MUSKEGON, MI - If hundreds of homes will rise in an 80-some acre wilderness area near Pere Marquette beach, then the best neighbors can do is make sure it's done right.

That's what several of them said at a Tuesday hearing on an access road to the proposed Damfino Development at the old Pigeon Hill property in Muskegon. Making sure it's done right includes ensuring the road is in the best, least intrusive location, they agreed.

"It's not a matter of if the sand docks property will be developed," Ian Davis said, using the locals' label for the property. "It's a matter of when.

"You have one chance to do this right," Davis said, directing his comments to representatives of the property owner. "Please do not screw this up."

The road as proposed would begin near where the parking lot had been for the former Bluffton Elementary School and travel through an existing dip - or saddle - in a ridge of critical dune to the Pigeon Hill property nestled between Muskegon Lake and Lake Michigan.

Because it would disturb about one-third of an acre of critical dune, the road project needs approval from the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality.

Many of the 14 neighbors who spoke at the hearing at Muskegon City Hall said they were opposed to the road. They didn't like its grade, or its width or the fact that it could potentially carry 2,000 vehicle trips a day.

"Two-thousand-plus vehicles a day is mind blowing - absolutely mind blowing," said resident Roberto Villate.

And many thought details of the residential development should be presented before the road is approved.

"Why don't we talk about what's going in there before we talk about destroying nature," said Michael Koch, who lives in the nearby Harbour Towne condominiums. "I feel like we're putting the cart before the horse."

Larry Page, president of the critical dunes advocacy group Pigeon Hill Alliance, called it "a road to nowhere."

"In our mind planning to plan is not a plan," Page said.

The DEQ staff will be determining if the road would significantly damage the diversity, quality and function of the critical dune and whether the owner has a "practical difficulty" without the proposed project, Nancy Cuncannan, district representative for the Water Resources Division of the MDEQ, told the approximately 50 people who attended the hearing.

She advised that the popularity of the project with neighbors will not be a factor in the decision.

Mike Hayes, a consultant for property owner Damfino Development, said other locations for the access road to the property had been considered and rejected primarily due to safety reasons or disruption to surrounding neighborhoods.

The project would involve using about 2,600 cubic yards of fill - taken from the property to be developed -- in the critical dune area. A sidewalk would run alongside the road, which would traverse an area already impacted by pedestrian use.

Hayes said there is no development plan yet for the homes that would be built. They would not be in critical dune area and will not require DEQ approval.

Some of the neighbors who spoke during the hearing questioned the width of the road as well as its grade. Those are issues being hammered out with the DEQ, Hayes said after the meeting. Criticized by some as too narrow, the road would take up less of the dune area the narrower it is, he said. The grade of the road and sidewalk also were criticized as too steep, but Hayes said the DEQ has questioned why it's not steeper to lessen the impact on the dune, he said.

The city of Muskegon has submitted a letter in support of the road project. The property is zoned for residential use, and city estimates are that 160 to 320 homes could be built on the 83 acres.

City Commissioner Byron Turnquist, a resident of Harbour Towne, said the development - of homes he said would be priced at $200,000 to $230,000 -- will be good for Muskegon. He supported the proposed road location as the "least intrusive."

"We live in a beautiful area," Turnquist said. "We need to attract people not on a part-time basis. We'd love to have people living here full time, bringing children and supporting the schools."

Roger Knop, who said his is probably the closest home to the proposed development, also said the proposed road would be the "least intrusive." He expressed confidence in the property owners. Damfino Development is owned by Sand Products Corp., which also owns the Mart Dock commercial port in downtown Muskegon.

"It's the only option. It's a good option," Knop said of the road. "We can't just stand in the way of something being done down there."

But Corrinne Strand, another resident of Harbour Towne, said she can't imagine homes taking over her view of Muskegon Lake.

"I just can't envision this being in my backyard," Strand said. "To think of cars going back and forth is just unreal to me."

The DEQ will continue to accept written comments about the proposed road until March 2. They can be emailed to Cuncannan at cuncannann@michigan.gov or mailed to her at the Water Resources Division, MDEQ, 350 Ottawa Ave. NW, Grand Rapids, 49503.

Details about the Damfino proposed road can be found at https://miwaters.deq.state.mi.us/miwaters. Comments also can be submitted through the website.