A standing-room-only crowd braved snow and ice last month to kick off fundraising for a critical 2.5-mile stretch of a trail along the Lake Michigan shoreline.
“We had a great turnout — the venue, North Pier Brewing, was packed from beginning to end,” says Marcy Hamilton, senior planner/deputy executive director of the Southwest Michigan Planning Commission in Benton Harbor. “We raised almost $2,500 that evening with the give back (a portion of every pint purchased), a small silent auction and some cash donations.”
When the multi-use Lakeshore Trail is finished, likely in the fall, it will complete one more leg of a system that will someday allow hikers and bikers to travel from beach to beach for miles and miles along the lakeshore.
What’s happening: Nearly $3 million in funding has been secured through federal, state and local grants for the Lakeshore Trail but community funding is needed to complete the project. A local donor has offered to match up to $100,000 in donations. Advocates have raised $82,000 of the $100,000 goal ($164,000 of a $200,000 goal with the matching contribution), Hamilton says.
The
event at North Pier Brewing is one of many sources of donations. Other donations have come from the St. Joseph/Benton Harbor Rotary Foundation, $10,000; Corewell Foundation, $30,000; Frederick Upton Foundation, $15,000; and $1,500 in miscellaneous contributions.
“We still have an outstanding $15,000 grant application with the Berrien Community Foundation and a Silver Beach Pizza Fundraiser in February,” Hamilton says.
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Friends of Berrien County TrailsAbout the trail: The Lakeshore Trail will connect to several parks and beaches along Lake Michigan and to downtown Benton Harbor and St. Joseph. The first phase will be a 2.5-mile stretch from Higman Park Road, Benton Harbor, along M-63 to a trailhead on Monte Road. The trail will ultimately connect two other trails – the
Red Arrow Linear Park Path and the
John and Dede Howard Family Trail – to the popular Van Buren Trail State Park. That trail connects South Haven and Hartford.
Bidding and construction: Project bids are not yet in and estimates for enhanced signage and landscaping are still due; the group plans to push to exceed the original fundraising goal. “Any surplus will be used to support the engineering work for the expansion of the trail heading to South Haven,” Hamilton says. Construction will begin this spring for the first phase of the
Lakeshore Trail.
What’s special about this trail: The twin cities of St. Joseph and Benton Harbor are nearly halfway between New Buffalo to the south and South Haven to the north – approximately 28 miles from each. The Lakeshore Trail is one step toward connecting the communities along Lake Michigan in the southwest corner of the state. “This is a critical connection in the larger vision of a trail that will ultimately connect Chicago to South Haven, which then connects the Kal-Haven Trail to the east,” she says. “Further, folks are working to extend the trail north of South Haven along Lake Michigan.”
What people are saying: “We love when we see pockets of success happening throughout the state, where it's as if the trails have caught fire and they're just expanding and the public is embracing them,” says Andrea LaFontaine, executive director at Michigan Trails and Greenways Alliance, which advocates for trails statewide. “There's all this momentum happening, and that appears to be happening in southwest Michigan.”
LaFontaine says the “stars are aligning” in terms of support for trail projects across Michigan, with elected officials, Friends of the Trails groups and other advocates coming together to support these recreational efforts. There’s also been an increase in public and private funding for trail projects.
“When I started in this role, I was told that trails take patience and perseverance, and they often do take much longer than people expect. So we get ecstatic as an organization when areas throughout the state seem to have ignited that development, and that's what we're seeing happen in southwest Michigan,” she says. “We love to see it … and we stand ready and willing to help them to keep continuing that success.”
Says Ryan Leffert, general manager of North Pier Brewing: “Being a brewery that likes to promote an active lifestyle, we were excited to host the event and help raise funds for the trail that will end up being right in our backyard. We supported raffle donations as well as donating a portion of our proceeds during the event. We are excited to help the Lakeshore Trail with future events and partnerships.”
What’s next: Construction is expected to begin this spring with the trail opening in the fall 2025.
Rosemary Parker has worked as a writer and editor for more than 40 years. She is a regular contributor to Rural Innovation Exchange and other Issue Media Group publications.
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