Midland County Recreation Plan

Notice of Review

midlandcountyrecplan — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:35:31 +0000

Notice of Review
Midland County
Draft of the Five-Year Parks and Recreation Master Plan

Midland County has developed a draft five-year Parks and Recreation Master Plan. The plan evaluates existing recreation opportunities, reviews public opinion regarding recreation, develops goals and objectives for parks and recreation in the communities and it outlines an action plan for improvements and other related items that the County wishes to pursue.

A PDF copy of the draft plan (7.0 megabytes) is available for review. If you are interested in submitting comments regarding the draft of the plan, please send written comments to the address listed below by Tuesday, January 13, 2009. A public hearing regarding the plan will be held at the Wednesday, January 14, 2009, Midland County Parks and Recreation Commission meeting.

Midland County Parks and Recreation Department
220 West Ellsworth Street
Midland, MI 48640-5194
(989) 832-6874

Posted in Recreation Plan

Virtual Bike Ride: Pere Marquette Rail-Trail

midlandcountyrecplan — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 15:04:19 +0000

Watch below for a six minute tour of the full 30 mile stretch of the Pere Marquette Rail-Trail! It’s like you are in the sky, flying just over your fellow bike riders, power walkers, joggers, and roller bladers. Actually, it’s just aerial imagery from Google Earth. Watch as your virtual self rides by parks, neighborhoods, wooded areas, and open farm fields. Your ride starts at the Tridge and you finish in Clare.

Note: The video has annotations showing parks and other locations. You might have to click on the video so that it opens in a new window in order to view them.

Going to Parkapalooza

midlandcountyrecplan — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 12:42:32 +0000

Nine bands from mid-Michigan will perform at Sanford Lake Park this Sunday (September 7). Here is the line-up:

Empty Canvas, 11:30 am to 1:00 pm
Chromatic Effect (jazz), 1:15 pm to 2:00 pm
Magnum (funk/rhythm and blues, rock), 2:15 pm to 3:00 pm
Smokin’ Joe Rock, 3:15 pm to 4:00 pm
The Sinclairs Band (retro rock), 4:15 pm to 5:00 pm
Steel Wheels (country), 5:15 pm to 6:00 pm
Screaming Casanovas (rock), 6:15 pm to 7:00 pm
Banana Convention (rock), 7:15 pm to 8:00 pm
Jerkwater Town Boys (rock), 8:15 pm to 9:00 pm

For more information, please visit stories about the event at Parkapalooza: Summer’s Swan Song and mlive.com.

Input at River Days a Success

midlandcountyrecplan — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 02:43:56 +0000

Thanks to everyone who showed up at River Days and shared their thoughts on the future of Midland County parks and recreation! Over 50 people took time out on this beautiful evening to chat with us. We heard many great ideas, which will be used to help inform the plan’s goals and objectives. From here, we will compile and organize the input, and then share a summary of your ideas with the Midland County Parks and Recreation Commission.

Reminder – We Need Your Input

midlandcountyrecplan — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 18:12:13 +0000

Please stop by and visit us at our River Days booth by the Tridge this Friday between 5:00 pm to 8:00 pm and share your ideas and suggestions about the future of recreation in Midland County.

Park Feature: Laur Big Salt River Park

midlandcountyrecplan — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 13:20:01 +0000

Laur Big Salt River Park has a small parking lot, a short walking trail, and a winding stairway that leads to the banks of the Big Salt River, a great place to go fishing or to go for a quiet walk in the woods. This 40 acre park is located a quarter-mile west of Coleman Road on McNally Road, which is five miles south of Coleman and five miles north of Oil City.

Getting to Laur Big Salt River Park
Map of Laur Big Salt River Park
Location in Google Maps

The Benefits of Parks and Recreation

midlandcountyrecplan — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 14:31:56 +0000

Parks and recreation is an important part of a healthy lifestyle and a vibrant community. Midland County parks offer a wide range of activities for residents and visitors to promote an active life outdoors.

Why should residents visit a park and what will it do for them?

