GRAND TRAVERSE COUNTY — East Bay Township is set to unveil a draft vision and action plan on Oct. 29 for the East Bay Beach District, a priority district in need of placemaking, safety improvements and public infrastructure investment.
According to an Oct. 22 news release, East Bay Township staff and the consultant team at Beckett & Raeder will be offering members of the public a first look at projects and priorities identified through an intensive seven-month public visioning effort focused on the U.S. 31 corridor in East Bay Township, branded as the East Bay Beach District.
The presentation scheduled for 5 p.m. on Oct. 29 at Harbor Brook Hall at 2155 U.S. 31 N. will include an opportunity for feedback after the presentation. The draft vision and action plan are based on the culmination of input from surveys, a multi-day design charrette, stakeholder meetings, and corridor pop-up events.
“The East Bay Beach District has long been identified as a priority district in the Township, in need of a plan for placemaking, safety improvements, and public infrastructure investment,” the release said. “Two community surveys were administered as a part of the visioning effort, with over 500 respondents representing business owners, corridor employees, corridor residents, and members of the public. Topics included questions about pedestrian improvements and other transportation priorities, desired corridor amenities, public infrastructure investments, and public access to the water.”
Results indicated strong support for new safe pedestrian crossings, which was ranked as the number one priority. Respondents indicated a desire for more diverse dining and shopping opportunities and public gathering spaces.
There was also a notable desire for new placemaking amenities such as wayfinding signage, pedestrian scale lighting, wider sidewalks, and street trees to slow traffic and create a sense of place.
The design charrette resulted in a number of conceptual designs for public and private spaces along the corridor, conducted in partnership with MDOT and private property owners. Preliminary designs will be shared for a new public viewing pier at the end of 4 Mile Road and streetscape treatments. Public preferences for the private sites included public promenades to the TART Trail, outdoor dining and food trucks, mixed-use and workforce housing, and more white pines.
The Township secured two federal grants to support the initiative, one from USDA Rural Development and one from Michigan’s Coastal Management Program to support the project. The initiative emphasizes future improvements that are rooted in resiliency and green infrastructure best practices. The East Bay Beach District initiative also includes quarterly business networking breakfasts with corridor business owners and stakeholders and a unified branding and marketing effort for the corridor.
A project implementation team composed of business owners, corridor residents, and other stakeholders has been meeting throughout the process to help guide the process and will continue to work to ensure priority actions are implemented over time.
The landscape architecture, planning, engineering and environmental firm Beckett & Reader, Inc. provided professional services to support the public engagement process and developed conceptual design renderings for public infrastructure improvements and priority redevelopment sites along the corridor.
Land Information Access Association also assisted with coastal resiliency mapping and modeling along the corridor. The local marketing firm Flight Path Creative has assisted with developing branding and marketing materials for the district, including a business directory and corridor banners and signage.
“The end result will be a vision for public investments and revitalization of the East Bay Beach District with an implementable action plan for the corridor that details goals, actions, timeline, responsible party, and achievable financing mechanisms,” the release said.
For more information on the vision for the district, click here.