Land Management Office

Home | Properties Managed

Properties Managed

Camp Wa Wa Sum

Camp Wa Wa Sum is a Michigan State University conference center and a research facility used by the departments of Fisheries and Wildlife and Forestry. It is located on the AuSable River, 6 miles east of Grayling. The name Wa Wa Sum means "plain view" in the Chippewa language and was given to the camp in 1905 by Chief David Shoppenagon, an AuSable River guide and outdoorsman. The first building was constructed of red pine and tamarack logs in 1897-98 by Rubin Babbit, an AuSable woodsman who later became Michigan's first wildlife officer.

Forestry research focuses on the relative survival ability of several kinds of trees in the dry Grayling sandy soil. It has been found that jack pine does best under these conditions, and other seedlings that die are replaced by this native tree.

Fisheries research projects based at Wa Wa Sum focus on the population dynamics, habitat manipulations and management of inland fish resources.

The rustic surroundings and beautiful AuSable River provide a pleasant setting for the many meetings and retreats held at Wa Wa Sum.

Demmer Shooting Sports Education and Training Center

This 23,000-square-foot, multipurpose facility is under construction and will support NCAA shooting programs and team sports, the National Archery in the Schools Program (NASP), and hunter safety and 4-H youth programs. It will also house club shooting sports -- including small-bore, air rifle and archery -- and academic programs in shooting sports, law enforcement and related curricula. The Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and the Glassen Foundation are also major supporters of the center and its allied activities. All funding for the center has come from contributions to the university rather than state or federal appropriations.

The facility is named in honor of MSU alumni and longtime supporters John Demmer and his late wife, Marnie. Demmer, who is founder and chairperson of the Lansing-based Demmer Corporation, provided principal support for the building.

The center will be the second largest indoor shooting facility in the Midwest. It will integrate and expand academic and certification capacity for MSU programs requiring firearm safety and education certifications, including the conservation officer specialization and environmental crime certificate offered through the departments of Fisheries and Wildlife and Criminal Justice, and ROTC training and recruitment. It also will accommodate DNR conservation officer and MSU police officer certification training.

Hidden Lake Gardens

The gardens offer beautiful scenery including the lake and pond, natural woodlands, and open fields that are accessible via hiking trails and paved auto roads. A wide variety of plants are displayed in a tropical conservatory, dwarf conifer collection, hosta hillside and perennial garden. The Visitor Center includes educational displays, classrooms, auditorium and gift shop. Hidden Lake Gardens is managed by Michigan State University and open to the public daily.

Lukens Property

The Lukens property, located 3 miles north of Onekama in Manistee County was deeded to MSU in 1994. The property consists of 60 acres on the bluffs above Lake Michigan. There are nearly 8 acres of mixed conifer plantations, 2 acres of pure aspen and more than 40 acres of sugar maple, black cherry and beech trees.

The property is managed by the Department of Forestry in order to maintain the forest aesthetics and to develop its potential for sustained timber production. The property was mapped using global positioning systems (GPS/GIS) in 1996 and 1997. The forested areas were inventoried in 1997 in order to develop a long-term management plan. Dr. Richard Kobe, MSU forest ecologist, began investigating factors affecting survival of northern hardwood seedlings and saplings on the Lukens property in 1998. Dr. Kobe located and georeferenced 50 individual saplings in the southern 22 acres of the property.

MacCready Reserve

The 408-acre MacCready Reserve was donated to Michigan State University in September 2001 by Douglas, Lynn and Willis MacCready in memory of their parents Lynn and Thelma MacCready. The property is for education, research and outreach programs in wildlife and forestry management.

The property is located 6 miles south of Jackson in Liberty Township. Bounded on the east by Myers Road, on the west by Skiff Lake Road, on the south by Jefferson Road and on the north by private property, it offers 6.5 miles of trails of rolling topography, colorful wildflowers, towering pines and hardwoods, natural springs and wetlands. The trails provide an opportunity to observe various forest management techniques and diverse flora and fauna.

The property is used for demonstration purposes by the department of Forestry and Fisheries and Wildlife, as well as MSU Extension and University Outreach. Some of the current projects on the property include hardwood management, red pine management, and oak savannah, fen and prairie restoration.

Rogers Reserve

The Department of Plant Pathology uses this 116-acre Jackson County property, consisting of a farm and forest and wetland environments, for research and teaching, including a research program dedicated to nut tree culture. Designated farmland on the reserve is being placed into cultivation with nut trees selected for northern growing regions. Nut tree species, some selected for commercial purposes, others for their ecological roles, are being planted and maintained on the farm and research programs designed to improve these trees is being supported. Small fruits such as pawpaw are also included in the plantings.

Rose-Dell Property

The Rose-Dell Seed Orchard Research Facility, located 5 miles south of Albion in Calhoun County, is managed by the Department of Forestry. It consists of 140 acres of excellent agricultural land and a 20-acre woodlot dominated by black cherry, oak and hickory. More than 40 acres of genetic test plantations and seed orchards have been established at the property since 1982. Species in these plantings include white spruce, blue spruce, Scotch pine, grand fir and Douglas-fir. These test plantations provide quantitative data for the Department of Forestry's tree improvement program, while the seed orchards (upon maturity) will produce genetically improved seed for use by Michigan's pulp and Christmas tree industries.

The woodlot is managed for timber production to demonstrate sound hardwood management practices. To date, a timber stand improvement cut and a mature timber harvest using group cuts have been conducted to produce and promote the regeneration of black cherry and oak.

Tollgate Education Center

The Tollgate Conference Center is the ideal, quiet setting for small to medium-sized retreats, meetings, conferences or workshops. Located at Tollgate Farm on the northwest corner of 12 Mile and Meadowbrook roads in Novi, the conference center is surrounded by farmland and woods. Within an hour's drive from Metropolitan Airport, Detroit, Flint, Ann Arbor and Lansing, and minutes from Interstate 96, it is easily accessible from all directions.

Center facilities include:

  • The Americana Conference Room, with capacity to handle 30-60 people. It was named for the Americana Corporation, who donated the property to MSU.
  • The Activity Center, which comfortably seats about 25 people in a more casual atmosphere.
  • The Meyer Boardroom, the formal meeting room of the Southeast Regional MSU Extension Office, which has room for 10 or fewer around the large conference table next to a stone fireplace.
  • The Bassett Meeting Room, which is used for MSU Extension video conferencing.

University Farms

The philosophy of University Farms is to provide a centralized service facility for departments in the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources to save time and money on maintenance and general farm operations.

University Farms is responsible for all of the all unassigned land south of Mt. Hope Road and maintains this land for livestock feed production. University Farms also provides general services to the departments that operate field and animal units south of Mt. Hope Road such as:

  • roadside maintenance
  • manure removal, including hauling and spreading
  • land maintenance such as tiles, etc.
  • major snow removal on south campus; assists the Grounds Department with other snow removal
  • central outside storage area for equipment
  • centralized storage buildings
  • tree trimming
  • soil testing
  • serving as an equipment clearing house for exchange or sale of equipment between departments and/or field stations

For questions regarding this site, contact Michelle Starr.
Last Updated: August 4, 2008
© 2006 Michigan State University Board of Trustees