The City of St. Ignace makes the most of its Lake Huron waterfront location providing significant coastal public access and year-round activities. One example is the upcoming annual U.P. pond hockey tournament played on Lake Huron’s Moran Bay—one of the few such events in which the “pond” is one of the Great Lakes! The tournament’s 30 rinks will be visible from the new section of the Huron Boardwalk constructed last summer by the City of St. Ignace with the support of a Michigan Coastal Zone Management grant.
This project enhanced the northern-most 320-foot section of the Huron Boardwalk, which had endured three decades of use and needed attention. The dilapidated boardwalk was replaced by a new Americans with Disabilities Act-compliant boardwalk with a concrete access ramp. An eight-foot bench in the viewing area provides a place to relax and take in the view, while educational signs provide information on local maritime and Native American settlement history. This includes material about the North Country Trail, which traverses the Huron Boardwalk.
The community continues to maintain and expand the larger Huron Boardwalk, which extends 6,000 feet along the downtown waterfront, linking the retail areas with Mackinac Island ferry docks and other points of interest. The boardwalk is anchored at each end by public waterfront parks and accented by historical displays, landscaping, benches and interpretive signs connecting residents and tourists to this wonderful stretch of Great Lakes shoreline.
According to Deb Evashevski, Director of the City of St. Ignace’s Downtown Development Authority, “This newly installed section of the Huron Boardwalk is much safer and greatly improves public access by providing ADA-compliant access. The addition of a seating/viewing area and educational signage will be enjoyed by area residents and visitors for years to come.”
Source: DEQ
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