Dennis Stachewicz

A city’s waterfront can be many things. It can be a quiet place to reflect, or a place to gather with friends and family. It can provide a source of recreation for fishing, paddling and boating. It can be an engine of tourism, drawing people from near and far to bask in its splendor and perhaps dip a toe. And it can be center of industry, providing water for manufacturing and a port where raw materials can be delivered from water to land, and finished goods from land to water.

‘Marquette’s waterfront today features physical connections to its historic downtown and reclaimed public space for the community, alongside an active port.’

Over the past two centuries, the City of Marquette’s waterfront in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula has been all of these things for the community it serves. Marquette Harbor is a federally authorized deep-draft commercial, cargo and recreational harbor with more than 4,500 feet of maintained breakwater structure and a half-mile long, 27-foot deep navigation channel. It is a true working waterfront, where activities integrate people, history and business into an authentic place unlike any other.

But that integration did not happen on its own; the Marquette waterfront of today is the result of decades of careful planning on the part of the City of Marquette.

“Over the course of time, the city, because it was an industrial city, had turned its back on Lake Superior,” says Dennis Stachewicz, Director of Planning and Community Development for the City of Marquette. “When you were at the waterfront, you were looking at the backs of buildings. One of the most important aspects of our community planning was recognizing that. And that allowed us to refocus our efforts towards reclaiming people space on the waterfront.”

But part of the process of doing that, Stachewicz says, was respecting the history and significance of being an historic city with a real working waterfront, and capitalizing on that uniqueness to drive new people-oriented developments without losing sight of what makes a working waterfront special in the first place.

“It’s very easy for people to forget that industry is part of a working waterfront, and it’s very easy for people to want to make it all a park,” Stachewicz says. Engaging people often, and early, is critical to creating community that people can feel invested in while making sure all voices are heard.

“There’s a very fine line that makes you be able to permit people-oriented activities on a working waterfront, without over-managing the expectations of your community,” he says. “It’s very important to ensure that the entire community is informed and educated, and try to get them to participate as much as possible. That was one of the things we did with our waterfront planning process.”

Marquette’s waterfront today features physical connections to its historic downtown and reclaimed public space for the community, alongside an active port.

“We’ve also mixed that with significant investment in terms of residential development,” Stachewicz says. “We’ve seen a lot of new bedrooms close to the downtown. From a planning perspective, the more bedrooms that you put adjacent to the downtown, the more that the downtown becomes viable.”

The Lower Harbor waterfront district has also been transformed through strategic multi-use, public-private developments. Parcels were purchased by the city and re-purposed for redevelopment. These public-private developments have made the community increasingly attractive, with new condominiums, which initially sold for $300,000, now worth $500,000. The city estimates that public purchase and bonding to pay for these efforts has leveraged tens of millions of private dollars for brownfield reclamation and private redevelopment.

And for the first time in decades, the 2010 census showed an increase in population, at a time when the Upper Peninsula of Michigan continues to lose population. Those transplants are not all retirees and college students, but include millennials who may be working remotely at jobs that would never have afforded them the opportunity to live in a pristine northern town before the Internet, or who find employment in the tourism sector or with anchor institutions like Northern Michigan University and Marquette General Health.

“Not only are we seeing an increase in people, we’re seeing an increase in the age cohort of 24-35,” Stachewicz says. “It’s not just retirement people moving up here. It’s young people that are looking for jobs. They move to a place they want to live, and then they find work later.” For more info, go to tinyurl.com/oj3qqr9.

Tim Ervin

Manistee County is known as the fishing capital of the Midwest, which is hardly a surprise given that a striking 52 percent of the area’s 1,281 square miles is made up of water. In 2008 the Manistee Community Foundation launched Explore the Shores (ETS), an initiative designed to leverage the area’s abundant water assets to attract more people to the county and improve access for its residents. ETS was first formed after the Easter Seals Michigan identified Manistee as one of two rural areas in the nation (the other was in Georgia) for a project funded by the USDA Office of Rural Development. The goal was to develop an action plan considering the needs and inclusion of people with disabilities countywide. The timing was perfect as Manistee County had just completed its first visioning effort and improving access to the area’s rivers, streams, inland lakes, Great Lakes shoreline and wetlands was an integral part of the master plan.

‘In Michigan there has never been a concerted effort on this scale to leverage our water resources …’

The goal of ETS is to bring 1 million visitors to Manistee County by the year 2020. Its mission is to develop 50 sites with universal access and design, which means folks of all ages, means, and abilities can access and use the county’s water resources in multiple ways.

Tim Ervin, a trustee of the Manistee Community Foundation and a consultant for the Alliance for Economic Success, leads fundraising for the initiative. “We started with the goal of making water a real driver of Manistee County’s economy, and also a point of differentiation for us,” he says. “In Michigan there has never been a concerted effort on this scale to leverage our water resources through universal design.”

The initiative has leveraged more than $4 million in funding from 22 sources, including governments, corporate and private foundations, and individual philanthropy. More than 70 partners are involved including federal, state and local agencies, the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians, Fishing organizations, schools and tourism and business groups along with the Grand Traverse Regional Land Conservancy.

ETS offers a public nomination process to encourage communities to identify their own sites to be a part of the program. Anyone can nominate an ETS site and a team will then assess the nomination based on a number of factors including diversity of use, the site’s existing facilities, development needs, and ease of access. This last factor is a cornerstone of the program because by 2020, it is projected that 52 percent of Manistee’s population will be 65 or older, with 37 percent considered disabled.

“Water is the one thing I enjoy more than anything else,” says Ervin, who is an experienced fisherman and visited Manistee for many years before he decided to retire there in 2007. “Seeing people who have never experienced the value of our waters or gone fishing in the Great Lakes have the opportunity to do so is the best part of my work.”

