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MARQUETTE -- As of Tuesday morning, all construction on the Marquette Citadel went on hold. The petition from Marquette residents near the site was accepted in Circuit Court, and a stay was been implemented on the site's development.

Opponents of the construction were originally denied such a hold in late November, but on Tuesday, they got their wish.

Mary Schneeberger lives across the street from the Citadel in Marquette. She enjoys her beautiful views of Lake Superior and her pedestrian commute to work at the Peter White Library, but she fears they may disappear, with a proposed addition to the neighboring Citadel.

There is minimal ground space in the area to develop so, Citadel LLC, the company who wants to develop it, decided there's only one place to build; up, six stories high to be exact. Schneeberger and other neighbors, including the Landmark Inn would lose their views of Lake Superior.

They also fear the new building wouldn't fit in with the city's historical design. But on Tuesday, Mary and her husband Phillip petitioned to put a hold on the project, facing the city zoning board's attorney in court. The board did not attend. They cited irreplaceable harm.

"If we do go forward and this motion is denied, and they do start construction, and they cut down the green space or whatever the case may be and we start to go forward, there's no building back," said the Schneeberger's attorney, Daniel Mead.

The Zoning Board's attorney disagreed. He said the petitioners had no legal standing.

"Everything's a potential or a belief or impression," said Zoning Board attorney, Ron Keefe. "There's really nothing here. Mr. Mead talked about some expert who reviewed affidavits and opinions, but there's no expert here."

Still, the judge put a hold on the project.

"It will prevent the Citadel from breaking ground and getting the project started before all the issues have been settled," said Schneeberger, "And so we know now that we can rest easy until a final decision has been made."

That hold may let the Schneebergers rest easy, but not the City Zoning Board. They plan to challenge opponents on February 7 with a motion to dismiss the case. The stay will remain until a final ruling is made by the court.

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The apartment project proposed for the Citadel area in Marquette has been temporarily delayed by court order Tuesday morning.

Marquette County Circuit Court Judge Thomas Solka has put a stay on construction of the addition to the Citadel property until a final decision can be made after a February 7 court date.

TV6 Reporter Noel McLaren was in court and will have more information on your TV6 Early News.