Tourist Park to receive shower house upgrades

MARQUETTE — Some upgrades are on the way for the shower houses at Tourist Park.

The city’s parks and recreation department is undertaking the effort after determining what need to be done first. Universal pods will be attached to each house, making them more accessible.

“It also makes it accessible for folks that have special needs, if they have a caregiver that needs to go in with them,” City of Marquette assistant director of community services Jon Swenson said. “[It’s a] great project, makes the park much more useable, much more user-friendly to the public. We’re really excited about it.”

The project is made possible by grant funding, which comes from the state’s sales of recreation passports. A portion of the proceeds from each sale is set aside to help fund local projects.

The city will receive $60,000 toward the project and was one of only 21 cities to receive funding.

“The planning that the City of Marquette has put into this makes it a much better process when it comes to applying for these grants,” Swenson said. “A lot of work put in by a lot of folks, and we’re just pleased that we were given this opportunity by the state.”

The project is expected to begin in 2016, with completion sometime early that summer.