Manistee County-Wide Park & Recreation Plan Update

News Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 31, 2021

MANISTEE, MI – Manistee County and each unit of government in the county will collaborate throughout 2021 to update the community’s 5-year park and recreation plan. This extensive planning process will be led by Networks Northwest’s Community Development Team, in coordination with the Manistee County Planning Department and the Manistee County Recreation Commission. The resulting plan will serve two key purposes. First, it will act as a guiding document for the next five years, informing local decision making related to recreation projects and programming. Second, the updated plan will meet the requirements set forth by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR). A DNR-approved 5-year Recreation Plan is a prerequisite for jurisdictions to apply for and receive funding from the state’s Land and Water Conservation Fund, Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund, and Waterways grants. The previous county-wide plan expired on December 31, 2020.

Networks Northwest has begun coordinating with all 20 Manistee County municipalities (the City of Manistee, 14 townships and 5 villages) to launch the planning process, which will conclude in January of 2022 when the final plan will be submitted to the state for approval. Throughout 2021, planners from Networks Northwest’s Community Development Team will facilitate two community meetings with each jurisdiction. These meetings will focus on updating locality-specific information requested by the state and to develop the community’s park and recreation goals for the ensuing years. Due to public concern surrounding COVID-19, the planning team will seek public participation at in-person meetings as well as through online engagement to encourage widespread involvement in the planning process. Members of the public will also be able to provide input at a public hearing near the end of the project timeline. 

All information pertaining to the overall process can be found at nwm.org/manisteerec. The webpage features meeting dates and times, frequently asked questions, a project survey, and a project timeline. Members of the public are encouraged to participate in this planning process by contributing their opinions via meeting attendance and by completing the project survey. The 5-minute survey is geared towards Manistee County residents and recreation visitors. This, in addition to participation in public meetings, will help ensure that the final plan effectively describes the community’s vision for recreation in Manistee.

For any questions regarding the 5-year county-wide plan please contact Zach Vega at Networks Northwest at zach.vega@networksnorthwest.org.

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