Amazing effort and outcome, enjoyed now by generations

Well, I see a lot of thoughtfulness has preceded the Elberta Plan and the vote takes place Thursday to approve the existing ideas. I have had the chance to. visit parks and countries, so my late opinions could be considered for a future plan. We especially enjoyed butterfly conservation exhibits in Golden Gate Park in San Francisco and Puerto Vallarta Mexico. They were accompanied with educational tours that taught us to respect the creatures. Well away from the water a dog run park could be added. One was recently added in Frankfort. It seems somewhat square and may improve over time. I hated the bus tours in Puerto Vallarta, San Francisco and elsewhere. I am not alone in enjoyment of walking the Frankfort pier to the lighthouse and back. Any possibility of a walkable Elberta pier into Lake Michigan would be expensive, redundant, wonderful, and better designed. I enjoyed sledding in Benzie as a kid. Elberta has hills, so a sled or toboggan run would not need to be costly. Similarly flooding an ice skate area away from the water could be low cost. It seems to me that trees invite swings. I like the idea of two or three swings located in trees near walking patterns. Metal supported swings like those on the sandy area of the Frankfort beach have proved popular. I read that there is concern about the erosion of sand along the bluffs above the Elberta Beaches. There is also concern about any non native species. Yet the Sleeping Bear Dunes remain a national attraction. Too bad we can not find a way to stabilize the sand and allow climbing. Two ideas: 1. terrace a. small portion. 2. utilize thick rooted low rising bamboo for a natural looking terrace system. Since I have been enjoying family gatherings and photos at Point Betsie for 75 years, I have noticed which trees thrive in that environment. Plant some Silver Poplars on or near the sands of the Elberta beach. Their white trunks rise to various heights as they spread 50 to 100 feet from the waterline of Lake Michigan. As a human I seek shade of a tree when the beach is too hot. Some tall trees could be grown. Please no straight likes of trees by planners with weak imaginations. I dislike the poop from large gatherings of geese. I hope there are ways to reduce that. I am not a fan of the invasive herds of deer in Benzie. I would not mind some 8 foot fencing to allow flowers to grow like days of old. I enjoy songbirds. I am bored by crows and feral cats thay kill and reduce songbird populations. Please find a way to control those two types of critters. I dislike the swimmers itch in Crystal from the Morganzer ducks and the invasive snails. I dislike that I have neighbors that encourage Morganzer ducks. I dislike that folks have built up around Crystal Lake but never paid the costs to put in a real complete sewage system running all around the lake. (Crystal Lake Township could tax the sale of properties to pay.) So Elberta will do better and keep sewage system plans in mind that allow for future expansion. I do not favor rental of beach chairs and sun shades but they are popular at seaside parks everywhere. I would like to see the Elberta beach development as a quiet zone. Ambulances and police cars could shut down sirens as they approached the tranquility of a world class beach. Fines for littering are fine with me. If parking could be $5 or less per two hours that would be nice. Parking away from the water allows beach folks some exercise when their minds encourage them to be lazy and find excuses not to walk. Quinlan