Tribal resolution and veterans urge Petoskey council not to move war memorials from Pennsylvania Park

Fred Harrington Jr., speaking on behalf of the Little Traverse Bay Band of Odawa Indians, read a signed tribal resolution delivered to the council that "vehemently objects to any plans that move Petoskey's war memorials out of Pennsylvania Park," and urged the council to reject relocation plans. His presentation cited tribal treaty history and called the memorials important to tribal members and to the wider community.

Veterans groups followed in public comment with emotional testimony. Vietnam veteran Patrick Klein, who said he helped organize the monuments in the mid‑1980s with the VFW and American Legion, described the park memorials as "sacred ground" and said many residents and veterans expect the council to keep the monuments in their current, central location. Klein and other veterans asked the council to vote—formally or publicly—to commit that the memorials will not be moved, saying such a vote would ease community concern.

Speakers noted the city’s process: a consultant has been engaged to revise Pennsylvania Park and the consultant’s plan had included reconfiguring the park area where memorials now sit. The Little Traverse Bay Band resolution requested the council reject any plan that would relocate those memorials and emphasized the tribe’s longstanding presence and treaty history in the area. Members of the public asked the council for clarity and for a formal statement that the memorials will remain in place.

Council members accepted the written resolution and thanked speakers for presenting it; the mayor took the document for inclusion in the meeting record. No formal council action or vote on the memorials was taken at this meeting; councilmembers said the issue would be considered further as park design work continues.