OGL Great Lakes Note: St. Clair Riverfront Revival Recognized for Success

Recognizing Success - The St. Clair Riverfront Revival

The St. Clair Riverfront Revival Project in Port Huron and St. Clair County was awarded with SEMCOG’s first-ever Regional Showcase Award on March 30, recognizing the impacts of over three miles of recent shoreline revitalization, economic development, and recreation projects along the St. Clair River.

The waterfront’s revival mirrors the mission of the Office of the Great Lakes to protect, restore, and sustain Michigan’s water resources. Support from the OGL’s Coastal and Great Lakes programs helped St. Clair communities overcome the waterfront’s history of pollution to be reinvented as a fresh community space.

St. Clair County Parks converted a former brownfield into a natural wetlands park and the Community Foundation of St. Clair County restored nearly a mile of shoreline at the Blue Water River Walk , reestablishing native fish, wildlife, and plant species for the community to enjoy. The Blue Water River Walk leveraged over $6 million in public and private partnership funds, including contributions from the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, to make the restoration possible. Today, the river walk features a multi-use trail, observation dock, public art, event space, and an interactive outdoor classroom. It is the site of the annual Sturgeon Festival.

The OGL Coastal Management Program contributed to development of Michigan’s first national water trail with its early support of the Blueways of St. Clair, funding of several disability-accessible kayak launches, and partnership with the Department of Natural Resources to launch the design of a state-designated water trails program. It is moving forward with a coastal wetland walkway and interpretive signage project to increase public access.  

As part of the OGL’s Areas of Concern program, the office has implemented numerous projects that contribute to improving the river’s health including those to reestablish connectivity, provide fish and wildlife habitat, and remediate pollution.

The Regional Showcase Award highlights the way environmental cleanups impact waterfront communities by making underutilized and neglected areas worthy of investment, lifting the burden of industrial legacies.

Learn how the Office of the Great Lakes works to protect, restore, and sustain Michigan’s water resources and waterfront communities at www.michigan.gov/deqogl, or call the office at 517-284-5035.

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