Find out what may be planned for St. Joseph County's parks

Jef Rietsma
·3 min read

CENTREVILLE – A five-year strategic plan developed by St. Joseph County Parks and Recreation Department focuses heavily on the county’s 150 miles of navigable rivers and creeks.

Details were presented to county commissioners during their executive committee meeting Tuesday.

A visitor’s car and bike are silhouetted against the night sky at the Upper Peninsula’s Keweenaw Dark Sky Park. Creating a dark sky park has been discussed in St. Joseph County's parks and recreation planning.
A visitor’s car and bike are silhouetted against the night sky at the Upper Peninsula’s Keweenaw Dark Sky Park. Creating a dark sky park has been discussed in St. Joseph County's parks and recreation planning.

Parks and Recreation Department Director Jaymes MacDonald provided a four-page summary outlining goals and objectives through 2028. The summary featured high-priority and moderate-priority matters under each of four categories: Parks and Facility Planning, Capital Improvement Plan, Land Acquisition, and Programming and Community Involvement.

MacDonald said in addition to serving as a template to help guide the agency’s future, a five-year strategic plan enables it to apply for grants through the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and federal agencies.

MacDonald, who said the full-blown strategic plan was in excess of 90 pages, went over a few details he considered noteworthy. One centered on a so-called dark-sky initiative.

“It’s creating a park and having it as a dark-sky (development). There’s not a lot of ambient light there, so people will go out and do interpretive programs out there, such as stargazing,” he said.

Another was installation of additional security cameras.

“We already have some in some of the busier parks outside the bathroom facilities … during the pandemic we had a huge uptick in vandalism,” he said, noting the degree of vandalism has abated somewhat since 2020.

According to MacDonald’s summary, high-priority projects from each of the four categories over the next five years include:

Parks and Facility Planning

  • Plumb Lake County Park mountain-bike trail development.

  • Continue planning implementation of the county’s water trail masterplan in cooperation with St. Joseph County Conservation District, road commission and municipalities.

  • Create a habitat-restoration plan for Timm Preserve, Kettles County Park, Plumb Lake and Meyer Broadway County Park.

  • Develop a plan for equestrian trails.

Capital Improvement Plan

  • Complete phased development of canoe/kayak access points throughout the county by working with the conservation district, road commission, municipalities and private landowners to provide at least 10 improved access locations. Primary focus would be on the Pigeon River.

  • Additional parking at Meyer Broadway and Sand Lake parks.

  • New playgrounds at Meyer Broadway and Cade Lake parks.

  • Instll pickleball courts at Cade Lake and a fishing platform at Covered Bridge Farm.

  • Construct a canoe/kayak launch at Kettles Preserve.

Land Acquisition

  • Acquire underdeveloped land contiguous to streams, lakes or existing parks as a means of developing water trails.

  • Pursue land acquisition in underserved areas, particularly Constantine Township.

Programming and Community Involvement

  • Work with municipalities, local agencies and commissions to develop water access infrastructure for water trail users.

  • Continue partnering with local disc golf organizations to host Professional Disc Association-sanctioned tournaments at Meyer Broadway.

  • Continue hosting annual bike races with Southwest Michigan Mountain Bike Association.

  • Develop a “Music in the Park” program at Covered Bridge Farm.

Commissioners are expected to approve the five-year plan at their monthly board meeting Tuesday.

This article originally appeared on Sturgis Journal: Find out what may be planned for St. Joseph County's parks