The dedication of Ludington's new Legacy Park (the latest expensive remodeling of the James Street Plaza) took place at 3 PM on July 1st and was attended by many local and state dignitaries, and even some less dignified, like your humble correspondent.  WMOM captured the event on video, but the Ludington Torch reporter just walked from Dowland Street with a social-district-stickered cup of beer picked up along the way at the Ludington Bay Brewing Company.  Before the picture was taken below, Ludington Police Chief Tim Kozal (far left) had stopped by my lawn chair before the big event to chat with me.

Those who have been following current trends in Ludington would likely believe that the chief of LPD may have harassed me for not complying with recent social districting provisions passed by the city council earlier this year, as clarified by the DDA.  Legacy Park is not within the Ludington Outdoor Social District (LOSD) map, it was specifically kept out due to the drinking events the DDA plan to have in the new park. 

Yet, this wasn't what he talked with me about, it was regarding a recent incident report I asked for through FOIA, where some minor confusion arose since I had made another FOIA just 15 minutes earlier for an incident that led to an arrest.  The LOSD cup filled with beer in a forbidden place never came up, despite other law dogs in attendance (like Sheriff Cole and LPD Captain Wietrzykowski).  

And it never should have; citizens are free to drink beer in most public areas around town, even if it doesn't have a LOSD sticker on it or even if it isn't beer.  For I had a real LBBC clear plastic cup with an official sticker on it (picked up from the street and cleaned thoroughly), but I had put my own apple juice inside it.  By not falling for the bait, Chief Kozal and his fellow officers passed this audit on how they respect your rights and the law.

Sipping my juice, one could see about a couple hundred folks had turned out for the event, including a lot of public officials, including State legislators Jack O'Malley and Curt VanderWall, Sue DeVries from the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC, who footed $2.1 million from state taxpayers to build the park), along with representatives from federal legislators Bill Huizenga and Gary Peters. 

These folks would all speak their piece later in the program (they made very fancy programs, by the way), patting other officials for spending $2.4 million on the improvements and as subliminally as possible. taking their credit for making this project possible.  There was never any acknowledgment of the people that made Legacy Park possible by their unwitting donation to the state and local DDA through their taxes.  Most of those folks are too distracted by the shiny new park and the effusive officials to notice that $2.4 million could have been wiser spent. 

About five minutes after 3 PM, Mayor Steve Miller gave a brief overview of the project before handing the mike over to Heather Tykoski who gave everyone a history lesson concerning our Indian lumbering, and maritime roots, tying it into aspects of the park.  Tykoski was humble enough to not brag about her not-so-modest part in ballooning of the cost of the project from under one million to $2.4 million and counting.  

Sue DeVries was a lot less humble in giving her agency credit for funding the project, touting the MEDC's part in making such projects viable throughout the state.  She did acknowledge the state legislature for helping to provide the funds to MEDC in the first place, likely because a couple were there, but failed to give any credit to the taxpayers, many of who would wonder why MEDC funds are used for such extravagant projects when so many other public projects should have more priority.

Kelly Lively, representing Senator Peters, State Rep. O'Malley and State Senator VanderWall (pictured left) spoke briefly under the hope that plenty of voters would see them there and form a favorable opinion before the next election, since they brought all of this state tax money home to Ludington.  They were followed by Mayor Miller again, expressing thanks to all of the contractors who made this possible (reading off a list of 20 subcontractors, mostly local) and others; he introduced Jay Sam of the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians.

JJay Sam had effectively blessed the grounds at the prior dedication last summer before any construction had begun, here he offered a few words in his native tongue, suggested some satisfaction that the Indian history of the area was part of the legacy in the park, and confirmed that he and his brethren did not hold grudges on being ran out of the land.  It then came to the point of this ceremony that everybody who wanted credit for the costly revamping of the James Street Plaza to line up and hold a ribbon in place, for the mayor to cut.

The Grand Opening of Legacy Park finished shortly thereafter, some of the accumulated bigwigs staying over for a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Keeper's Fish Shack, previously blocked in by the construction fence.  I drained the last gulps of my 'beer', and left the scene, more impressed by the turnout than the $2.4 million product still admittedly unfinished.

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Sure would have been nice to leave the clock on the ave. instead of on Court st. Who thought of that?  2.4 million ?  I will not be hiring those contractors but I guess with that payday they probably retired.

One would think having that clock stay on the avenue where it's been for nearly forty years would be fitting and functional, I often have used that clock as a timepiece when wandering downtown.  I think they figured it would detract from the gas fire pit and the as yet uninstalled arch that is slated to go in that area-- that and they could spend more money by moving it. 

