The History

The site now known as Bay Harbor and Resort Township's East and West Parks was once home to a limestone quarry and cement plant that operated from 1904 to1980.

When the cement plant closed, the original owners left industrial equipment, debris, piles of cement kiln dust and many of the old buildings deteriorating on the site, putting the area’s natural resources at risk.  The environmental blight was readily apparent and the site was described as a "moonscape."

In 1994 the Bay Harbor Company, with CMS Land Company as an owner, began work to redevelop the site along its five-mile shore and to protect the bay from the effects of the dust left behind.

With plans approved by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (now Michigan Department of Environmental Quality) and then-Attorney General Frank Kelley, the clean-up work began. The site was cleared, and the piles of dust were consolidated and shaped to reduce the amount of water flowing in and out. The piles were then covered with clean soil and incorporated into the design of the nationally recognized Bay Harbor Golf Course and East Park.

The Beauty of Bay Harbor

Although it's hard to believe when you look at them today, Bay Harbor and Resort Township's East Park were once the site of an abandoned limestone quarry and cement factory. All that changed in 1994 when the blighted moonscape began a transformation into what is now a world class public park and resort community that draws visitors from around the world.