MUSKEGON, MI - The city of Muskegon has a plan to incorporate port enterprise, tourism activities, development and public access around the south shore of Muskegon Lake.

The draft Imagine Muskegon Lake plan is now available for public viewing and comments. Comments will be taken through Friday, Feb. 23, said Mike Franzak, Muskegon city planning director. The plan is expected to be presented to city council for a vote on Tuesday, March 27.

The plan was created using public input collected in October. The public's top priorities presented at that session were:

Complete intersections: Increase the number of intersections - from six to 10 - within one-quarter mile of the shoreline that connect the waterfront to completed sidewalks, striped crosswalks on all sides and ADA-compliant curb cuts.

Publicly-owned land along the waterfront: At least maintain the current 140 acres of current publicly-owned land along the waterfront.

2. Public shoreline: At least maintain the current 4.6 miles of publicly-owned shoreline.

Multi-use paths and trails: Increase the miles of multi-use off-street paths along the shoreline - from 8.4 to 10 miles - and in the city - from 11.9 to 16 miles.

Other goals include increasing the miles of bike lanes and paved shoulders, increasing the number of municipal boat slips and public and private transient slips, adding fish cleaning stations, adding a third public beach, adding a fifth boat launch and three fishing piers, and increased residential and mixed-use development.

"Building on past plans such as the 2015 Muskegon Lake Vision 2020, Imagine Muskegon Lake provides the city, community leadership, property owners and potential investors with a cohesive approach to the Muskegon Lake shoreline's future from the former (B.C.) Cobb plant to (Pere Marquette) Park," said Dave Alexander, of Downtown Muskegon Now.

In the plan, the shoreline is split into six sections: the channel district; the Bluffton district; the Lakeside district; Western waterfront district; central waterfront district; and port innovation district. Priorities are organized into "convene" (activity centers), "sustain" (green space), "connect" (linking areas together) and "advance" (development).

Each section includes 3-year implementation strategies, such as adopting ordinances, forming committees, amending master plans and timelines for completion of certain projects.

Projects in the plan include:

Channel District: Pere Marquette Park

Temporary cottage pocket neighborhood in the Beach Street loop

Pedestrian street through Beach Street loop

Bike share or rental

retail chalets

picnic area

Bluffton District: Intersection upgrades

Roundabout at Beach Street and Lakeshore Drive

Lakeside District: McGraft Park extension

Lake overlooks and fishing piers

New marina

Trails

Boardwalks through wetlands

Paddlesport launches

Western Waterfront District: Western end of West Western Avenue

Residential development

Beach

Marina

Pier

Transient boat docks

Boat storage

Multi-use trail

Intersection upgrades

Western Waterfront District: Mart Dock

Water taxi

Cruise ship dock and port enterprises

Waterfront park

Residential development

Retail space

Boardwalk

Overlook

Western Waterfront District: Intersection upgrades

Third Street and Shoreline Drive

Fourth Street and Shoreline Drive

Seventh Street and Shoreline Drive

Central Waterfront District: Terrace Point

Beach barge

Pedestrian promenade

Residential development

Transient boat docking

Central Waterfront District: Intersection upgrades

Terrace Street and Shoreline Drive

Marquette Avenue and Moses J. Jones Parkway

First Street and Shoreline Drive

Port Innovation District: Richards Park

Enhanced public boat and paddle sport launch

Boardwalks and overlooks

Playground and splashpad

Disc golf course

Kayak storage

Port Innovation District: Intersection upgrades

Veterans' Memorial Park and Muskegon Causeway

View the complete plan here.

To comment on the plan, contact Franzak at 231-724-6702.