaurus.

Link:

http://www.detnews.com/article/20090822/METRO/908220362/1409/METRO

http://www.lenconnect.com/homepage/x804163050/Commission-explores-Lake-Adrian-access

http://www.lenconnect.com/homepage/x695085206/Offers-accepted-for-two-park-projects

Yesterday, I posted a message on this page noting the removal of fencing at the City of Adrian water filtration plant on Bent Oak.  I noted the removal because this has been a public issue for the past several weeks.  Essentially, a city resident had requested that the property adjoining the filtration plant on Lake Adrian once again be made public.  The property, and lake access, was closed following the 9/11 attacks.  The city commission discussed the issue and asked for policy information from the city manager and city employees.

So, the removal of fencing at the water filtration plant seemed like a fairly dramatic event to me.  And it still does.  Why remove the fencing unless a city policy or practice had changed?

And, in fact, a family was fishing beyond the fencing when I stopped by today to check on the status of the lake access.  The family was having a very good day of fishing on the pond that is situated behind the old fencelines, but just a few feet inland from Lake Adrian proper.  They had already caught four fish.  And the daughter even pulled a small fish from the pond while I was standing there.

The father brought his kids to the pond because his friend had told him that the fencing was down and people were now allowed to fish there.  So, there does seem to be at least some change in city policy, at least at the ground level.  People are fishing there.  And there seem to be at least some city officials who are allowing it.  And, of course, the fence is now gone and the gate across the access road on a section of fence that remains is now wide open.

I did not see anyone actually fishing along the lake.  It would be interesting to see if that is okay now in practice.  The only barrier to the lake is a small chain across the access road that states “Authorized Vehicles Only.”  But, again, if the policy is no access, the fence removal seems to be in direct opposition to that policy.  Anyone can now walk up to the lake with little trouble.

Of course, there seems to be a disconnect currently between city workers and city leadership.  Erik Gable at the Adrian Daily Telegram wrote to me on Facebook that no policy had changed regarding access.  That seems to be in direct conflict with what I see happening on the ground.  I certainly hope that access continues.

Note: I rang the bell and knocked on the front door of the filtration plant for more information, but no one answered.

Historically, Lake Adrian was publicly accessible next to the City of Adrian water treatment plant.  Following 9/11, however, chain-link fencing was installed that eliminated most public access.  During a recent city commission meeting, a local resident requested that the fencing be removed.  I have not heard of any news regarding the request, but I noticed that the fencing had been removed when I drove by this afternoon.

So, my guess is that Lake Adrian will soon be free.  Yea!

Note: Erik Gable, the special projects editor at the Adrian Daily Telegram, responded to my original post. He had his city editor speak to Dane Nelson at the City of Adrian. Nelson responded that nothing had changed. I will take a spin out there in a bit to investigate.

I live near Bixby Hospital within the City of Adrian.  So, I frequently drive and walk along the high banks of Lake Adrian.  The lake is an unappreciated gem.  It has good size, solid depth and dramatic topography.  One of my local city hikes contains probably a half-dozen scenic views of the lake and interesting homes along the shore.

http://www.blogsmonroe.com/expatriate/2007/04/lake-adrian-urban-bushwack/

But there is no real public access to the lake.  For many years, local fishermen and paddlers could access the lake from the city water treatment plant along the lake’s eastern shore.  But following the September 11th attacks, the federal government issues guidelines for protecting municipal water supplies.  A fence was erected at that time that ended most lake access.

Adrian resident Duane Doyle requested that the fence be moved a year ago, with no luck.  He spoke at the Monday city commission meeting.  According to the Adrian Daily Telegram account, city officials seemed to react in a positive fashion to the request.  And, really, they should.  That lake has potential to be a draw to the city.  Closing public access is a disservice to city residents.  And the fence is not stopping anyone from poisoning the city water supply.  I walk around the lake all the time and could easily gain access to the lake and the dam at the east end of the lake.  The fence stops none of that.  In fact, I’d argue that the lack of public use decreases the number of law-abiding eyes that could detect a VERY UNLIKELY terrorist attack or even petty crimes.

Link:

http://www.lenconnect.com/homepage/x639770493/Public-access-to-Lake-Adrian-requested