[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 92 (Friday, June 24, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1194]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         ALGER COUNTY ROAD H-58

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. DAN BENISHEK

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                         Friday, June 24, 2011

  Mr. BENISHEK. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize several long 
time residents of Alger County Michigan, who were instrumental in 
resolving a long standing controversy about road access within Pictured 
Rocks National Lakeshore.
  When Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore was authorized by the U.S. 
Congress in 1966 as America's first national lakeshore, the enabling 
legislation called for the construction of a ``scenic shoreline drive'' 
as part of the park's development. However, the legislation did not 
specify exactly where that road should be located. Due to other 
national priorities, including the Vietnam War effort, funds were never 
appropriated to actually design and build the road.
  This delay led to tremendous frustration on the part of local 
individuals and units of government, many of whom felt misled into 
supporting the establishment of the park. However, as local pressure 
increased to fund the project, opposition to building a road through 
undeveloped portions of the park also increased, leading to many years 
of controversy.
  Over the years, several alternative locations were considered for the 
road. But, in 1998, to protect the most pristine portions of the park, 
Congress amended the park's enabling legislation to actually prohibit 
the National Park Service from constructing a road through the main 
portion of the park, forcing a compromise solution.
  That compromise, ultimately endorsed by the National Park Service and 
the Alger County Road Commission, called for the reconstruction and 
paving of an existing sand and gravel road; Alger County H-58. Using a 
combination of federal and state funds between 1990 and 2010, H-58 was 
re-designed and paved to provide improved access to and through 
Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore and connect the two gateway 
communities of Munising and Grand Marais.
  In the end, the Alger County Road Commission and the National Park 
Service worked very closely to design and build a roadway that would 
provide an outstanding scenic experience worthy of a national park. It 
is also noteworthy that in 2009, as the road project was coming to an 
end, Congress also provided permanent legal protection to the central 
portion of the park by establishing the Beaver Basin Wilderness. It 
took over 40 years, but with these two actions, the controversy about 
how best to balance road access and protection of nationally 
significant resources at Pictured Rocks had finally come to an end.
  Over the years, many Alger County residents continued to strongly 
advocate for a road that would provide better access to the National 
Lakeshore. These included Connie Berube Binsfeld, who later served as 
Lt. Governor of Michigan and a member of the National Park Advisory 
Board; Doug Miron and Paul Heyrman, Chair and Vice-Chair of the Alger 
County Road Commission; the late Dennis ``Fuzzy'' Boyak, President and 
CEO of Peoples State Bank of Munising; Rochelle Cotey, Director of 
ALTRAN, the local transportation authority, and Richard and Chuck 
Nebel, a Munising banker and attorney-at-law. Munising native Mike 
Pond, a professional civil engineer, was involved in the design of 
virtually every detail of the road. Now that the road is complete, 
these local residents, along with others, have left a lasting legacy 
for Alger County and the visitors to Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore.

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