New bike path will connect Tourist Park and the Kaufman Sports Complex

Marquette will soon have a new bike path through the northern part of the city.

The City of Marquette received a $180,000 grant from the Department of Natural Resources to extend the city’s bike path from the Kaufman Sports Complex on Hawley Street to near Tourist Park.

“Part of the Kaufman Sports Complex is a BMX bike track, so those BMXers can ride their bikes to the tracks a little easier,” Marquette Mayor Bob Niemi said.  “(The bike path) with kind of tie those two areas together.  We already have a bike path that goes near Tourist Park and another bike path that continues on to Hawley Street to the east to Lakeshore Boulevard, etc.  This will loop in front of the sports complex to Tourist Park so it’ll provide a little better access for both areas.”

It is a 50-50 match grant, meaning the DNR will pay for half.  The city will pay the other half, using some safety money from Lundin Mining to make up for extra costs.

Construction on the new bike path is expected to start in 2015.