Eagle Harbor Web

We are back!! We never dreamed when we left for a three-week vacation in Hawaii on March 8^th that we would not be home to write this newsletter until May. The plans went awry when Gerry was forced to look at Diamond Head from a hospital window for nineteen days. After we were finally "sprung" from the Islands, we visited a few doctors and hospitals in Texas near family before flying back to our cozy cabin-in-the-woods in May. Many of you followed the saga on George’s Web Site and your messages and prayers pulled us through.

Now we are catching up on township news and will pass along recent developments. The new fire truck is scheduled for delivery to the township by December. It will be fire engine red or our Supervisor will send it back. Some have suggested a chartreuse or even a white truck. The latter could hide in a snow bank, according to Jim, and the other is much too wimpy. As we reported before, we have received a $40,000 grant toward the purchase and the balance will be paid by a one mill levy over the next four or five years.

Efforts are going forward to purchase land in the area between the cemetery and the stamp sands to preserve our beautiful hiking and skiing trails as permanent recreational areas. A grant has been applied for and we are anxiously waiting to see if this dream can become a reality. We have received a $12,500 grant to aid in wellhead protection for the village water system. This will be used to drill required test wells to monitor the purity of the aquifer.

The Community Building/School House renovation project is going forward. Requests are going out for support in the form of contributions from residents, families, friends and everyone else who has a desire to see this historical building restored.

The expansion of the township office and the addition of the public restrooms have been delayed pending bids and estimates for construction that will fall within our budget. The necessary redesign and complete replacement of the roof has made the project more costly than first thought, but we are still hopeful that the project can go forward this year.

We have had the good news that three EMT’s have been certified in Copper Harbor and they will serve as "first responders" in emergencies in Keweenaw County. One goal of this program is to have defibrillators available in several convenient locations around the county. They are hoping Eagle Harbor Township residents will support this goal with donations toward a purchase of this equipment to be placed in our fire hall. If anyone is interested in learning more about this effort, check with the township office for the person to contact in Copper Harbor.

The Township Board voted to raise rates for cemetery lots effective August 1^st. Residents and taxpayers will pay $200 instead of the $100 presently charged. There is work to be done in making drives for access in the new areas of the cemetery. Fencing is also required at the boundaries of the property which will be very costly.

The lake is at the lowest level in sixty years. Beaches are wide and reefs and rocks are evident along the shore that we never knew were there. There was a beautiful white swan in Cat Harbor. Baby geese are waddling around. The HUGE bear is roaming the village again this spring. He wasn’t caught last year. Probably is too big to climb in the trap. We see deer every time we drive to town. Our tulips and daffodils are blooming and the black flies are out IN FORCE.