Dam at Little Manistee River, where the fish weir is located. Stronach Township, Manistee. Photo by Mark Videan.
By Stewart A. McFerran
In 2016 when the Great Lakes Fishery Commission was conceiving of and planning for the FishPass project, they considered 12 sites within the Great Lakes region. They narrowed it to six rivers and then decided on the 28-mile-long Ottaway River, renamed for Captain Boardman. The Boardman River winds its way through downtown Traverse City.
Scott Heintzelman, Michigan DNR Fisheries Unit Manager, recalled the selection process.
“I was involved in some of those site visits,” he said. “The Little Manistee (River) was seriously considered.
“The weir site (on the Little Manistee is) where we want fish passage, and we want to stop lamprey. The core mission of the project (if relocated from the Boardman to the Little Manistee) would be the same. We do have a lot of people that like to visit the weir. It has some of that outreach and education component. That’s why (the Little Manistee) was ranked pretty high.”
GLFC found some support from the City of Traverse City for the $19 million research facility on the Boardman. In theory, FishPass would sort fish ⸺ allowing some to pass and stopping others. But the support was far from unanimous. Public meetings were held, and there were questions regarding which fish would be allowed to pass upstream. There was vocal opposition to FishPass from a certain school of fishers and city residents at a 2019 public meeting held at the Traverse Area District Library.
Trees in the park were recently marked to be cut next to the Union Street Dam. In the plan, the FishPass facility would be built on parkland in the shadow of new downtown Traverse City condos. Contractors were revving up their bulldozers this spring when city resident Rick Buckhalter filed a lawsuit asking that Traverse City residents have a chance to vote on FishPass. He argued that a research facility is not a normal use of park land. According to the Traverse City Charter, residents must vote on such questions.
Why FishPass?
The promise of the FishPass facility is ecological connectivity. The need for this is real and widespread wherever there are rivers with dams. Fish and many other creatures that dwell in the riverine environment pass upstream and downstream to the safety of estuaries. With the seasons, on currents, on flotsam and jetsam, they breed and comingle in productive ways that have historically resulted in teeming fish populations in the Great Lakes.
The FishPass project proposes to use technology to return the watershed to that bountiful state, by allowing fish to bypass dams. In the Great Lakes Echo, Dr. Marc Gaden, GLFC communications director, shared his opinion.
“I don’t think I’m exaggerating when I say I think this could help solve a global problem,” he said.
The Little Manistee River is more than 60 miles long, with a watershed larger than the Boardman River. As one of the six rivers that met the GLFC criteria, it was a top contender for FishPass.
Steelhead are harvested in spring and Coho in the fall at the Little Manistee River. Ponds at the weir hold Coho for imprinting before they’re released. The fish weir in rural Stronach Township has at least one advantage over the downtown Traverse City location. The Michigan Department of Natural Resources, a FishPass partner, operates a fish-take facility there.
Yet, the lure of Traverse City is strong. During years of project planning, engineers, planners and fisheries’ experts worked in that popular city. Dr. Daniel Zielinski, the “Principal,” has nailed down every detail of the plan ⸺ except for land use in the Traverse City park. Judge Power recently ruled that a three-fifths majority of Traverse City residents must vote to allow the FishPass facility in the city park on the Boardman River.
GLFC may appeal this decision.
“We were disappointed,” Gaden said. “There are options, like I said … we are not deterred… everybody knows this is needed… so we will consider the options and chart a path forward.”
Heintzelman shared a different view.
“I don’t think anyone is going to speculate on what the next move might be if it does change and it doesn’t happen in Traverse City,” he said. “I don’t know if they will revisit that list and look at some of those other sites that were high on the list, or if they will abandon the project.”
Meanwhile, in Stronach Township at the south end of Manistee Lake, the Little Manistee River flows. At certain times of the year the river is closed at the weir, and similar questions of fish passage arise.
Traverse City residents may reject FishPass. If they do, the GLFC and the DNR could revisit the Stronach Township weir, where the research could take place and an outreach program could be established.
“There are a lot of people that enjoy going down to the (Little Manistee) weir now and being able to see fish and see the work that goes on there, the fisheries management-type work,” Heintzelman said.
Stewart A. McFerran has followed the restoration work on the Ottaway (Boardman) River for many years, He has written several articles on the dam removal projects there and conducted an interview with the son of the Brown Bridge Dam keeper Farris Glass. He also interviewed Jack Robbins, who lives next to the site of the Boardman River Dam on Cass Road. To read his accounts, go to the Grand Traverse Journal online at the below links:
