What’s happening: The Village of Stevensville wants a community gathering space at their Hickory Creek Park, and one that is more accessible for all of its residents and visitors. It’s why the Berrien County village has launched a new crowdfunding campaign to support the construction of a brand new and universally accessible Hickory Creek Park Pavilion.
What’s planned: Village leaders have announced plans to build a new pavilion at Hickory Creek Park, the community’s primary park that currently features a playground, dog park, barbecue grills, and more. A 60 ft. by 30 ft. open-sided steel and concrete pavilion is proposed, featuring picnic tables, LED lighting, an enclosed and lockable kitchen area, and more.
A pavilion for all: The pavilion is designed with universal accessibility in mind, making it more accessible for guests of all abilities. That means features accessible to those guests using mobility devices, including picnic tables with extended tabletops, two single-user bathrooms with extra space and amenities places at heights accessible to seated users, and two van-accessible ADA parking spaces and accessible sidewalks.
How they’ll do it: Stevensville and its Hickory Creek Park Pavilion project has been accepted into the state’s placemaking initiative Public Spaces Community Places, a joint effort from the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC), Michigan Municipal League, and Patronicity. As part of the initiative, organizers have launched a $75,000 crowdfunding campaign on the Michigan-based Patronicity platform. Should they successfully reach their goal by Monday, Dec. 9, the MEDC will contribute a $75,000 matching grant to the project.
Learn more about the Hickory Creek Park Pavilion project
on Patronicity.
Why it’s important: “The importance of accessible and versatile public gathering places to the resiliency of a community cannot be overstated,”says Dan Gilmartin, Executive Director and CEO of the Michigan Municipal League. “The Hickory Creek Park Pavilion is a great example of what residents want in the communities they call home.”
Hickory Creek Park is located at 2600 W. John Beers Rd. in Stevensville.
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