The National Recreation and Park Association maintains a Top 10 list of reasons parks are important and Midland County parks make the top ten list every time.

Public parks provide millions of Americans with the opportunity to be physically active. Over 300,000 people visit Midland County parks each year!
Parks have true economic benefits. Midland County spends over $834,000 on parks each year and visitors pay $126,000 to use the parks.
Parks provide vital green space in a fast developing American Landscape. 1,110 acres of land are dedicated to Midland County parks.
Parks preserve critical wildlife habitat. Did you know that you can see bald eagles, a bog, and white pine trees over 200 years old while in a Midland County park?
Parks and recreation facilitate social interaction. Do you like to run, canoe, picnic, swim, boat, or hike? Bring a friend and get outside!
Leisure activities in parks improve moods, reduce stress and enhance a sense of wellness. Each of Midland County’s parks is attached to water and most have been kept in a natural state. Breathe, sit, relax!
Recreational programs provide organized, structured, enjoyable activities. Participate in the Mud Creek Crawl, a fishing tournament, and the Parkapalooza at Sanford Lake!
Community recreation services provide a refuge of safety for at-risk youth. Miles and miles of hiking and biking trails, water resources, and physical activity give youth a positive outlet.
Therapeutic recreation is an outlet that individuals with disabilities have. All parks have accessible picnicking, many have accessible trails, and the Pere-Marquette Rail-Trail offers mobility through a large part of the state.
Public parks embody the American tradition of preserving public lands. The 93 acre River Trail Heritage Park is the newest public land that will be preserved for the future.

Healthy living includes an active life and fresh air.

Midland County parks offer recreation and outdoor activity all year – embracing winter and snow with the same enthusiasm as the water and sun of summer!

Pine Haven Park has some of the best bike and hiking trails in the state during the summer, and challenging and scenic cross-country trails in the winter. In the fall, the park hosts the Mud Creek Crawl, ranked by Runners World magazine as one of the nation’s most out-of-the-way-races.

Veteran’s Memorial Park is an excellent location to barbeque, go birding, and snow shoe. Manitou Park offers scenic vistas of the Chippewa River that are unrivaled in the region.

There is no reason to stay home anytime of the year. Come out and get active. Healthy living is fun, easy, and close to home.

Images and text by Cindy Winland. NRPA Top 10 list written by Richard J. Dolesh, Monica Hobbs Vinluan, and Michael Phillips.

We Need Your Input!

midlandcountyrecplan — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 19:12:46 +0000

The Midland County Parks and Recreation Department is seeking input from county residents regarding the future of parks and recreation in Midland County. You are invited to share your input at the River Days booth to be located by the Tridge on Friday, July 18, from 5:00 pm to 8:00 pm.

Please stop by at your convenience to talk with recreation planners and review information about Midland County parks. It won’t take long, about ten minutes of your time. As a resident in the community, we want to hear your ideas and suggestions for recreation in Midland County. If you aren’t able to attend, feel free to post a comment on this blog.

Information collected at this informal gathering will be reviewed and used in the Midland County Recreation Plan. This plan is a very important document, filed every five years with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and is the basis for all grant applications.

This flyer provides additional information about the July 18 community input opportunity.

Meeting #1 Documents

midlandcountyrecplan — Wed, 14 May 2008 16:12:26 +0000

The following files were shared with the Parks and Recreation Commission at their May 7 meeting:

Table of Contents – Draft, Adobe PDF file (15 kilobytes)
Introduction – Draft, Adobe PDF file (940 kilobytes)
Community Description – Draft, Adobe PDF file (1.9 megabytes)
Administrative Structure – Draft, Adobe PDF file (1.1 megabytes)
Project Schedule – Draft, Adobe PDF file (24 kilobytes)

Comments are always welcome. Please see the Comments tab for more information about how your online comments are managed.

The Start of a New Plan

midlandcountyrecplan — Thu, 27 Mar 2008 02:30:17 +0000

Planning for recreation in Midland County begins at the Wednesday, May 7, 2008, Parks and Recreation Commission meeting, which starts at 7:00 pm in the Board of Commissioners Room of the County Services Building.