No Trespassing!

The last relatively warm day we had I took my kayak out on Sunset Lake for one more look at the fall colors.  Up near the north end of the lake, I was greeted by “No Trespassing” signs sticking right out of the water.  Now, this is not up where the lake has become choked with weeds – this part was wide open, and still very much a lake – not a creek or a marsh.

I approached closer and noticed there was a partly-legible name on the signs.  All I could make out was “Brad.”  The rest of the crayon markings must have washed away in the rain.  I supposed Brad lives nearby and thinks that he can claim an entire part of the lake as his, since not many people get up that way, anyhow.

Someone should let Brad know that under Michigan law, the public has a right to use navigable waterways.  Some deeds may entitle a person to the soil under a body of water, but navigable waterways (other than those inland lakes that have no inlet or outlet) cannot be blocked off or “privatized” by nearby property owners.

I’m no lawyer, but the plain reading of the law appears to me to indicate that Brad has overstepped his bounds.

Besides, does Brad want to be liable for the pollution that’s coming downstream from “his” part of the lake into the rest of Sunset?  If the North part of the lake is Brad’s, including the creek that feeds Sunset, then he must be responsible for the fertilizer that’s causing extreme algae and plant growth in the lake.  What is the cost to the rest of the community for all of Brad’s pollution?

What’s killing off the Swans in Sunset Lake?  (Graphic picture.)  Are they being poisoned by toxins that are coming from the property that Brad is claiming as his?  I think he’d better take stock in how far he wants to carry his property rights.

I, for one, will be asserting my right to use navigable Michigan waterways come Spring.

I heard on the news this morning that the Crown Vantage Paper Mill in Parchment has been demolished.  It makes me sad to see old structures taken down, especially ones that provided jobs to their communities.

The town was apparently anxious to “double their tax base,” and believed that new residential development spur further growth.  But I wonder where all those new residents will be working?

It will be interesting to see how long it takes for the new homes or condos to be built.

I also have to wonder how long Vicksburg’s own Lee Paper Mill will be standing.  Will the village be tempted to gain tax revenue by tearing it down and giving the land to some developer?

It seems to me be a shame that the investments made in constructing anything have to be lost, and can’t be improved upon.  I wonder how much was spent on building and improving the Lee Paper Mill over the last century.  What would the architects, engineers and builders say if they were to learn that their investment would be worth so little in 2010?  How could we add to and increase their investment, rather than just wiping it out?

http://www.woodtv.com/dpp/news/local/kalamazoo_and_battle_creek/Paper-mills-out-new-developments-in

You missed some fun if you didn’t go to the Vicksburg Harvest Festival last Saturday.  Could have been a bit warmer, but still not too bad, and there looked to be a decent turnout.

I got some cheese and some locally grown plums, and picked up a small wooden box from one of the antique dealers.

The big attraction was the old steam-powered saw.  It was churning out planks that were being made into rustic benches.  I’ve never seen one of those operating before.  I don’t imagine that there were many workers of those saws that had many years of experience AND all of their limbs.

A new auction house is opening soon in Vicksburg.  It’s the “Premier Auction Service and Mercantile” shop, and will be at 120 S. Main, right next to the Boundary Waters cafe.  They describe themselves as a “monthly consignment auction and upscale resale shop.”

It will be interesting to see how this will affect the R&M Auction house, which has a pending sale.  Owner Ron Stafford recently announced his planned retirement, and a buyer has been found who will assume ownership in six months.  Mr. Stafford has said that he will stay on up to the transfer of ownership, and possibly a bit longer during a transition period.

An “upscale” resale shop, huh?  Will someone please tell me where the upscale customers will be coming from?

I watched as he proceeded to the door of the Unique Furnishings store on the corner of Prairie and Main.  He dropped the envelope in the mail slot, and then turned to walk back down the street.

I wonder what was in that envelope?   Police officers generally don’t deliver mail.  A summons would be handed to a person.  A notice of a code violation is typically tacked to the front door.  Evidence wouldn’t be returned without a signature.

Very curious….

Vicksburg rates among the safes cities and towns in Michigan, according the FBI’s latest set of published uniform crime statistics.

Out of the largest 395 communities in the state, Vicksburg ranks 330th for violent crime (in terms of incidents to population), and 374th for property crime.  That beats Schoolcraft considerably, and Portage and Three River by far.

If it hadn’t been for single incidents of aggravated assault, burglary and arson, we’d have been even better positioned on the list.

(Saginaw had the worst record, if you need to know.)

[Link to FBI site]

Not sure how long ago, though.  According to an article in the Kalamazoo Gazette, a Louise Welling of Vicksburg claimed that she spotted Elvis in the Felpausch supermarket on W. Prairie.  I wonder if hes’ still around?  I could imagine him pushing a cart up and down the aisles, hanging out at the Village bar, or buying up old LPs at the R&M Auction.

I wonder if there were any songs running through his head while he was grocery shopping?  Songs like…

• Don’t Be Cruel (To The Fresh-Picked Fruit)
• Love Meat Tender
• (Don’t Want This Pop) It’s All Shook Up
• I Want Cheese, I Need Cheese, I Love Cheese
• One Night of Spoilage
• I Need Your Ice Cream Tonight
• Return to Felpausch
• Crying In The Bottle Return
• Burning Ribs
• Hard Headed Broccoli
• A Big Hunk o’ Cheese

The Kalamazoo Gazette has a story about an unnamed 38-year-old Vicksburg man who was allegedly supplying illegal steroids to area gyms and even police officers.

He apparently raked in thousands of dollars a month over several years by importing HGH and other steroids from Hong Kong, then reselling them all over Kalamazoo and Van Buren counties.

The supplier may have escaped local prosecution by naming his customers, although federal charges may be forthcoming.

Is he still in business?  Is he still living in the area?

I have to wonder how much of Vicksburg’s economy is being supported by the illegal drug trade…?

I live in one of the older homes in Vicksburg.   The basement is damp, and water even drips off the walls during a heavy rain.  I try to keep it aired out, but I can’t really store things down there, so I’m not down there that often.

I was over in Saugatuck last weekend, and house was closed up the whole time.  I thought I might have heard something in the basement Monday night, but I dismissed it as just noise from the water heater or the house settling (sinking).

I went down there Tuesday evening to open up the windows and turn on a fan, and I found something that hadn’t been there the previous week.  Right under the stairs was a big pile of dirt.  I’m talking buckets of dirt.  It was at the end of a long crack where (I presume) a big tree root had lifted up the cement.  The crack has been there since I moved in, but the dirt was not.

The dirt looked as if it had been pushed up from underneath, but the crack was no more than 3/8″ at its widest point, and the concrete appeared to be too thick to be lifted up by anything small enough to  dig 10′ under my house.  I searched the whole basement, but could find no other place where an animal could have gotten in, and I couldn’t imagine how or why any animal would be bringing in dirt to pile under my stairs.  I even checked outside, around the house, to see if there were any animal holes.

There were no tracks that I could discern, but there were a couple of depressions, where it looked like something small might have tried to dig into the pile, but not very deep.

The dirt was pretty dry; it did not at all look as if it had seeped in as mud.

Where did all this dirt come from???

North end of Sunset Lake

I was out on Sunset Lake the other day.  The north end has become completely choked with weeds.  I wonder how many years it will be before the entire lake becomes unnavigable.  How long until it turns into a festering swamp?  The value of properties on the edge of the swamp will become some of the lowest in the area!  Where’s that seaweed harvester?  Has it even been out there this year?  If something isn’t done, it’s only a matter of time until there is no lake, and even the swamp will start to fill in with trees.  Maybe the town could throw a fundraiser…?