Ervin has a background in fundraising and has observed how the initiative has enabled a greater interest in community-based philanthropy. “It’s changed people’s understanding of philanthropy by providing a focus for charitable giving in people’s own backyards,” he says. For example, the township of Arcadia, with a population of just over 600 people, upgraded their fishing pier and developed the county’s first universally accessible kayak and canoe launch on Arcadia Lake, which has proven to be a huge draw for individuals from communities throughout Northern Michigan.

Other important sites that have been developed as part of ETS is Bear Creek at Spirit of the Woods, a prime tributary for natural reproduction of salmon and trout and the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) viewing station for observing migrating fish on the Little Manistee River. Manistee County is the birthplace of Pacific salmon in the Great Lakes basin and every fall, thousands of salmon return to the area to spawn. ETS has developed a universally accessible angler’s trail on Bear Creek for fishermen to fish down the river. They have received many grateful letters from disabled military veterans saying they never thought they’d have the opportunity to enjoy their passion again.

The program has had overwhelming success and was recognized by the U.S. Forest Service as one of the five outstanding collaborative efforts in the U.S. The DNR has also spent time studying the program in terms of its transferability, and other counties are in the process of implementing similar programs with the help of ETS supporters.

“This could be a huge rainmaker for the entire state,” Ervin says. “If you think about it, 20 percent of all the freshwater in the world is in Michigan. The program has had a demonstrable economic impact and a demonstrable quality of life impact. Everybody wins.” For more info, go to exploretheshores.org.

Rick Chapla

Not unlike other rust belt cities, abandoned buildings fettered the riverfront of the Grand River, Michigan’s longest river. Spanning from Jackson to Grand Haven, it bends and falls 18 feet in Grand Rapids, giving the city its namesake. Although few would know its rapids; in fact, European settlers built dams to control the flow and stability of the Grand River to aid the furniture industry. Grand Rapids, or “Furniture City,” was a leader in furniture production, boasting more than 50 furniture companies by 1900. The river also received manufacturing waste, flushed in its waters for decades, leaving a legacy of pollution in its wake beyond the decline of furniture manufacturing. Today the Grand River defines the downtown and the Grand Rapidian quality of life – planners might freely use walkability or connectivity to describe its place in the public landscape.

‘I get the spiritualness the Native Americans had to this place. Restoring the rapids will be century-forming impacts for the next hundred years.’

Here enters Rick Chapla, a self-proclaimed “citizen” of western Michigan, who has seen the transformation of the area first hand. “The work that I did and do is very personal, and get flashbacks of places I have been when I was a kid.” As the Vice President of Business Development at The Right Place, a regional non-profit economic development organization, Chapla’s no stranger to transformation. A side note: his previous work experience includes 16 years with the City of Muskegon, where he served in a variety of positions including Director of Planning and Economic Development. A planner and preservationist, Chapla says he would walk “the banks of the Grand River and wonder why, literally, landfills and dumps were located along the Grand River, tires set on fire and burning and pushed into the River, landfill debris.” The imagery left a deep impression on him.

In 1996, the City of Grand Rapids set out to redefine the Grand River through a process called Vision and Voices. The initiative included an investment of $200,000 to bring in the stakeholders into a multi-year process. What resulted: the capitulation of a new direction for the usage of the Grand River from a industrial utility to a pedestrian asset, not only owned, but defined by residents and business owners in the area. The process, just as important as its outcome, devoted and centralized “citizen engagement.” Chapla recalls the process “an environmental awakening.” This transformational moment of post-Earth Day politic in the 1990s brought the community to ask critical questions. Chapla equates the moment to another sort of awakening, where “Vision and Voices was the Earth Day recognition of the Grand Rapids value.”

Value is nothing to scoff at, studies show a 3:1 to 6:1 return on investment, in the form of increased property values and local economic development from restoring water quality and shoreline habitat. Another more recent study commissioned by the to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service found that every $1 invested in local restoration projects leveraged $6.86 dollars from local and private partners, which collectively created $12.78 dollars in economic returns.

Vision and Voices process of 1996 played a role in ushering private investment today – an ambitious project to restore the whitewater rapids known before the construction of dams for the furniture industry. Grand Rapids Whitewater, a non-profit, commissioned a report estimating an expanded recreational use of the river and riverfront will stimulate net new economic impact of $15.9 million to $19.1 million per year. Tourism generated from kayaking, fishing, rafting and other forms of water and riverfront recreation would comprise new visitor spending and new earnings for the city.

Chapla, who had also served on the Board of the Michigan Historic Preservation Network, equates the initiative not only to ecological restoration or economic impact, but historical preservation. “If we go back to the time, when we look at the River as a resource like Native Americans who populated the shore, removal of the dams is the equivalent to a historical preservation initiative, rather than a neighborhood of buildings and structures. There is a recognition of a higher and better value, restored to its natural flows.”

Chapla, encouraged that public-private partnerships make for success, suggests that public dollars invested in the mid-’90s ushered a pathway for a grander vision of restoring the rapids of the Grand River. Private dollars invested today are brought through all the checks and balances of federal regulation and permitting, to comply with the National Environmental Protection Act. Chapla maintains, “these processes are not controversial, because there is a true commitment to civic engagement from the beginning – people get it.” He cites Grand Valley State University, which took on a foundry property, some of the most “nasty, despoiled property” and transformed it along with the Grand River and its edge. “The way GVSU has built their downtown campus, they could have done it cheaper, and very differently, but they’re driven by a value and connectedness to that river, and I get it.” Chapla adds, “I get the spiritualness the Native Americans had to this place. Restoring the rapids will be century-forming impacts for the next hundred years. People get it.” For more info, go to rightplace.org.

Since Michigan’s earliest days, the state’s sparkling blue streams, rivers and lakes have served as a gathering point, attracting settlement and industry along their riverbanks and shorelines.

In fact, the name Detroit is French for “the strait,” referring to the massive waterway connecting Lakes Huron and Erie, where early French settlers, led by sieur de Cadillac, founded Fort Pontchartrain du Détroit in 1701. Michigan’s oldest inland towns, hungry for power to fuel their mills, settled on the banks of rivers − Rochester was settled along the Clinton River in 1817, Milford was settled along the Huron River in 1834, and Northville was settled along the Rouge River in 1825.

