Thanks to $8.5 million in federal relief funding, a major enhancement project at Keith J. Charters Traverse City State Park is coming together, with upcoming roadwork along U.S. 31 scheduled to begin next week and continue through mid-to-late October.

The funds were made available as part of a $273 million boost in federal American Rescue Plan relief funding that has enabled the Michigan Department of Natural Resources to tackle a decades-long backlog of infrastructure and rehabilitation projects in state parks and trails, and to build a new state park in Flint.

The planned project is designed to modernize the park’s facilities, enhance visitor access and traffic flow and improve accessibility. It includes a redesigned park entrance, a new at-grade pedestrian crossing, a new campground contact station, a relocated park headquarters building and an expanded sanitation station. All components of the project are compliant with Americans with Disabilities Act accessibility guidelines.

Upcoming work

• Road widening and new westbound turn lane: Monday, Sept. 15, contractors will begin preparation work to widen U.S. 31 by 20 feet and build a new right-turn lane into the park campground. This is expected to improve traffic flow and reduce congestion for westbound vehicles. During construction, a northern lane shift will eliminate the middle turn lane but maintain two lanes of traffic in both eastbound and westbound directions.
• Pedestrian bridge removal: Work is scheduled to take place overnight from 6 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 20, to 6 a.m. Sunday, Sept. 21, to minimize traffic disruption. A signed detour will be in place, routing vehicles via Three and Four Mile roads to Hammond Road.
• Pedestrian bridge structure removal: After the pedestrian bridge is removed, the stairs and remaining structure will be taken down in two stages. During construction, a southern lane shift will eliminate the middle turn lane but maintain two lanes of traffic in both eastbound and westbound directions.

Pedestrian bridge

The DNR is committed to working with the community to find a new location for a pedestrian bridge once the current one is removed. Several things have to be accomplished before a new bridge compliant with ADA accessibility guidelines can be built. This includes identification and acquisition of appropriate land where the bridge can be located. Adequate funding for the project also must be identified, since such funding does not exist within the current DNR budget. The DNR is working toward those goals with state partners, the local community and state legislators, including Rep. Betsy Coffia, Rep. John Roth and Sen. John Damoose.

Other details

The park's modern campground closed July 7, 2025, and will remain closed through the 2026 season. The campground will reopen April 1, 2027.

The Lake Michigan beach day-use area is expected to remain open; however, visitors should anticipate occasional closures for intersection work.

A link to the project page, including project details and a construction timeline, is available at Michigan.gov/TraverseCity.

For more details on the project, contact Stephanie Rosinski, Traverse City and Leelanau state parks supervisor, at 231-922-5270 or RosinskiS@Michigan.gov.