News & Stories
Preserving Land, Protecting Heritage
Photo credit: New Community Vision
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Timbers Shores Campground, a long-vacant shoreline property between Omena and Northport, was slated to become a large-scale RV resort. When the contentious resort plan ran into roadblocks, local nonprofit New Community Vision (NCV) was born.
Rapid fundraising by NCV and the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians—along with financial backing from the Community Foundation, other regional organizations, and many individual donors—preserved this 211-acre property for the Grand Traverse Band’s cultural heritage creating a nature preserve with public access, with a portion of the land (nearly 25 acres) set aside for attainable housing.
New Community Vision formed after a Leelanau Township referendum ballot measure in November 2022 -which proposed easing zoning regulations for the resort - failed. Community members saw an opportunity to present an alternative future for the property.
“We knew the land was eventually going to be developed so we had to act,” said Kate Bulkley, NCV’s Board Secretary and Media Consultant. “Once a place like that is gone, you can’t get it back.”
New Community Vision was founded by Kate Bulkley, John Sentell, Beth Verhey, Dale Lersch, and Andy Thomas. They moved quickly including collaborating with the Grand Traverse Band to apply for a federal grant to acquire and restore the property. NCV’s plan included preserving 25 acres for attainable housing.
Naomi Louchouarn, former River Restoration Project Manager for the Grand Traverse Band, explained why the project was so important: “To collaborate with NCV and everyone in the area is important for the ecological restoration of this place, but also for the restoration of the irreplaceable cultural and spiritual connections to the land as well.”
In August 2023, NCV officially began their fundraising efforts but the clock was ticking on raising funds by late 2024. Community support came rushing in, but more was needed to meet the property’s $10 million price tag.
Both NCV and the Grand Traverse Band knew that securing a federal grant from the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), dependent in part on the property’s ecological health, was key to acquiring Timber Shores. NCV received a $1,500 grant from our Land Use Conservation & Planning Endowment for an assessment of the property’s plant life, which opened the door for the national grant that ultimately secured the property.
“The Community Foundation recognized that we were a grassroots organization with a big heart, a short timeline, and a worthy goal,” Kate said. “They were really vital for us because they could pivot quickly to offer support.”
With the grant, NCV contracted a floristic survey that reported the land was of “significant conservation value.” The Grand Traverse Band and NCV leveraged the grant and survey for a successful NOAA proposal, which awarded $6.5 million to acquire the property and additional restoration funds.
NCV purchased the property in 2024, which was renamed Mashkiigaki or “Medicine Place” in Anishinaabemowin. The Grand Traverse Band will lead visioning days with community members to plan Mashkiigaki’s future, including public recreational access. NCV also reserved 25 acres for attainable housing in the northwest corner of the property. They’re collaborating with Suttons-Bay nonprofit Peninsula Housing on next steps.
“This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” said NCV’s Kate Bulkley. “The Community Foundation saw the big picture, and they invested in a project with an enormous impact. They were a huge part of raising our profile and helping us achieve our goals.”
Writer: Jennifer DeMoss