‘Conservatively, we can say Lake St. Clair brings in at least $1 billion to the local economy annually. We believe freshwater is our key to our sustainability.’

By the twentieth century, Michigan’s waterways were symbols of industry. Unfortunately, they suffered the neglect and pollution that was a byproduct of that industry.

As industry declined and urban development progressed, communities often turned their backs on their waterways, relegating riverbanks and shorelines to back-alley status. New development was oriented away from water, and public access to lakes and streams cut off. Relics of heavy industry came to dominate the Detroit River’s shoreline, and new suburbs were built with little attention to the often-polluted waterways that flowed through them.

But now, as efforts to clean up those waterways have begun to pay off, communities are rediscovering their waterfronts and recognizing them for the potential they have to create authentic connections between people and their natural and cultural histories. These communities are looking to their waterways to help to build a sense of place.

Here are some of their stories:

A Refuge for Wildlife − and Humans: The Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge

Gazing at cobalt blue waters from the shore of the Detroit River at Humbug Marsh, one might forget they are in a major metropolitan area, just 20 miles south of Detroit and 50 miles north of Toledo.

“This refuge is vital to the region,” says Anita Twardesky, Downriver Linked Greenways Initiative co-chair and community outreach coordinator for Riverside Kayak Connection. “It not only protects our natural resources, but improves public access for local residents and visitors alike.”

Humbug Marsh was the last mile of undeveloped shoreline along the Detroit River in 2004 when it became the first piece of the Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge. The Refuge, created through a unique, binational public-private partnership in 2001, now contains 6,000 acres of unique habitat, including islands, coastal wetlands, marshes, shoals, and 48 miles of pristine shoreline. For more info, go to fws.gov/refuge/detroit_river.

Nina Twardesky

Paddling Through Industry and Nature: The Detroit Heritage River Water Trail

To sit in a kayak in the Detroit River is to know the power of moving water. Flowing deep and blue past Belle Isle, the river unites two nations as it moves past downtown Detroit and downtown Windsor, slides beneath the Ambassador Bridge and past the hulking metal structures of the Ford Rouge Factory, and widens alongside natural shorelines before draining into Lake Erie.

As early as a decade ago, only the most intrepid souls dared to make this trek by paddle. Today, school children board canoes to paddle the Detroit Heritage Water Trail, which connects 21 downriver communities along a paddler’s paradise. Catalyzed by Riverside Connection LLC and Michigan Sea Grant, the trail attracts enthusiasts from near and far to embark on an adventure that is at once beautiful and breathtaking.

“Paddling on the Detroit River is something people of all ages and abilities can enjoy,” Twardesky says. “It’s a way to connect to people to their heritage and natural resources. And, as paddlers seek out restaurants, lodging and goods, it brings economic development opportunities to downriver communities.” For more info, go to downrivergreenways.org.

Michelle Hodges

Belle Isle: Detroit’s Diamond in the Rough

An oasis of green with blue vistas at every turn, Belle Isle is clearly the City of Detroit’s greatest natural asset. Not long ago, the historic park, designed by Frederick Law Olmsted, suffered from the neglect of a bankrupt city that could no longer afford to maintain it. Today, a strong Belle Isle Conservancy and an agreement with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources to manage the park is polishing the jewel of the Detroit River.

“Belle Isle is a place for the community to gather and celebrate and mark life’s milestones,” says Michelle Hodges, President of the Belle Isle Conservancy. “Any Detroiter who has lived here for any period of time will almost certainly have a Belle Isle story to tell, and will likely break into a smile as they tell it.”

The Conservancy is actively developing programs to help engage the community with the park, such as programming at the once-defunct Belle Isle Aquarium, while the MDNR is rebuilding infrastructure, planting trees and restoring habitat. For more info, go to belleisleconservancy.org.

From Bridge to Bridge: Reconnecting the Detroit Riverfront

While Detroit has always been a riverfront city, until recently it was very difficult to actually access that shoreline. That is no longer the case. Today, visitors can rent a made-in-Detroit bicycle at the Wheelhouse Detroit and cycle on the Detroit RiverWalk past a string of historic and cultural landmarks on one side, with the shining Detroit River on the other. This was made possible by the Detroit RiverFront Conservancy, Inc., a nonprofit with a mission to develop access on the Detroit International Riverfront. Much of that vision is now a reality.

“We are working to see that Detroit has an identity as a Great Lakes city,” Hodges says.

When completed, the riverfront will connect 5 and a half miles of property, from the Ambassador Bridge to Gabriel Richard Park, just east of the Belle Isle Bridge, with a continuous RiverWalk dotted with plazas, pavilions and green spaces. For more info, go to detroitriverfront.org.

Elizabeth Riggs

A Huron River Renaissance: RiverUP!

The cool, clear waters of the Huron River connect some of southeast Michigan’s most vibrant communities: Milford, Dexter, Ann Arbor, Ypsilanti, and Flat Rock. But connecting those communities to their riverfront, and to each other, hasn’t always been obvious. The Huron River Watershed Council’s RiverUp! effort is changing that.

“We call RiverUp! a ‘renaissance’ for the river,’” says Elizabeth Riggs, Deputy Director at HRWC. “We are striving to build a sense of place not only by cleaning up the river, but by fostering river recreation and creating a destination with vibrant towns connected by the Huron River Water Trail.”

The Council’s efforts have resulted in improved safety and access to paddling along the river, including launch, dam and portage improvements, and improved information resources for paddlers looking to plan trips. The Council also works closely with the five trail towns along the river (Milford, Dexter, Ann Arbor, Ypsilanti, and Flint) to develop assets and amenities for paddlers that contribute to local economic development. For more info, go to www.riveruphuron.org.

