Jessica Mathews / news@whmi.com


Shoreline concept plans for Northfield Community Park were presented at a recent meeting of the township board.

Landscape Architect Sarah Huddas with OHM Advisors made the presentation.

Some goals and objectives are to provide waterfront amenities on Whitmore Lake and address shoreline erosion, meet low maintenance needs, explore sustainable design opportunities, activate the space through all four seasons, and provide safe crossing and access to and from the park.

Some items included in the concept plan include an immersive boardwalk experience with a fishing pier, seating with pergolas, a lawn area, shoreline restoration and aquatic plantings to minimize erosion, and a removable ADA kayak launch and ice fishing access.

A beach area was not among the items proposed. Huddas stated it’s about 5 to 15 feet out where the shoreline drops off and it’s all heavy muck, so they are not recommending a beach in that area because it’s not ideal conditions – adding even if they added sand, it would be washed away regularly due to wind and waves.
Huddas noted they identified a wetland that spans the entire length of the project site and they took that into consideration when exploring concept designs – with the formal term being a “regulated emergent wetland”.

The very preliminary estimate for the concept plan was around $1.5 (m) million, but it was noted everything is just conceptual.

Grant opportunities will be explored to help offset the project cost, and it was stated funding is typically available for shoreline restoration projects.

The conceptual plans will be shared next with the township’s parks and recreation groups to gather feedback before determining the next steps.

More information is included in the board packet. That link is provided.