MACKINAW CITY — The Mackinac Island State Park Commission will hold its regularly scheduled meeting at 1:30 p.m. Feb. 6 at the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan Lyon Meadows Conference Center in New Hudson.
The agenda includes a report from auditor Douglas Wohlberg, a presentation of a revised 2026 operating budget, Mackinac Island airport business, fees revisions, policy updates, use permit requests, lease renewal requests and updates on the Fort Michilimackinac Reenactment.
The meeting will be available live on the Mackinac State Historic Parks YouTube channel.
The commission is the seven-member governing body of Mackinac State Historic Parks.
In 1875, government land on Mackinac Island encompassing 50 percent of the island was designated the second national park in the United States, then turned over to the State of Michigan in 1895, becoming Michigan’s first state park, according to the commission.
At that time, the state legislature created the Mackinac Island State Park Commission to be stewards of the park and its historic structures. Parkland now encompasses more than 80 percent of Mackinac Island, which includes 1,800 acres, and the commission also oversees parks on the mainland, the release said.
The commission is responsible for a combined 2,500 acres of parkland within Mackinac State Historic Parks, more than 110 buildings and about 1.7 million artifacts.
“During its 131 years of history, the commission has protected, preserved and presented the parks’ historic and natural resources by securing additional park acreage, restoring historic structures, and creating and operating one of the most visited history museum systems in the nation,” Steve Brisson, Mackinac State Historic Parks director, said.
Commissioners serve six-year terms and are appointed by the governor of Michigan, subject to confirmation by the Michigan Senate. Chairman Dan Loepp began his chairmanship in September 2019 and has served on the commission since 2015.
Mackinac State Historic Parks is an agency within the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and includes Fort Mackinac, the Biddle House featuring the Mackinac Island Native American Museum, The Richard & Jane Manoogian Mackinac Art Museum, Benjamin Blacksmith Shop, American Fur Co. Store & Dr. Beaumont Museum, McGulpin House and Mackinac Island State Park on Mackinac Island, and Colonial Michilimackinac, Old Mackinac Point Lighthouse, Dousman’s Mill and Michilimackinac State Park in Mackinaw City.
Visitor information is available at (231) 436-4100 or online at www.mackinacparks.com.