Anne Vaara

Connecting People With Their River: WaterTowns

The Clinton River is Michigan’s most populated waterway – more than 1.4 million people live in the watershed. But access to and enjoyment of the river has historically been limited, as rapid suburban development treated the river more as an afterthought than as an amenity.

“The Clinton River Watershed Council’s WaterTowns program is working to change,” says Anne Vaara, Executive Director of the Council. “We are helping local communities identify their underutilized waterfront assets and find ways to transform those areas into places where people can connect with their waterways.”

From quaint downtown Clarkston to Rochester to the cities of Utica and Mount Clements, the Council is working to launch programs like “Crafts on the Clinton,” a craft beer event featuring beer brewed in the watershed and build infrastructure to allow people to launch kayaks, cast a fishing line, or just find a quiet place to reflect and enjoy the sound of moving water. For more info, go to crwc.org.

Gerard Santoro

Macomb County: From Blue Collar to Blue Economy

Even as Macomb County’s manufacturing economy has declined, the aquamarine waters of Lake St. Clair continue to rival places like Florida, drawing anglers from all over the world for its premier bass fishing.

“In terms of boats per square mile, Lake St. Clair is one of the busiest places in the nation,” says Gerry Santoro, Program Manager of Land and Water Resources at Macomb County’s Planning and Economic Development Department. Under the direction of county executive Mark Hackel, Macomb’s Blue Economy Initiative is working to leverage those blue assets as a platform for new economic development.

“We are realizing our recreational boating and fishing industries,” Santoro says. “Conservatively, we can say Lake St. Clair brings in at least $1 billion to the local economy annually. We believe freshwater is our key to our sustainability.” For more info, go to makemacombyourhome.com.

Revitalizing the Rouge River

Once upon a time, the Rouge River was so polluted it caught on fire. Today, it is a model for urban waterway restoration. Since 1992, Rouge communities have received more than $300 million in federal funds to clean up combined sewers, reduce runoff and restore habitat in Michigan’s most urbanized watershed. Today, efforts by Friends of the Rouge, the Southeast Michigan Land Conservancy, and multiple community partners are looking to take the next step beyond cleanup by turning the river into a community asset and destination.

“We want to bring people closer to the river,” says Sally Petrella, Volunteer Program Manager at Friends of the Rouge. “We are changing perceptions of the Rouge. For so long, people considered it a sewer, something they should stay away from. We are helping people to realize the river is a place to enjoy.”

Projects to revitalize the Rouge include the Rouge Water Trail Committee and the Fort/Rouge Gateway Partnership that are working together to develop a water trail and parkland along the lower Rouge. For more info, go to therouge.org.

Randy Maeirs

Blue Water, Blue Economy

Visit the St. Clair River near Port Huron, where the great volume of Lake Huron concentrates into a single channel, and you will at once know why the area is referred to as a Blue Water paradise. Here, the river reflects every color of blue on the spectrum, depending on the quality of light — from an almost iridescent blue cobalt on a sunny day to a subdued, steely azure when the sky is filled with clouds.

Until now, that beauty was juxtaposed with an industrial landscape and little public access. That changed in 2011 with a donation of nearly a mile of shoreline to the Community Foundation of St. Clair County. The Foundation leveraged private, public and other philanthropic funds to invest more than $6 million in developing the Blue Water River Walk, a beautiful riverfront promenade complete with a ferry dock, habitat and shoreline restoration, outdoor classroom, pedestrian trail and public art.

“It’s been an amazing rallying point for the community, to turn our attention back to the waterfront, says Randy Maiers, President of the Foundation. “This stretch of shoreline was an industrial wasteland for last 70 years, and is now it is positioned for future economic development.” For more info, go to stclairfoundation.org/riverwalk.

Seemingly lost to history, hundreds of ships lay at the bottom of Thunder Bay near Alpena, Mich., victims of a lake that too often became a thrashing sea. But those destructive waters have also worked to preserve their prey. Today, shipwrecks spanning from the 1840s to the 1960s are protected as part of the Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary. “It’s really like a national park spanning 450 square miles in Lake Huron, where we are working to preserve and protect a spectacular collection of shipwrecks,” says Jeff Gray, the superintendent of the Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary.

‘The Thunder Bay Sanctuary is one of 14 national marine sanctuaries and the only one in the Great Lakes. “It has a huge impact on Alpena …’

The Thunder Bay Sanctuary is one of 14 national marine sanctuaries and the only one in the Great Lakes. “It has a huge impact on Alpena,” says Alpena’s Mayor Carol Shafto. “It’s a unique draw. There is not another sanctuary like it anywhere. It’s the only national fresh water sanctuary and it’s the only one dedicated to preserving a collection of shipwrecks. It draws visitors from the state, the nation, and even internationally.” First established in 2000, the sanctuary and its visitor facility, the Great Lakes Maritime Heritage Center, attract approximately 70,000 visitors a year.

Deb Pardike, executive director of the Alpena Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, says the sanctuary is at the center of its efforts to promote Alpena as a maritime heritage destination. “We’re able to promote the sanctuary and at the same time, promote our lighthouses and our community,” Pardike says.

Shipping Heritage

Thunder Bay boasts a 200-year-old shipping industry, which was often tragic in the days before modern sonar navigation. Ships collided in foggy conditions or were sunk by nasty weather. “Several circumstances came together to cause so many ships to sink,” Gray explains. “In the 19th century, ship trade on Lake Huron fueled the whole nation, so there was a lot of traffic, there are also reefs and islands to navigate and two different weather patterns come together in the area.”

The area was so prolific in its ability to claim the ships traversing its waters that it became known as “Shipwreck Alley.” More than 200 ships are thought to rest at the bottom of the bay, but only a little more than half of those have been located. “We have a unique range of shipwrecks … some are in shallow water and some are very deep,” Gray says. “There are ships that are very early and there are more modern craft, well-preserved at the bottom of the lake.”

