• Meridian Township Board Meeting

MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP - Last night the Township Board held their meeting to discuss the Hickory Island Alley. The alley leads to Lake Lansing runs through three residential properties.

From a legal standpoint, the Hickory Island Alley is a public access point for those who would like to utilize it in entering Lake Lansing. It is considered a paper street- a street that appears on maps but has not been built, which is currently used by one of the nearby property owners.

Deputy Manager Derek Perry has been working on finding the proper solution that will satisfy nearby residences, such as the family living on 1315 Hickory Island Street, with carving a piece of the alley to provide an access point to their residency.

“What’s been happening historically is that he has been maintaining the property, cutting the grass and plowing the gravel driveway, which really is the alleyway. So we were looking for a permanent fix for him but also preserving the public’s right to accessing the lake,” said Perry.

Since the parcel is not directly owned by the Township, it has been difficult to branch out the alley and allow the property owner to take ownership of the portion that leads toward his property.

“Really, we are left with two options. One would be to essentially go through a vacation process, the downside of it would be that the Township would lose access to it (Hickory Alley),” said Perry

Perry also mentioned a second option known as the Special Assessment District that involves a multi-step process that will grant the nearby property owner to pay to have the alley paved towards the nearby residence.

The goal of this solution is to provide a solution that will satisfy the residents' needs while maintaining Hickory Island Alley a public access point, and clearly defining what the public can and can not do while utilizing the area.

The Township Board will meet in the future to further discuss a finalized resolution.