TC State Park Closures Planned

A series of major closures are coming to the Keith J. Charters Traverse City State Park to accommodate $8.5 million in improvements, including "improved access, new camping amenities, and modern facilities," according to the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR). Closures are taking place now through April 1 and then again from July 7 (after the National Cherry Festival) through the end of the 2026 camping season.

As previously reported by The Ticker,  the project – funded by American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) dollars – will include removing the pedestrian bridge over US-31 and creating a new park entrance with a traffic signal and pedestrian crosswalks, tearing down the lodge and building new park headquarters, and improving the park’s sanitation pump-out capacity, internal traffic circulation, and customer service areas. The Three Mile Road/US-31 intersection will also be reconstructed during the park’s closure in early 2026. The upgrades are the result of feedback from hundreds of residents and campground users when the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR) created the park’s first-ever management plan in 2021.

According to the DNR, the first phase of work begins this week with the removal of trees, primarily at the park's entrance off U.S. 31 and on land south of Mitchell Creek. The park will be closed now through April 1 for work, including to pedestrian traffic.

"While the majority of the campground will retain its existing tree cover, campers may notice the changes in the treescape, particularly near the park entrance, parallel to U.S. 31/Munson Avenue and the back of northwest campsites," the DNR said in a release. "The DNR will prioritize saving mature trees during construction and implement a comprehensive landscape and tree replanting program to mitigate losses." Tree removal must take place in the winter outside the growing season to reduce the risk of oak wilt disease spread.

The campground will reopen for the spring and early summer, including the National Cherry Festival. On July 7, the State Park will close for the second phase of improvements and will remain closed throughout the rest of the 2025 and 2026 camping seasons. The park’s day-use area along Grand Traverse Bay will remain open during park construction, although occasional closures may be required for intersection work.

A joint MDOT-DNR public meeting will be scheduled in early 2025 to provide more information on the U.S. 31 and park access/campground improvements, according to the release.