A long-running vision of a trail encircling Boardman Lake is moving closer to completion, aided by a $95,000 state grant toward that and other local trail-related projects.

The coastal zone management (CZM) grant awarded by the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality will help pay for preliminary design work that could soon begin on the final two miles of the approximately five-mile loop around Boardman Lake. The grant, $75,000 of which will go toward the lake trail work, is the latest CZM grant to support sections of the lake’s trail development.

Grand Traverse County sought bids for preliminary design services and plans to present a recommended contractor to the county Board of Commissioners at a Nov. 24 meeting. If approved, work could begin in December, says Jean Derenzy, deputy director of Grand Traverse County planning and development.

The state money is being matched by county Brownfield Redevelopment Authority funding, bringing a total of $150,000 for the current phase of the project.

The design work moves forward the west leg of a trail popular with runners, cyclists and walkers – a project that could ultimately take, by some estimates, $3 million to $3.5 million to complete, says Julie Clark, executive director of Traverse Area Recreation and Transportation Trails (TART).

She says the trail, which at the lake’s north end connects with the TART network, is a commuting and recreational route as well as a destination. “The way the Boardman Lake trail currently is described is a hidden jewel within Traverse City," Clark says. "I think what the completion will do is make that jewel shine. There are just so few communities that have a fantastic trail system, around a lake, within them.”

Once a consultant is hired to do preliminary design, TART Trails, which is assisting the county with project management, will move forward with public outreach that will include meeting with landowners and discussing the trail’s aspects and easement acquisitions. More than $250,000 worth of easements have been donated by property owners around the lake for parts of the trail.

Design work in the coming months will help shape the final trail section’s alignment, characteristics, and ultimately, construction and maintenance costs, Clark says. The CZM grant has been a “key catalyst,” she says. "It took us from ‘if’ and moved us to ‘when.’"

The grant money is also supporting new initiatives: development of a Boardman River water trail and “trail town” master plans for Union Township, Mayfield Township, Garfield Township and Traverse City.

The Land Information Access Association (LIAA) is currently leading that work. For the water trail, steps include organizing a steering committee to help develop a trail master plan, seeking public input and doing an inventory of the river to identify elements like access sites, gaps in access, river features and hazards, says Harry Burkholder, LIAA executive director.

A designated water trail would tap into interest in the river and in water recreational opportunities, both for area residents and tourists, Burkholder says. “It attracts those trail tourists and those outdoor tourists to come to our community.” And, “from an environmental perspective,” he says, “it puts more eyes and ears on the water” that can aid in conservation.

Burkholder says Rotary Charities of Traverse City is contributing about $20,000 in in-kind services for a $40,000 total toward water trail and trail towns planning. Such trail town plans, which LIAA has developed with other communities, can serve as a blueprint for communities to capitalize on their trail networks and trail-based tourism, potentially also spurring economic development.