Looking at the Lakeshore Blvd relocation project after another closure

MARQUETTE — Part of Lakeshore Boulevard has been closed down for two days due to extreme weather conditions which has caused flooding.

This is one of the reasons the Marquette City Commission decided to move forward with the relocation project that will be moving part of the road by 300 feet inland. The project will not begin until after this coming winter, which means that more closures are possible.

“We have a plan in place, a budget started and the commission has committed money,” said Mike Angeli, Marquette City Manager. “We hope to begin that process first thing in the spring, but until then we have to get through this fall and winter. I am sure there will be more closures and maybe even another permanent winter closure as well.”

The project will be in two phases, with phase one including shoreline repair, road relocation, and contingency, which will cost almost $5 million in total.
$2.5 million is coming from a grant from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and the city is hoping that another grant may help fund the rest of the project.

The only possible delay for the project would be the second phase, which is the refurbishing of the shoreline.

“What could delay or what some funding could delay is the refurbishing of the shoreline,” explained Angeli. “We want to make it available to the public and have public access. We do want to do some work on the shoreline to prevent the waves from destroying it any further. That is where the second phase will come into play. As we get that money we will attack that part of the project.”

The beginning of the project is expected to begin in the spring of 2020.