Because of Lake Huron’s cold, fresh water, the shipwrecks found on its floor have escaped the corrosive elements that have eaten away at ships resting in warm and salty waters. Lake Huron’s waters also have great visibility, making shipwrecks in shallow depths visible to those in kayaks on the lake’s surface.

While avid divers knew of the historical treasures at the bottom of Thunder Bay, it was less known with the general public. “Getting the area established as a National Marine Sanctuary has really raised awareness across the country and even the world,” Gray says. “We’ve had visitors from all over including Europe and Asia.”

Attractions for Everyone

The sanctuary has also been a draw for researchers, including Robert Ballard who is famous for discovering the wreckage of the R.M.S. Titanic, and Jean-Michel Cousteau, son of Jacques Cousteau. Researchers have come to look for wrecks, to perform sonar and mapping the shipwrecks and to study the lake’s fisheries and the invasive species affecting Lake Huron. While not everyone can scuba dive to the bottom of the lake to get a first-hand look at the ships, the Great Lakes Maritime Heritage Center offers landlubbers a taste of life on the water. “Families are pretty surprised when they come to visit because there really is something for everyone,” Gray says.

Among the favorites is an exhibit featuring a life-size section of a schooner where people can relive what it would have been like to be tossed on Lake Huron’s stormy waves. “It gives people a chance to experience a particular culture,” Pardike says. “They can hop on board the schooner and see what is was like to be aboard a ship. A visitor can grab the wheel and pretend to captain the ship through a violent Lake Huron Storm.” The experience is quite convincing; Gray says they’ve even had a few people become seasick.

“We also have what we call ‘dive tubes’ that the kids can crawl through, they are clear and they simulate what it is like to dive over a shipwreck,” he says. “I say kids, but we had a 93-year old crawl through them. They are fun for everyone.”

In addition, Alpena Shipwreck Tours offers various glass-bottom boat tours. The tours give an even wider audience a chance to experience the historical treasures found on the lake floor. “Not everyone is a diver—I’m not a diver,” Shafto says. “This gives visitors one more way to experience the shallow wrecks.”

Economic Draw

The Great Lakes have long been one of Michigan’s greatest resources, but the ships the lakes claimed are growing in their importance too. “The sanctuary has definitely spurred economic growth,” Pardike says. “We wouldn’t have our shipwreck tour if it weren’t for the existence of the Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary. It’s a big attraction unto itself, and it will only draw more visitors and entrepreneurs.”

While much of the sanctuary’s job is about the past—highlighting and preserving it, Gray sees it playing an important role in Alpena’s future, too. “Shipping is still so critical to a state,” he says. “It still is playing an important role culturally and commercially and I hope that the sanctuary brings that to people’s attention.

“The Edmund Fitzgerald sinking in 1975 [in Lake Superior] is a reminder that men and women leave dock everyday and just because ships sinking are infrequent today, doesn’t lessen the inherent danger there.”

The sanctuary also conducts a variety of research in an effort to better understand and protect the recreational, historical and archeological value of the region’s maritime heritage resources. The sanctuary also promotes and assists research aimed at better understanding the environmental and natural aspects of Lake Huron, including unusual cyanobacterial mats associated with sinkholes spewing ancient groundwater. These organisms are thought to be related to some of the first life on this planet, and may be indicative of life on other planets. As a consequence, scientists at the University of Michigan and Grant Valley State University are researching their biology with funding from the National Science Foundation and NASA. To see how cool these underwater mats appear, watch this YouTube video: youtube.com/watch?v=RmsfykqGkLU

There are challenges among the many Alpena Blue Economy opportunities. For one, the lack of city ownership of a deep-water port is a barrier to attracting new businesses. The city is invested in the area’s economic development and there is potential future use of the Lafarge Dock and the currently underutilized West Dock. There’s the potential for increased shipping to the area, among which passenger ships are a possibility. There’s also potential for products such as wood pellet production. For more info, go to thunderbay.noaa.gov.

Tawas City sits on the shoreline of Lake Huron and is symbolic of a small town steeped in Michigan’s rich history. It is surrounded by many natural resources, including Tawas Bay, Tawas River, and Huron National Forest. Tawas City is proud of its many beautiful parks, beaches, and a newly completed fishing pier at Gateway Park — all in all, the city contains nearly 1,500 linear feet of uninterrupted shoreline. There is a variety of motels, unique resort cabins, and nearby camping. In the summer season, the population nearly doubles.

‘The project was a total facelift of the city, revitalizing the blighted and contaminated downtown area into something the citizens of Tawas City can be proud of.’

Not everything in the city was idyllic, however. An area of the old downtown district had four vacant buildings that were deteriorated and considered blighted. There was an abandoned gas station with contaminated soil from leaking underground storage tanks, as well as contamination from a former dry cleaner. Since there was no stormwater collection system, the Tawas River, running behind all of these buildings, was receiving runoff whenever it rained.

In January 2007, city officials invited residents to participate in a visioning session to discuss the future plans of Tawas City. The number one goal was to redevelop the downtown district on U.S. 23 — the main commercial corridor of the community. First things first — City Councilman Dave Dickman led the council in forming a Brownfield Redevelopment Authority, and City Manager Mark Moers applied for (and received) a $60,000 Waterfront Redevelopment Grant. The city purchased the old gas station from the state of Michigan in a tax foreclosure sale and also purchased the dry cleaner and an abandoned house. The grant provided the funds for the demolition of the buildings and the cleanup of the property. A new paved parking facility was put in, along with decorative lighting. Councilman Dickman says that The Department of Environmental Quality “led the way for us to form the Brownfield Redevelopment Authority and to apply for a grant that fit our needs.”

At the riverbank, a 100-foot walkway with a pedestrian walkout into the river was installed. The walkway also serves as a kayak/canoe launch. To protect the environment, natural river rock was placed to stabilize the shore and a stormwater collection system was installed. This eliminates the possibility of contaminated surface water runoff into the river. A Veteran’s Memorial Park area was established, and the next stage of the development will include a recognition plaza for all veterans of Iosco County.

