Like most areas nearby, Leelanau is struggling with a lack of workers and a lack of affordable housing. Northport business owners Mark and Michelle Hemeyer are trying to do something about it. Their Fairway Residences is a proposed multi-unit housing development that would offer long-term rentals priced so local workers could afford to live in the community where they work.

It was born in part from the Hemeyers’ own experience running the Northport Pub and Grille. “As a summer business owner, the hardest thing is not that people aren’t willing to work. You can find good people, but it’s hard (for them) to find somewhere to live,” says Michelle.

A longtime summer resident with roots in Lake Leelanau and Northport, she and her family plan to move north permanently when their youngest graduates from high school. Until then, they will continue to travel back and forth between their homes in southeastern Michigan and Leelanau. She says the difference between the two regions is striking. “Down here we have apartments, condos, attainable housing. It’s different.”

So the Hemeyers purchased 5.9 acres of land originally earmarked for a small subdivision. The site is located on North Warren Street between 6th and 7th.They hope to eventually construct three buildings with 16 apartments each, for a total of 48. The Hemeyers and their team are meeting with the local government, including the planning commission, and the public, in an effort to make sure everyone is informed about the project and their goals and receive feedback.

“We’re just starting,” says Steve Schimpke of Cunningham-Limp, the real estate development firm working to bring the project to fruition. He says Fairway Residences offers a unique solution for the housing and worker crises. “This is the most local example of concerted effort to make it happen,” he says. “It starts with business owners doing it to benefit (the community), not to retire from it.”

Nicole Arbury is chair of the planning commission for the village of Northport. The property is currently zoned R-2 Residential, and Arbury says the Hemeyers’ initial overview acknowledged that. “We have zoning, but nothing that address a project of this scale,” she says. Arbury says the planning commission members appreciate the Hemeyers’ approach, informing the planning commission, local authorities and the public of their proposal, before submitting an application.

Arbury says a letter was scheduled to be presented at last week’s village council meeting asking the village to look into how sewer fees are calculated; at $18,000 per hookup, charging that amount for each apartment would be cost-prohibitive.

The Hemeyers are adamant that at least the initial apartments will be earmarked for long-term rentals, and they are working with Housing North and local employers to establish the development's entry-level rental rates. It is also anticipated that each building will have unique architectural features (different unit configurations, level of finishes, etc.) to provide residents with long-term options at different price points. Some units could possibly be sold as well, but the emphasis is clearly on long-term rentals.

Zachary Hillyer of Housing North is hopeful the project gets off the ground. Not only would it provide greatly needed housing, it would serve as an example of how a community could address a problem seen around the region and across the state. “Northport would be an early adapter, to potentially lead the way for other communities,” he says. “Housing struggles are felt across the county and the region.”

Schimpke says the housing construction industry has a difficult time making a profit creating workforce housing. Building higher-end homes for those who want to live or vacation here or for investors looking to make money in the short-term rental market is substantially more lucrative. At the same time, governmental programs that can provide some incentives for workforce housing come with conditions attached. “The market can’t provide (it) and state programs have restrictions,” he says. “The fact it’s local business owners addressing (the housing problem) means it’s hyper-local.”

Hemeyer’s excitement for the project is palpable. She says they are just putting the wheels in motion and is reluctant to provide a timetable, but does say she’s hopeful. “I expected to find some resistance, but haven’t seen that yet.” So if all goes well, “I could see something happening this year.”

Hemeyer believes the project would help all the businesses in the area, as well as bringing professionals into the community on a year-round basis. Schimpke agrees, noting that Fairway Residences would go beyond providing housing for the workers needed for summer, when the population swells, giving both seasonal and permanent workers a place to call home. “We want to follow Mark and Michelle’s vision. There’s a seasonal influence on Northport, but who’s keeping the snow off the roads, educating the kids?”