TRAVERSE CITY — City commissioners got a detailed look Monday night at final designs for Rotary Square, a downtown park nearly three decades in the making along the Boardman River.
The study session focused on the remaining approvals needed before construction can begin, chief among them the reclassification of a narrow alley near the river as parkland. That change would allow a pedestrian connection between Rotary Square and the adjacent Fish Pass project — the top priority identified by residents during 14 months of community engagement.
“Rotary square shouldn’t be a space that’s cut off for special events or is geared towards tourists. It should be a space for everyday park use for residents, people that work downtown,” said Jason Ball, lead consultant with Progressive Companies, the firm hired to develop the site.
The Downtown Development Authority and Progressive Companies collected more than 1,000 points of public feedback through surveys, pop-up events, stakeholder meetings and two open houses. Residents repeatedly said they wanted the park to feel natural rather than paved, function year-round and — above all — connect to the river.
“Connecting Rotary Square to Fish Pass — the river — was priority number one,” Ball told commissioners. “So we heard really clearly throughout the process that figuring out what that connection looks like was really important.”
Creating that link would require removing about 14 metered parking spaces along the alley and replacing the area with a river overlook and improved pedestrian access. The spaces generate roughly $22,000 a year in revenue.
Some commissioners suggested delaying the alley work to see how the park performs first. But others argued the financial impact didn’t warrant a postponement.
“We’re talking about $22,000 in revenue out of over $2 million in parking revenue a year. So it’s about 1% of the overall parking revenue,” one commissioner said. “I’m not sure that the supply issue would be a rationale to kick the can down the road.”
Ball cautioned that splitting the project into two phases would increase costs, noting contractors would have to mobilize equipment twice. He added that during the engagement process, failing to connect the park to the river was widely viewed as a missed opportunity.
DDA Commissioner Harry Burkholder, who introduced the presentation, called the project “almost 29 years in the making” and said it was spurred by a $2 million grant from the state of Michigan in 2018 and an additional $1 million from local charities.
The design features green space over hardscape, a shade structure for small concerts and gatherings, a family-friendly area with swing benches and a small slide, and an ADA-accessible overlook of the river. Removable bollards in the alley would allow the city to close it to vehicles during events while keeping it open for everyday traffic.
Commissioners also discussed whether to formally designate Rotary Square as city parkland, which would offer the property long-term protection. The site is currently DDA-owned and is not classified as a city park.
Monday’s session was a work session only. A formal vote on the remaining approvals is expected later this month.