Developer to Build Near Michigan Ghost Town, 1910 School, Dunes
By Stephanie Smith | Online Only | Oct. 14, 2008
Beneath sand dunes at the mouth of the Kalamazoo River in Saugatuck, Mich., lies a ghost town known as "Michigan's Pompeii." Settlers abandoned the town of Singapore in the 1870s after the timber that protected it from shifting sands was cleared away.
Now the site faces another threat: development that will not only cover the buried ruins of Singapore but possibly endanger Saugatuck's historic and archaeological sites.
Oklahoma developer Aubrey McClendon outbid the residents of Saugatuck and several conservation groups two years ago to purchase 412 acres straddling the river. He plans to build fewer than 80 houses, an equestrian center, and a marina on the ecologically sensitive land. McClendon is considering selling the south parcel to Saugatuck for long-term conservation. Meanwhile, he has threatened to sue Saugatuck Township over "down-zoning" of the property to limit development, and he is suing a local family for land access to the south parcel.
This month, negotiations are continuing behind closed doors between representatives for the developer, the city and township of Saugatuck, and the Nature Conservancy.
Stephen Neumer, a spokesman for the developer, says plans for the north parcel will not be presented to the public until the sale of the south parcel, as well as some zoning issues, have been resolved.
"It's a beautiful piece of property," Neumer says. "You can allow man to live in and of nature and be very respectful of it."
Opponents of the project claim any development in the area would have dire consequences for the freshwater dunes and wetlands, as well as for historic resources of the area such as the Dune Schooner Rides, a series of trails developed nearly 60 years ago to provide scenic views of the dunes, and the 1910 Oxbow School of Art, an affiliate of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.
"Any kind of development would be disastrous for the Oxbow School because the whole school is based on landscape painting," says James Schmiechen, chair of the Saugatuck-Douglas Historical Museum and a professor of history at Central Michigan University.
Some fear that McClendon may use the sale to gain concessions on development of the remaining land. "While we support negotiations," says David Swan, president of the Saugatuck Dunes Coastal Alliance, "we question the value of [the south parcel] if there is a marina opposite."
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