Bay City State Park renovations bring visitors and positive responses

The Bay City State Park – home to one of the largest remaining freshwater, coastal wetlands on the Great Lakes – has undergone recent renovations. Last year, the park celebrated its 100th anniversary, but recent upgrades have given it a fresh new look and feel.

Rich Fenner is the park manager at the Bay City State Park and oversees operations and the visitor center. Fenner says the park is very community-based, with lots of visitors including local residents and schools. The park also has connections with local organizations, townships, and entities.

Ashley BrownThe state used American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding to renovate the Saginaw Bay Visitor Center inside the park.“When everybody thinks of the park, they think of the campgrounds first,” he says. “We’re a modern campground with 189 campsites that include electrical. We have two modern bathrooms with showers. We have two mini cabins with sleeping for up to five people, microwaves, and heating, air conditioning, and electricity at the site.”

The park also sees many visitors at its day-use area, featuring five shelter pavilions for rent and seven miles of nature, marsh and lagoon trails. There also are two 40-foot towers providing a nice birds-eye-view of the tree canopy and the marsh.

Ashley BrownOne popular feature at the park is a splash pad for kids to cool off on hot summer days.Some of the park’s most popular features include the splash pad/spray park, a brand new open-concept playground structure, and the swimming beach on Saginaw Bay.

“We’re the only state park in Michigan currently that has a spray park,” Fenner says. “We’re the only location on the bay that has public access, there’s some private beaches and things, but we’re unique.”

Ashley BrownThe park recently upgraded its parking lot, adding new parking spaces closer to the playground and spray park. It also created a sidewalk for safer pedestrian traffic, bus parking, and drop-off zones.Recent upgrades completed in May include a parking lot, which cost $2.2 million to allow for 75% to 85% new blacktop and striping. They added 75 new parking spaces closer to the playground and spray park, and a new sidewalk for safer pedestrian traffic, bus parking and drop-off zones.

There are now two new electric vehicle charging stations also.

The campground received a new sidewalk and crosswalk with solar-flashing pedestrian signs at the entrance, and new drainage to avoid flooded dam sites.

Fenner says the community’s response to the renovations has been good.

Ashley BrownAll paths lead to the beach at the Bay City State Park.“We’ve definitely seen a positive response, just in the ease of driving through the day-use parking lot,” he says. “It used to be full of potholes, and there were people pushing carts and strollers in the middle of the road. It’s just a much safer location now than it used to be. I haven’t heard anything negative about any of the upgrades we did, so people are really happy with it.”

The upgrades also include a renovated visitor center which was completed in September of last year. Fenner says the visitor center’s $1.5 million renovation was made possible by the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding.

Ashley BrownA bright blue mat makes it easier for wheelchairs to cross from the sand to the water at the Bay City State Park.New exterior siding, upgraded automated doors to increase ADA accessibility, and redesigned interiors await visitors. Interior lighting, flooring, and the exhibit area was renovated to a more modern look with digital features and a monitor showing drone footage.

The visitor center is typically open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. but also hosts different programs during the evenings including fishing and archery. There’s also a new STEM lab where kids can explore on microscopes, fish tanks, and other educational equipment.

Ashley BrownThe park is home to two new electric vehicle charging stations.Throughout the year, the Friends of the Bay City State Park host events and festivals open to campers and the public with a recreation passport. On summer Saturdays, free entertainment is offered on the Visitor’s Center stage.

The park hosted the annual Waterfowl Festival the first weekend of August. The popular festival focuses on waterfowl hunting, and includes vendors, recreation-based activities and the great outdoors.

Fenner says that although it is open year-round, the park’s busiest season is the summer, with many daily visitors enjoying the spray park, swimming, and the beach.

Ashley BrownKids can play among the reeds at a playground near the spray park at the Bay City State Park.“Of course, we also have our walkers and bike-riders that come into the parks every day,” Fenner says. “It can be the middle of winter, and they still come at the same time they come in the summer, which is like 6:30 in the morning so it’s still dark out. They’re walking around with head lamps while we’re trying to plow snow. We always have people here, it’s a different user group than I’ve been accustomed to at other locations.”

In the fall, the park hosts a Run by the Bay fundraiser and harvest festivals to celebrate the spooky season in nature.

Ashley BrownBefore diving into the Saginaw Bay water, take a moment to read about some of the history of the area.“The last weekend in September and the first weekend in October, we have our harvest festivals, which are like our Halloween weekends,” Fenner says. “People come in and camp, they decorate their campsite, and we have events and crafts. Then they trick-or-treat throughout the camp, and that’s a really popular event here and in several other state park locations throughout the state.”

The second weekend of October, on Oct. 12, is the Mother Nature Halloween Trail with seven or eight different spots where kids can walk the grounds and learn about different animals within the environment. Mother Nature Halloween Trail is open to the public, while trick-or-treating is a campers-only event.

Event details are shared on Facebook.

With over 2,000 acres of wetland woods, meadows, marshlands and prairies, the park also makes for great bird-watching. Fenner enjoys working with people and meeting visitors from all over, including the regular residents as well as out-of-town and out-of-state visitors.

Ashley BrownForgot your life jacket at home? No problem. You can borrow one for the day.“This is a community park, so we do have a lot of regular campers from the local Bay City, Saginaw, and Midland areas. I’m an avid camper too, my family and I camp every year, so to see the families enjoying it is nice. It’s something people remember forever.”

During the pandemic, the state park saw about 20% more visitors to the area, and Fenner says they see over 1 million visitors a year. Fenner hopes to see more guests and more upgrades in the coming years, including an addition of some full-hookup sites, and upgraded water, sewer, and electric systems.

Ashley BrownBoardwalks lead visitors from the parking lot and playground area to a sandy beach bordering the Saginaw Bay.Bay City State Park reservations can be made online for campsites, or by calling (800) 457-2757 up to six months in advance. Fenner recommends booking ahead of time, especially in the summer.

Visitors can purchase $19 state park recreation passports on site or through the Secretary of State for $14. The passport gets you into every state park and Michigan DNR boating access sites in Michigan for the year.