The city is very proud of the fact it tapped talent from its own backyard to transform the waterfront. A local developer, Town Square LLC, purchased the block across the street and demolished the vacant buildings. A mixed-use development was constructed, consisting of four commercial units on the first floor and eight residential units on the second and third floor. Again using a local contractor — Schaaf and Associates Construction — the city contributed an additional $1.5 million to purchase a third of an acre in the block to construct a new city hall. Believe it or not, the city council had been meeting in the city’s library, and city hall was conducting business in a former railroad office building. The new facility features traditional architectural design, incorporating a clock tower and observation room that overlooks Tawas Bay. A 100-foot river-walk trail was built on the bank of the Tawas River behind city hall, which connects to a new 400-foot trail behind the Towne Square development.

The city’s fire station, which sits behind the new city hall, was a very small facility that left only inches between the parked fire trucks and was considered a safety hazard. City Manager Moers knew that there was material for a steel manufactured building that had been purchased years before and never used. The city again had local contractor Schaaf and Associates redesign the building materials and construct a new building connecting it to the existing firehouse, nearly doubling its size. Steve Masich, Tawas City Fire Chief, says, “Now the fire equipment and trucks have space to maneuver and there is room for future growth.” There was even room to bring back an old 1939 International fire truck that had been part of Tawas City’s fire department years ago.

The city has also been able to make major improvements to Gateway Park with a new handicap accessible fishing pier and boat launch. In addition, the park has new sidewalks, lighting, benches, two viewing scopes, and an extended parking area. This was made possible through a $134,000 grant from the Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund and $110,000 from the city. Mayor Duane Walters says, “It has been a challenge but a privilege to keep the city moving in a positive direction.”

Demolition of blighted structures, a stormwater collection system, and Tawas River access has been a vast aesthetic and environmental improvement for the city. Construction of a new city hall, Veterans Memorial Park, and the mixed-use development in the downtown area of Tawas City is a focal point for future businesses and has brought a vibrant new beginning to the once dilapidated downtown area.

City Manager Moers notes that “the project was a total facelift of the city, revitalizing the blighted and contaminated downtown area into something the citizens of Tawas City can be proud of. The transformation of the waterfront area for recreational use will have long-term benefits for Tawas City. This merging of public and private investments in our city is a rare opportunity that we have taken full advantage of. The city was proud that it was able to use local companies to work on these redevelopment projects. We felt it was important to our local economy to support local businesses.” For more info, go to tawascity.org.

While the village of Chesaning’s population has remained near 2,500 for decades, the Shiawassee River upstream of the village is teeming with new inhabitants. Following the removal of a local dam in 2009, residents have welcomed the steady return of walleye and other fish species to their natural habitat along the river. Man-made rapids, created after the dam removal to enable fish passage into 37 miles of historic habitat for spawning, have become a focal point for the community, bringing eco-tourism, recreational, and environmental benefits.

‘We are strengthening the connection between our downtown and the large amount of river frontage we have.’

Built in 1863 to power the village’s grist mill, the Chesaning Dam had deteriorated almost to the point of failure. Faced with increasing urgency to resolve the issue, the village hired Wade Trim, a surveying and engineering firm, to evaluate its options and investigate available funding alternatives. The evaluation looked at the costs and benefits of dam rehabilitation, as well as the feasibility of dam removal in conjunction with restoration of the river. When the village learned that funding might be available for removing the dam and improving the Shiawassee River in the process by restoring the natural river ecosystem, the community recognized the benefit of this alternative.

Community Enthusiasm

Positioning itself to pursue the funding support needed to bring this project to life, the village demonstrated their community’s enthusiasm and willingness to invest in this river restoration by proactively funding the planning and design of the project. The village also created conceptual graphics and a presentation that effectively illustrated the end result to garner support. Once word got out that the community was looking to remove the dam and restore the Shiawassee River to allow fish passage, several regulatory agencies and private organizations endorsed this plan and demonstrated their financial commitment to achieving this shared goal. The village’s considerable efforts garnered support from many entities including a $900,000 grant from the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality’s Clean Michigan Initiative, a $99,400 stimulus grant through the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, a $50,000 grant from the Saginaw Bay Watershed Initiative Network, a $10,000 grant from Partners for Fish and Wildlife through the Shiawassee National Wildlife Refuge, and a $5,000 grant from the Saginaw Community Foundation. Local pledges from residents, including rock and boulder donations, totaled $346,000.

Designed by Ellen River Partners in collaboration with the village and Wade Trim, the 10-year effort to remove the failing dam resulted in a 300-foot-long, man-made rock ramp with boulder arch weirs, just north of the M-57 bridge, that reestablished the river’s unencumbered connection with the Saginaw River and Lake Huron. Not only did this design remove the current hazards caused by the dam, it also helped to stabilize the river channel and restore a nearly 150-year-old natural habitat. Furthermore, the project met the needs and desires of the community and environmental and wildlife protection agencies by restoring fish passage, creating a natural river habitat, and eliminating the long-term liabilities associated with a failing dam.

Return of Walleye

A recent Michigan Department of Natural Resources (MDNR) survey captured 87 walleye upstream of the Chesaning rock ramp in 45 minutes of sampling, their most positive result to date. “We have proof that there is a high density of walleye downstream of Chesaning, probably in the 10,000 to 30,000 range in the spring,” says Joe Leonardi, an MDNR Fisheries biologist. “Our upstream results indicate walleye are passing the rock ramp into new habitat for spawning that was not available when the dam was present.”

“Fishing in the area has increased tremendously,” says Village President Joseph Sedlar. “We are even thinking about starting a walleye fishing contest in town.”

While buzz about the walleye continues to travel through the region, the village is looking at additional opportunities to leverage their river investment to increase quality of life for residents and attract visitors. “We are strengthening the connection between our downtown and the large amount of river frontage we have,” Sedlar continues. “A new, four-day River Days Festival will be held this summer and we will be starting a downtown farmers market with daily events.”

