The owners of The Lodge at Whitefish Lake plan to expand the lodge marina but likely will face strong headwinds as they seek approval from the city of Whitefish.

In the public arena, opponents and proponents of the proposed expansion already are taking sides.

The Whitefish Planning Board will hold public hearings on the marina expansion during a meeting that begins at 6 p.m. Thursday at Whitefish City Hall.

The first hearing deals with the Averill Family Trust’s proposed amendment to the existing planned unit development for the lodge and marina complex off Wisconsin Avenue on the shore of Whitefish Lake. The marina currently is limited to 85 slips under terms of the original 1990 planned unit development.

An amendment would bump up the number of boat slips from 85 to 103, using additional lakeshore property the Averill family recently purchased. All 18 of the additional slips would be available for public use, with 14 slips set aside for the public lottery system conducted by The Lodge while four slips would be restricted to day use only.

A second hearing focuses on the major lakeshore variance needed for the expansion. 

In addition to increasing the number of boat slips, the variance also asks to extend the existing gangway an additional 19 feet and increase the amount of constructed area below the high-water mark.

A flurry of letters has arrived at the Planning Office, with people weighing in on both sides.

“Just say NO to The Lodge at Whitefish Lake and the Averill Family Trust and their proposed marina expansion,” Margaret Murdock wrote. “They have wreaked quite enough damage and chaos to Monk’s Bay, Whitefish Lake, the Wisconsin Avenue wetlands and all the property surrounding theirs.”

Jean Jones wrote that she’s “dismayed” about the proposal for more boat slips and said “such a plan would increase water, air and noise pollution in our bay that is already maxed out in these areas.”

John and Tyler Kuelbs sent an email saying “the lake has almost become overcrowded. The only benefit I can see from adding more boat slips is the financial gain for the Lodge.”

Bob and Susan Howard, however, said just the opposite.

“Whitefish Lake is not a crowded lake for boating,” the Howards wrote. “We feel there is a great need to increase the number of seasonal boat slips for public use.”

Don and Valery Neuman also were among those supporting the expansion, saying “it makes sense to expand the docks at the Lodge to allow for greater public use of the lake.”

The city planning staff recommends approval of nine additional slips based on lakeshore frontage, but recommends denial of the major variance and lakeshore construction permit request for the additional nine slips, the additional constructed area and the gangway extension into Whitefish Lake.

A planning staff report pointed out that the total amount of constructed surface area to accommodate 18 more slips is 12,191 square feet, which is 907 square feet over the permitted area below the high-water line. However, for all of the additional slips to have the water depth needed to facilitate boat use, the Averills propose to increase the dock length, which would put the marina even farther beyond the permitted constructed area, the report said.

The water depth in some areas is less than 4 feet, and unless the Averills can produce evidence that the middle-wing slips don’t generally reach 4 feet of water depth, the dock can’t be extended under the planned unit development regulations, the report noted.

During a recent Lakeshore Protection Committee meeting, a representative for the Averills said that based on historical data, 49 of the current slips have less than 4 feet of water depth and nine additional slips that would increase the number to 60 percent of the slips having less than 4 feet of water.

The Averills have offered to do more depth assessments this summer if that remains a concern.

The Lodge at Whitefish Lake, built on the former Viking Lodge site, opened in 2005. A year before that, there was controversy over the marina after it was built all at once instead of in phases as required in the conditions of approval. The city of Whitefish approved an after-the-fact permit but denied a dock extension.

On April 9, Jim Stack, a former longtime chairman of the Lakeshore Protection Committee, sent a lengthy email to the city pointing out that the permit to expand the marina would affect not only those who want boat-slip access on Whitefish Lake but also the permanent and part-time residents of Monk’s Bay, as well as the rest of the lake.

Stack also noted the city resolution and agreement the Averills were required to sign in 2005 as a result of a contentious process and “full disclosure” request the committee made at the time and the city pursued through the City Attorney’s office.

“That subsequent disclosure revealed that many of the original public marina slips had been converted to private marina status through long-term, renewal leases,” Stack wrote. “There were also slips designated specifically for a private homeowners' association — Iron Horse — plus a new agreement to supply 15 additional slips to Iron Horse from the newly proposed slips being added.

“The city resolution required terminating that agreement and setting an expiration date on the remaining Iron Horse slips,” Stack further noted.

He said it appears The Lodge is complying with the conditions of the 2005 resolution and agreement, and added that both the lodge and marina have become valuable assets to the community.

Stack said the public lottery system used to seasonally rent the slips also should be discussed.

The city sends a representative to The Lodge to make sure a random numbering system is used as slip leases become available, but the city doesn’t participate in setting the lease fees for slips, city planner Bailey Minnich said.

Stack said questions to consider are whether lottery winners are quietly subleasing their slips to others, potentially for a profit, and whether slip rental fees are being increased to the point at which “public access” effectively equates to access only by “wealthy second-home owners or Iron Horse members.”

The 2005 resolution and agreement give the city control over fees, though the lakeshore committee deemed such control not necessary at the time.

Features editor Lynnette Hintze may be reached at 758-4421 or by email at lhintze@dailyinterlake.com.