MANISTEE - The Manistee area brings in nearly 700,000 tourists a year, according to the city’s Travel and Tourism Bureau.
First Street Beach was even voted by readers of USA Today as the best beach in Michigan in 2024.
Now the city will be making improvements to the Riverwalk.
It’s a whopping $1.6 million in upgrades along the 1.5-mile trail that goes from Manistee Lake all the way to Lake Michigan along the Manistee River.
The plan is to repair areas of the Riverwalk that have been damaged by wear and tear along with a few upgrades to elevate it.
“This is a major shipping lane. I mean, we’re a deep port, so a lot of ships come through here,” said Manistee County Visitors Bureau executive director Sammy Lukaskiewicz. “We’ve got Lake Michigan that that comes in. I mean, it gets icy here. There’s a lot of things within nature that take place with our Riverwalk, so it’s really important to maintain it, not only just to preserve it, but so people can enjoy it year-round.”
Manistee’s city manager said the upgrades are much needed and will help keep tourism booming with the new additions. The upgrades will even give visitors with disabilities increased access.
“We’re going to be updating the decking and stabilizing an ADA ramp east of Maple Street,” said William Campbell. “We’re also going to add some landscaping, some historic signage down on the Riverwalk, as well as some other improvements.”
The owner of TJ’s Pub and Ramsdell Regional Center for the Arts thinks the upgrades are money well spent.
“I think it’s very exciting! The Riverwalk and the river channel is a huge asset for Manistee as a whole,” said Lindsey Swidorski.
“But especially for the downtown and businesses, so I think whatever enhancements they can make to make it more accessible and more beautiful for guests to enjoy, I think is great.”
Construction will undoubtedly impact roadways, but the city hopes to keep any inconveniences minimal.
“I’m told our department of public works will work around some of our busier holidays.”
Right now, there is no definitive start date for work to begin. The city manager said the upgrades are expected to be completed by September of this year.