Enjoying the Riverside

Making the riverfront more accessible to local users is key. The village is adding a new pedestrian bridge over the river this year to provide an alternate route to M-57 and to tie both sides of the river together. The bridge will feature a rapids overlook area with ADA accessibility. Since the dam was removed, a sandy beach has been naturally deposited by the river on its east side, making the river more approachable for people who want to wade in or fish. Canoeing and kayaking through the rapids has also become popular. The Riverfront Grille, a local restaurant and event center that opened along the river when the dam was removed, is making the most of their riverside location by enhancing outdoor dining space and holding outdoor activities such as volleyball tournaments.

Future Trail System Expansion

Improving regional connections to the river is also a focus. Saginaw County’s Recreation Plan identifies expansion of their rail trail system to Chesaning as a major objective to improve non-motorized connectivity in the region and capitalize on the riverfront and accessible, “hometown” feel of the community. The village has created a nature trail and planted trees along the riverbank to enhance usability and the future connection to the rail trail. River quality improvements have also been made upstream of the rapids, including tree revetments and natural plantings to help stabilize the riverbank.

The M-57 bridge over the Shiawassee River, slated for reconstruction by the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) in 2016, offers clear views of the rock ramp and village parks for the 9,600 vehicles that pass through each day. The village is looking forward to working with MDOT to ensure this critical site for advertising its eight-tiered water rapids is a pedestrian-friendly and aesthetically pleasing gateway to the community. The village’s continued investment in its river’s health and use will be a draw for visitors and residents for years to come. For more info, go to villageofchesaning.org.

In the 1870s, a Grand Rapids reporter stepped from a rail passenger car and proclaimed Petoskey the land of the “Million Dollar Sunset.” Since then, recognition of the value of water resources has been a consistent theme in the city’s history.

Petoskey, like most coastal cities, was settled due to proximity to natural resources and navigable water. By 1840, Native American Indians had settled the Little Traverse Bay region; Western settlement occurred shortly thereafter. The waterfront and Bear River were initially developed to facilitate timber harvesting, and natural limestone attracted mining operations to the city. However, as early as the 1870s, rail and shipping lines brought tourists to the area, and water resources established Petoskey’s future as a regional tourism center. Adjacent to the east, one of the country’s first planned developments, Bay View Methodist Camp, further capitalized on water resources and facilitated tourism in the area.

‘Petoskey’s waterfront has evolved from an industrial center to a regional tourism and recreation gateway …’

As the area grew, industrial use of water resources defined the shoreline and the lower Bear River. Paper mills, power plants, boat builders, commercial fishing, and tanneries populated the waterfront and river. However, early recreational improvements such as Mineral Well Springs drew upon water resources for tourism and recreation. The Little Traverse Wheelway, a regional trail running along the shoreline through Petoskey, was one of the earliest established bicycle trails in the country and first developed in the early 1900s.

Other industries subsequently populated the waterfront. By 1950, a diecasting manufacturer and a gasification plant existed along the city’s shoreline, operating until the 1960s. Concurrently, as tourism continued to increase in Northern Michigan, the state completed U.S. 31 through Petoskey, which facilitated regional tourism, but placed a physical barrier between downtown and the waterfront. As remaining waterfront industries dwindled, the city began movement toward eventual reclamation and redevelopment of the waterfront. Implementation began with environmental remediation, repurposing of historic industrial buildings, residential development, and what would ultimately become Petoskey’s Bayfront Park.

Bayfront Park

City leaders and citizens recognized the potential of the waterfront to provide enhanced access to Lake Michigan and if developed properly, to increase local tourism and economic development. In the early 1980s, the city received a Michigan Coastal Zone Management Grant to prepare a master plan for development of the waterfront, and began planning for waterfront redevelopment and what is now Bayfront Park.

The master plan recommended redevelopment of Petoskey’s public waterfront to improve access, to provide leisure and recreational opportunities for residents and visitors, and to re-establish a pedestrian link between the waterfront and downtown “Gaslight” shopping district. The plan proposed and organized a variety of recreational uses of the park, all related to a central promenade that would connect the Gaslight shopping district to the historic city pier via a pedestrian tunnel under U.S. 31. Other plan elements included marina expansion and enhancements, a tournament softball stadium, a rivermouth boardwalk, adaptive restoration of historic structures to house city hall and public services functions, a waterfront playground, a central green, improved links to the Little Traverse Wheelway, and passive and active open space.

Next, the city established a Waterfront. Construction of the 25-acre Bayfront Park project was accomplished in five phases, beginning in 1985, and completed in 1995. The city chose a phased approach to spread cost impact, but also recognized that it had one waterfront to work with, and that phasing allowed the necessary budgets for high-quality improvements vital for success in a region where virtually every waterfront city shares the same aspirations as Petoskey does.

Completion and Economic Benefits

Work began with shoreline protection and culminated with the pedestrian tunnel linking pedestrians to downtown Petoskey. Additionally, the train depot in the park was reborn as the Little Traverse Bay History Museum. Since completion of Bayfront Park, the city has added 44 slips to the marina, providing a 35-percent increase in marina revenues (the marina was financed with separate state funding). Additionally, the Waterfront TIFA district has applied for funding for the Bates Softball Field relocation, museum roof replacement, and in 2011, development of the Bear River Valley Recreation Area. This project represents a critical piece in Petoskey’s Recreation Master Plan, linking local and regional non-motorized trail systems and city recreational facilities with Bayfront Park and the waterfront. The completed project extends over one mile upstream from the waterfront, and includes a paved, accessible trail connecting the residential district to downtown, as well as picnic facilities, rustic trails, overlooks, bridges, and whitewater kayaking features.