The archway once placed is supposed to represent maritime history by being the same dimensions as a car ferry rear entrance.  Ludington's "Gateway to the Waste' should rival St. Louis' second tier arch.

Where do these foolish do gooders think all this money is coming from? They pat themselves on the back for stealing our money and wasting it on fluff projects.

Robber barons are proud to display the fruits of their ambushes and pillages, these government bandits are no different than their historical predecessors.  What they won't show you is pics and film of the distress they cause by taking more and more of your paycheck and savings.

The "blatant" neglect is not a user problem but a maintenance (city) problem. What a poor choice of words. Perhaps she meant "abuse" of public property by the public. And that strange white powder in a circle on a table? Welcome to the real world. Come down from your high horse and include the real public in decision making. I hope this wakes your Karen-addled brain up.  And don't just play the game of having a public meeting after decisions are made behind closed doors in order to fulfill a state requirement for a grant.  Really listen to the public.  You down at city hall are far above listening to the wants and needs of the majority of people who pay your salaries (that is the residents) yet you cater and put on shows for the tourists and a few select friends in businesses who pay a trickle of the taxes to sustain this city.  I hope whomever hit the bullard sues the city for putting it at bumper level and causing damage to their car if that's what happened.

If you see a Mercedes turning into a driveway from North Washington with apparent bollard damage, let me know.

I also thought it was a poor choice of words to use 'neglect', when other synonyms would work better, but I considered the source and the fanciful grant applications I have seen filled out by that source and let it slide.

Thanks, X.  Not only a poor choice of words using "neglect" but the alarmist-karen in the "white powder" left on a table is stupid.  Could the city not ascertain what this powder was before putting it in a pissy-attitide-toward-the-public newspaper article.  Did someone innocently leave a powder-sugar ring from a birthday cake, or is this something we should alarm our kids and grandchildren about?  Drugs or poison seems to be what was intented in the slant.  The caliber of writing is poor, illogical and stupid and lazy.  This is what we pay big bucks and many raises for?  No quality control down at city hall communications?

It's a shame that you see grant or MEDC money going for sexy place-making projects and replacing charter boat piers at public marinas, when there is no money for real projects that need to be done in communities.  

If you point this out to the typical city manager or community development director, they will tell you that they cannot direct the state into how they dole out their grant money or dictate how the MEDC throws their money around, but that's not totally true.  If they and other MI communities unilaterally refuse to jump through hoops for money-wasting projects these things would go away.  Will that happen?  Never.

So once your community gets downgraded to low-mod income, your CDD goes nuts and makes a $400,000 project that could have been more adaptable and user-friendly into a $2,400,000 boondoggle that will require $400,000 more in maintenance costs in a relatively short time.  And the CDD will be shocked, shocked, that her new shiny-shiny is being misused by the transients that allowed her the ability to get that bankroll-- the same people who are paying for that and other useless projects throughout the state.

I agree with you, X, regarding the MEDC's push on "placemaking" grants and the stupidity imo, in the trickle-down thinking of municipalities to follow along rather than take care of infrastructure and greater needs of citizens of a community. Interestingly, I recall Gretchen Whitmer putting for a slow-down initially and budget cutback on the MEDC, but I do not know the back door politics. I found it to be one wise thing the democratic governor was pushing. Seems she got pushed back somewhat. Imo it's a state chamber of commerce type organization that puts tourism over community needs and strength. That's what they get their organizational fees for ... promoting the statewide businesses that subscribe to their collective power. And until there is a pushback by communities to take care of infrastructure needs in these grants, these types of over bloated projects like legacy park appeal to the shallow-looking community developers of communities in debt, especially if they have multiple conflicts of interest as a business owner personally and a job of DD secretary.


When the state and nation have to pay back their debts, developments like West End and Legacy park may be a crumbling reminder of a community that can't afford its maintenance and had its head up someone's butt not thinking ahead, then cry the sky is falling. And sadly, our own city council is at fault for not thoroughly looking through the grant. If one were to have read the recent "legacy park" grant, THERE WERE opportunities for infrastructure improvements but, imo, the citizens of Ludington were told a bold-faced lie that this was the only way the money could be used. Hogwash. I hope the DDD becomes honest with herself and the community in the future. And the DDD, imo, has way too much authority on her own to sway a project and somehow convinced the council in backdoor secret meetings what is going to happen rather than laying the facts and grant papers out for council and public view.

Instead it's just more of the same old "cater to the businesses and tourists" and hike the water and sewer fees and increase taxes topay for this brilliant thinking in community development.

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