By James Hanlon
Leader Staff Writer
It looks like the bridge on Maloney Street will not be raised above its current height when it is replaced next year. The Oxford Township Board voted 7-0 to “not participate in any additional cost to raise the height of the Maloney Street Bridge” at its March 10 meeting.
Last year, some residents of the Stringy Lakes petitioned the board to help return the bridge to its original height before it was rebuilt in the 1970s. The bridge divides Clear Lake from Long Lake and prevents most boats from passing between the lakes because of its low clearance.
Last October, the township board appointed a committee to facilitate meetings with residents of the interconnected Squaw, Clear, Long, Tan and Cedar lakes regarding the bridge’s replacement.
The 24-foot-long bridge is crucial infrastructure since it is the only access for about a dozen residences on the peninsula at the dead end of Maloney St. The Road Commission for Oakland County has been looking into replacing the bridge since 2019. Due to its deterioration, the RCOC recently bumped up the timeline for replacement from 2023 to 2022.
The RCOC sent a letter dated March 1 to the township board, requesting direction on whether the township would contribute towards raising the Maloney Street Bridge instead of an in-kind replacement. The in-kind replacement is estimated at $2 million using federal funds. Raising the bridge would cost an estimated $2.7 million, with the township committing to make up the $700,000 difference, plus any additional unforeseen costs. This would raise the bridge about 2.5 feet above the in-kind replacement.
“We’re very disappointed that we worked so hard and our situation got shot down. They did not even consider the cheaper, better design that we offered.” resident Kathy Sanders said at the meeting.
According to Trustee Bill Dunn and Clerk Curtis Wright, there isn’t enough time for residents to organize a Special Assessment District (SAD) to pay for raising the bridge on their own, because of the county’s expedited timeline.
“An SAD will not be permissible, to my knowledge, to meet their deadline to get the design standards met and the drawings met, get contractors in place,” said Wright. “But if you are looking for an SAD in the future, then you’d bear the whole cost of raising the bridge totally born by the SAD, that’s my understanding.”

DNR Squaw Lake access
The committee (consisting of Clerk Wright, Trustee Dunn and Trustee Jonathan Nold) also looked into complaints of how the DNR’s public Squaw Lake access contributes to overcrowding boat traffic.
In a joint Zoom meeting with lake residents, DNR parks supervisor Adam Lepp presented a preseason to-do list of modifications to the site. Beginning a few weeks before Memorial Day, a site attendant will staff the boating access to monitor the traffic, ensure people parking in the right places, and determine if more staffing is needed. “A lot of this this year is going to be experimental to see what type of use is out there to see if the complaints that we’re getting are warranted,” Lepp said.
The parking will also get “a facelift” with regrading the lot, resetting the parking curbs so the parking area is well-defined, and installing “no parking” signs that will give law enforcement the ability to make citations.