Petoskey’s waterfront has evolved from an industrial center to a regional tourism and recreation gateway, with its links to city and regional recreational facilities and its close relationship with downtown. As Petoskey continues to benefit economically, city officials continue to consider future investment, including possible improvements at Magnus Park, a city-owned shoreline campground; further development of pedestrian links to the waterfront; and future improvements in the Bear River Valley Recreation Area.

To plan for future improvements, the city continues to monitor the economic impact of its waterfront redevelopment. Certainly, capture of funds to help develop waterfront improvements that otherwise may never have been completed is a sign of success in itself. Bayfront Park continues to host at least two annual events per summer: the Fourth of July fireworks and Festival on the Bay, which results in Petoskey’s busiest weekend. The softball field is used throughout the year for league and tournament play, attracting additional visitors. The Bear River Valley Recreation Area also hosts two annual events — spring kayaking and a midsummer run. Perhaps most revealing, from 2000 to 2014, the areas abutting the Waterfront TIFA district increased in value by 53 percent, compared to a 20-percent increase for the city overall. Other indicators, such as subsequent residential development and increased park use, demonstrate the benefits of waterfront protection.

But the most apparent sign of the benefits of Petoskey’s water resources can be seen on any warm evening in Sunset Park, where visitors and locals gather to watch the million-dollar sunsets. For more info, go to petoskey.us.

Like a number of communities located along the shores of Lake Michigan, South Haven sees a significant annual boost in its population during the summer months.

Since its 5,000 year-round residents are joined by an estimated 15,000 boaters, swimmers, and tourists looking to enjoy South Haven’s seven lakefront beaches and four public marinas, city officials decided to pursue a number of water-based municipal improvements designed to capitalize on the influx and reinvigorate the downtown area.

‘In the past, the South Beach was not a barrier-free area. The improvements make the facility easily accessible to everyone.’

Improvements included the construction of a new water filtration plant, a BMX bike track, parking lots, playground equipment, and sidewalks at the North and South beaches, the installation of safety devices at both beaches, and a reconstruction of the main road that leads from downtown to the lake. “The city of South Haven has been very aggressive with capital updates to our aging infrastructure,” says City Manager Brian Dissette.

It all started with the construction of the new $20 million water filtration plant, which was built on the same site as the previous facility, only with a larger capacity. Located near the South Beach, one of the most popular waterfront locations in southwest Michigan, it provides clean drinking water to the city, the South Haven/Casco Township Water and Sewer Authority, and neighboring Covert Township.

In 2012, the Michigan Chapter of the American Public Works Association (APWA) gave it the Project of the Year Award in the “Structures $5 to $25 million” category. That also meant the project was forwarded to the APWA national office to compete at the national level.

“The filtration plant project was an exercise in compromise,” Dissette says. “We needed to build the plant at the South Beach in order to use the city’s existing water intake and underground drinking water storage tank. “To ensure the filtration plant was acceptable to residents and visitors, the city council opted to incorporate the plant design and location into a larger park planning process.

“The plant was constructed using general obligation debt,” he continues. “The park improvements were built using MDNR (Michigan Department of Natural Resources) grant funds and city capital project funds. We were able to construct the improvements at the same time, which allowed for a timely project and opening.”

Waterfront Gateway Improvements

Meanwhile, the Phoenix Street project added another $3 million of infrastructure improvements, with help from a $750,000 grant from the State of Michigan, and included replacing underground water, sewage, and storm drainage systems; street repaving; and new sidewalks. Other additions, such as outdoor seating, street furniture, a public wireless internet system, and rain gardens, are intended to make the downtown more pedestrian and tourist friendly.

The Downtown Development Authority proposed rain gardens to capture the runoff from city hall and reduce the amount of stormwater entering the sewer system. Now rainwater will infiltrate the soil to recharge the groundwater. The two rain gardens will be located on the west and south sides of city hall.

The city also already has reached license agreements with a pair of downtown restaurants for outdoor dining areas that will include alcohol sales.

Dissette says the community is excited about the WiFi system, which will provide service throughout downtown, at the public marinas, along the riverfront and at both the North and South beaches. “The WiFi system will allow users to sit on the piers and still have a connection.”

The city wrapped up the final work on Phoenix Street in May. When the area’s population is set to quadruple, South Haven will be ready to accommodate the surge in people.

The project also provides a gateway to the waterfront, where all of the improvements have been met with approval. “The city is prepared to construct all-new road surfaces, all-new sidewalks, playground equipment, and just try to make the beach as fine as possible,” Dissette says. “South Haven has an incredible amount of access to the water.”

“In the past,” Dissette continues, “the South Beach was not a barrier-free area. The improvements make the facility easily accessible to everyone. Moreover, the project greatly improved pedestrian safety for our visitors.”

The BMX “Pump Track,” a feature that is growing in popularity nationwide, will be more than 1,000 feet long on a 1.28-acre site located near downtown and a skate park. A pump track is a progressive bike course that uses an up and down “pumping” motion to propel the bicycle forward instead of pedaling. It will serve as yet another attraction for the both local residents and the visitors who regularly flock to the area.

New Beach Safety Measures

One of the other notable upgrades that received extensive media coverage was the addition of emergency help points at both the North and South beaches. City officials agreed to enact a variety of beach and pier safety efforts as part of the settlement that stemmed from a federal lawsuit filed by the family of a 45-year-old Illinois man who had drowned in Lake Michigan in the summer of 2009. The resulting security project saw a pair of blue light pedestals installed with emergency speakerphones from Code Blue Corporation, a manufacturer of emergency communication solutions located in nearby Holland.

“The intent of the call boxes is to provide our beach goers with safe and efficient contact to the city’s first responders,” Dissette says. “It is our expectation that having the call boxes onsite will make the process of seeking help easier for the beachgoers, as they will not have to rely on landmarks to guide first responders to their location.

“Further, during special events in South Haven, we routinely will lose mobile phone service due to the volume of users accessing the mobile phone networks. With having the call boxes onsite, we anticipate the public will always be able to reach first responders. For more info, go to southhaven.com.