By JADEN BEARD
Capital News Service
LANSING – Michigan’s state parks may look different in 2027 as the Department of Natural Resources puts into place a five-year plan focused on funding the rehabilitation of current parks and constructing a new one in Flint.
The DNR has received $250 million from the Building Michigan Together Plan, with the money coming from the federal American Relief Fund. The money is for changes to park infrastructure, sustainability and diversity, equity and inclusion.
The plan includes $30.2 million for the Flint park. Chevy Commons County Park, Mott Park Recreation, Vietnam Veterans Park, Happy Hollow Nature Area and Riverbank Park, along with land along the Flint River, will make up the 234-acre state park that will include five buildings and three non-motorized trails connecting the units, according to the DNR.
Kristen Bennett, the development unit manager at DNR’s Parks and Recreation Division called the new money for park improvements “a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.” She is working with a statewide team to meet the federal deadline of 2027 to spend the money
She said that the money will enable DNR to fix internal structural problems in the parks.
“One of the emphases is that we were going for this larger project to say ‘hey, we need to fix some of the unseen infrastructure,’ as well as some of the more visible things, but get focused on some of the invisible infrastructure that is so critical,” Bennett said.
Division chief Ron Olson said that plans for improving accessibility at state parks include new buildings and rehabilitating older ones to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act standards.
“This would ensure that we have full access for people from where they enter the park, to parking lots to the buildings and accessing bathrooms,” Olson said.
The plan also aims to improve environmentally sustainable efforts at the parks.
“One way is through the use of renewable energy,” Olson said, such as low-energy consumption buildings, charging stations for electric vehicles and renewable energy to generate electricity and water.
“We’ll be looking for sustainable development practices, including trying to have low- consumptive energy buildings and trying to have modern accommodations for people planning ahead for electric demands,” Olson said.
Solar panel farms have been installed as a part of that initiative in Holland State Park and Fort Custer Recreation Area, located between Kalamazoo and Battle Creek..
Fort Custer Recreation Area is expected to see improvements to internal and external infrastructure, Bennett said. For example, campground toilet and shower buildings will be replaced.
“We are also replacing the west side of the campground electrical (system), and we are going to add some full hookup sites to the campgrounds, which means they will have water, electric and sewage right on the campsite.,” said Bennett.
“There are similar utility, electric and bathroom buildings at parks all over the state. We are also upgrading a lot of these areas,” said Bennett.
Diversity, equity and inclusion is also a focus for the parks, according to Olson. He says that one way to achieve that goal is to have “staffing reflective of the population.”
Olson said that the DNR is working to improve public engagement in outdoor recreation in Detroit and other urban communities.
Bennett said the federal dollars are a big boost, but state funds will be used for other parks.
“While this was a wonderful thing for state parks, it is not going to solve all the problems, and we are going to continue to move forward to make all of our projects or all of our parks even more impressive as time goes on,” she said.