LAKETOWN TOWNSHIP, Mich. — A funding freeze is in effect for an 84-year-old Laketown Township house amid plans to have it repurposed as a “Living Legacy Center.”
The home, originally built in 1939, is in an area park. Township officials say its owners, Manuel and Lilah Huyser, donated the property — including the 102 acres it sits on — to the township in 2001 before they passed away.
A spokesperson says the township’s attorney must issue an opinion on who controls the home before the $125,000 project is funded.
The Land Conservancy of West Michigan approved the project last month before the Sept. 15 deadline to form a plan for the home, officials say. The home might have been poised for demolition otherwise.
We’re told the project was criticized for its potential operating costs on top of the upfront expenses.
Trustee Jim Delaney recommended tearing down the house, calling the restoration project “dead on arrival,” the township says. A resident said he collected $6,000 in pledged donations and may raise more if given more time.
“I think there is value in having a tangible reminder of a World War II-era home,” says Clerk Amber Davis, who says the project could be paid for with private donations in lieu of taxpayer dollars.
A motion to approve the freeze passed Wednesday.
The township attorney was instructed to release an opinion on the home during a meeting scheduled for Nov. 1.
