Lead Donors
James W. Brooks & the Brooks family of Holland
The Frey Foundation
Fred & Lena Meijer
Todd & Liz Warnock
J. A. Woollam Foundation
Anonymous donor
Project Lenders
James W. Brooks & the Brooks family of Holland
The Conservation Fund
The Frey Foundation
Fred & Lena Meijer
J. A. Woollam Foundation
Anonymous donor
Saugatuck Harbor Documents
Visiting the Saugatuck Harbor Natural Area
The best way to access the Saugatuck Harbor Natural Area is to park at the City of Saugatuck's Oval Beach and walk north along the lakeshore.
Please keep in mind the following rules when visiting the property: visitors are welcome from dawn until dusk, dogs are not allowed on the property, foot traffic only (no motorized vehicles or bikes), no camping or fires.
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On December 22, 2009 the Land Conservancy of West Michigan (LCWM) closed on the 171-acre south portion of the McClendon property (formerly known as the Denison property) adjacent to Saugatuck’s Oval Beach City Park. This is a major milestone in the decades-long effort to protect this critical stretch of Lake Michigan shoreline.
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The next steps will be to raise funds from the public to pay back bridge loans and create an endowment for the care of the property. The total cost of the project will reach approximately $22.1 million when associated transactional and management costs are included, with approximately $4.5 million that still needs to be raised from the public.
The City of Saugatuck will lease the property, now known as the Saugatuck Harbor Natural Area, from LCWM for $1 per year while the property is transferred to the City over a three-year period as the remaining funding to support the purchase is raised.
With the completion of the closing, the property is now open to the public for non-motorized recreation such as hiking, birdwatching, fishing, nature study, and photography.
Following the closing on December 22nd, April Scholtz, LCWM Land Protection Director, takes down the private property sign and repleaces it with a nature preserve sign. To see additional photos from the closing please visit our facebook album.
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How You Can Help
Donations for the project can be made online by credit card on our donation page.
Checks payable to the Land Conservancy of West Michigan can be mailed to: 1345 Monroe Ave NW, Suite 324, Grand Rapids, MI 49505. Please be sure to indicate your gift is for the Saugatuck Harbor Natural Area.
The Land Conservancy of West Michigan is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization. All gifts are tax-deductible as allowed by the law.
For additional information, please email lcwm@naturenearby.org or call 616-451-9476.
Project Funding
The table below outlines the funds needed to complete the deal.
To make an online contribution, please visit our donation page.
| MNRTF Grant |
$10.5 million |
| Lead Gifts |
$6.1 million |
| CELCP Grant |
$3 million |
| Gifts needed from the public |
$2.5 million |
| TOTAL |
$22.1 million |
The following timeline illustrates when and how we plan to execute the purchase agreement:
| 12/22/09 |
LCWM takes ownership of the property. |
| 12/23/09 |
City of Saugatuck leases the property from LCWM. Land is open to the public to enjoy, and donations are accepted for the property. |
| Spring 2010 |
Official kick-off of the public fundraising campaign. |
| 12/31/12 |
City of Saugatuck takes over complete ownership of the property. |
About the Saugatuck Harbor Natural Area
This magnificent dune ecosystem includes an amazing diversity of habitats and resources: 3,650 feet of Lake Michigan shoreline, populations of at least 6 rare plant and animal species including the prairie warbler (state endangered status) and Blanchard’s cricket frog (state threatened), open dunes, interdunal wetlands, natural jack pine forest, hardwood-pine dune forest, Great Lakes marsh, 4,452 feet on an oxbow lake, the south pier of the Kalamazoo River mouth, 1,650 feet of Kalamazoo River shoreline, and a historic site known as “Fishtown”.
The 171-acre property is currently owned by the Land Conservancy of West Michigan and is leased to the City of Saugatuck for $1 per year. After the fundraising is complete, the land will be formally transferred to the City of Saugatuck (December 2012).
The Saugatuck Harbor Natural Area is open to the public for non-motorized recreation such as hiking, birdwatching, fishing, nature study, and photography.
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