The group opposing Ann Arbor’s draft Comprehensive Land Use Plan (CLUP) is being accused of passing out false information regarding the future of the city’s parks.
The group Ann Arbor Neighborhood Network (A2N2) released a report this week claiming the latest draft of the CLUP excludes more than 484 acres of parkland, including the two public golf courses, several nature centers and other green spaces. A2N2 says that would allow the city to sell such land to developers circumventing required voter approval.
Council member Lisa Disch calls that “fake news.”
“It claims that the Comp Plan says things that it doesn’t say. The draft Comprehensive Land Use Plan does not intend to and does not reclassify any land in the Parks and Recreation Open Space Plan that that plan designates as a park land.”
UPDATED WITH COMPANION STORY ON 6/27/25:
Opponents of the Ann Arbor’s draft Comprehensive Land Use Plan (CLUP) are defending the memo they released this week that was trashed by local officials.
The report states that the latest draft CLUP doesn’t list the city’s two public golf courses and several nature centers as publicly owned parkland and therefore could leave them open to being sold off to developers without first going to voters.
City council members cried foul saying that would never happen. But Ann Arbor Neighborhood Network spokesman John Godfrey says the notion has been brought up during public meetings.
“Council members and planning officials have openly discussed repurposing golf courses and several nature areas for development, instead of preserving these spaces for recreation and their environmental benefits.”
Godfrey says the situation can be resolved by simply correcting the data in the Comp Plan to include golf courses and nature centers.
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