On July 25, approximately 100 Silver Bay residents gathered at the Reunion Hall to discuss the next steps for the city in terms of economic development. Building on the work of a survey and previous meeting, the July 25th meeting sought to lay out plans for Silver Bay’s future.
Designs have been proposed to develop Silver Bay’s Business Park into an area with vacation housing and small shops. A more direct road to Black Beach was also proposed.
$5 million in grants has already been raised to build a trailhead site. The location for the proposed trailhead will be behind the Silver Bay Recreation Building and Faith Lutheran Church, where baseball fields are currently located. The conceptual design for the trailhead features expansive parking, a trailhead building, and trails connecting to the Gitchi-Gami Trail.
Concern was raised over the elimination of these baseball fields, with some attendees claiming that a parking lot for tourists is not worth losing a play area for children. A suggestion by another attendee was that perhaps Lynch Field could be redesignated as a multi-use field. Concern was also raised over the prospect of drawing more tourists to the city. An attendee questioned the safety of having such a large trailhead just across the street from the school and near the Frank Rukavina Arena, areas occupied by many children.
The economic development of Silver Bay’s downtown has been divided into phases.
Phase 1, a street is proposed to be constructed behind the Shopping Center, replacing the current alley. The drainage system under the alley needs to be maintained, and turning the alley into a road will improve safety. This project is under study by engineers.
The Silver Bay Public Library will be undergoing a renovation and expansion in the near future, and community members were told to stay tuned for further details, as bids on the work are finishing.
Lake County has mentioned supporting a project seeing the renovation of Banks Boulevard from William Kelley School to the corner of Davis Drive.
Davis Drive was also brought up for discussion, as plans propose the section of the street from Outer Drive to Banks be eliminated. Elimination of this portion of Davis Drive would allow for a city park to be built to serve as both a natural green space and as an event venue. A study showed that this portion of Davis sees only light traffic – 200 cars a day, a very small number in comparison to other streets.
A major concern raised by this proposed development of Davis was that of accessibility for emergency vehicles. When emergency vehicles exit the garage and need to get to Outer Drive, they tend to turn right onto Banks and then right onto Davis. With the elimination of Davis, emergency vehicles would be required to take a left coming out of the garage, and some attendees asserted that this would waste valuable time in crossing traffic.
Phase 2 of proposed development features, among other things, city parking lots, maintained by the city, and the creation of a central park. The topic of growth versus stagnancy was raised, with the opinion that Silver Bay must grow and attract new families in order to become a more vibrant community.
Phase 3 features the development of additional senior housing and the expansion of Silver Bay’s retail footprint. The topic of expenditure versus investment was raised, with the opinion that economic development in Silver Bay is an investment in the city’s future and development could attract new families, thus widening the city’s tax base. A concern was brought up that new development could create an additional workload for law enforcement.
Phases 4 and 5 feature more development of housing and the downtown, as well as a renovation of the now 70-year-old Shopping Center.
After the conceptual designs were presented, the meeting was opened up to general discussion. Some discussion included the question of whether or not the Mary MacDonald Center could be developed. An attendee questioned whether housing downtown would be attractive to new residents, and encouraged against “cluttering” the lake view with intensive development. The issue of healthcare was also raised.
Attendees were encouraged to submit the comment cards they received. All residents are encouraged to contact the city with questions and suggestions “Not complaints, suggestions” and to attend city meetings.
