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Laszlo
01-27-2006, 10:34 AM
Anyone else hear of a rental property ban on Torch Lake (Antrim County)?

gold-n-rod
01-27-2006, 10:52 AM
This issue has been festering for a long time. Evidently, a family had been renting a cottage in a residential area to short-term tenants (weekly, I believe). The increased traffic and resultant beach use was irritating the neighbors. They attempted to use zoning to regulate it. Last I knew, courts and lawyers were involved.

They ran into a snag when the lawyers went to the beach to observe the problem first hand. All the neighborhood cats kept trying to bury them in sand!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! [this part is a joke]

You might try searching the archives of the Traverse City paper http://www.record-eagle.com They have been covering this story (not the cat part) over time.

Carl C
01-27-2006, 11:26 AM
It's not like the lake isn't big enough to handle a few more people. sheeesh.

gold-n-rod
01-27-2006, 12:26 PM
It's not like the lake isn't big enough to handle a few more people. sheeesh.

I think the problem wasn't the size of the lake, but the size of the neighborhood. You know, someone rents a cottage and they invite all their friends and family to visit them at "their" cottage. The driveway fills with cars (street in front, too), the beach is overwhelmed, additional boats get moored out front, the septic tank works overtime, yad, yada, yada.

True that "regular" cottage owners can do the same, but at least there's a regular face there for the neighbors to work with if they have a beef. With transients, there's a new face every week and the landlord is absent.

These are typical issues with rental properties, it just gets exacerbated when you have people who have invested a lot of money in a place where they hope to "get away from it all."

gold-n-rod
01-27-2006, 12:38 PM
From the 1/15/03 Record Eagle:

Pair can’t rent out homes

BELLAIRE — An Antrim
County Circuit Court judge
has issued a permanent
injunction against a couple,
preventing them from renting
their Torch Lake homes for
short periods of time.
The Denver homeowners,
who describe themselves as
middle-class, say they now
will be forced to sell the
properties, which were handed
down through the family.
Judge Philip Rodgers Jr.
ruled that Jeff and Marilyn
Ackerman’s rental of two
houses they own on Torch
Lake amounted to a commercial
operation, in violation of
both the township’s single family
residential zoning in
that area and the deed
restrictions on the homes.

Carl C
01-27-2006, 12:55 PM
Randy, is there a public boat launch on Toech Lake?

gold-n-rod
01-27-2006, 01:11 PM
Randy, is there a public boat launch on Torch Lake?

Yupper:

A crude concrete ramp right at the bridge where the Torch River meets the lake. Poor parking. A 22' might not work here.

A DNR ramp on the Torch River just downriver from the lake. Hard to find and you have to navigate some stumps to get to the river (ask me how I know). Parking OK. A fee is charged.

A DNR ramp on the west side of the lake about halfway up. Poorly marked from Hwy 31. So poorly marked, I missed it last summer. Fee charged.

A nice little Township ramp right on the North tip of the lake. Tony and I had no problem getting our 16's in and out there last August. Don't know about a 22' though. Worth a try. Good parking. Free.

All the marinas on the rivers have nice ramps, but they are not open to transient non-customers. You have to be renting a slip from them to use their ramps.

I think that's all.

:umbrella:

Tony
01-27-2006, 02:02 PM
The Township ramp is a nice one, but as Randy said it is not very steep. I like putting in on the north end, giving you a great 15 - 20 mile cruise to get to the action at the south end sandbar or the restaurant on the SE side of the lake where the Clam River leads to Clam Lake.

As discussed before, Torch Lake has the most awesome color of any lake in Michigan, and likely of any in the country! Catch it on a pure sunny day and you will not be disappointed. Not to mention the top notch activities taking place on the sandbar every weekend all summer long!