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Millennium Park to add boathouse, watercraft rentals
Visitors to Kent County's nearly 1,500-acre Millennium Park soon will be able to rent kayaks and canoes, or enjoy the view from an overhanging water deck surrounding a new boathouse.
Thanks to an $800,000 gift from the second generation of the DeVos family, crews will break ground this summer on the 11,000-square-foot facility -- the latest addition to the sprawling park
The project was to be announced today by Grand Rapids businessman Peter Secchia, who has led efforts to raise private funds for many of the park's features.
"Just like so many other things in Grand Rapids, the DeVos family came to our rescue," Secchia said.
Millennium Park already features a swimming beach, splash area, a system of trails and fishing areas.
It stretches along the Grand River through Grand Rapids, Walker, Wyoming and Grandville and is bounded by Butterworth Drive, Wilson Avenue, Market Avenue and Indian Mounds Drive.
Since the beach opened to the public in 2003, the park has proven popular with everyone from inner-city families to out-of-town guests.
"It's still the best melting pot in West Michigan," Kent County Parks Director Roger Sabine said.
The beachhouse will feature restrooms and have nonmotorized watercraft such as kayaks, canoes, rowboats and paddle boats for rent, he said. The fees have not yet been determined.
Design and construction costs of the project are being covered entirely by private donations, Sabine said. Operational costs will be offset by boat rental fees.
The design of the new boathouse is similar to the wood and stone design of the nearby Van Andel Bathhouse, Sabine said.
Development of the park began about nine years ago when mining crews began sculpting man-made lakes into what was mostly a gravel pit.
In August 2003, a swimming beach and bathhouse opened and was followed by a splash park for small children.
Last year saw the opening of 16 miles of the 20-mile Fred Meijer Millennium Trail Network.
To date, the county has secured about 1,465 acres of park with the help of the Parks Acquisition and Development Fund.
Sabine said remaining parcels are on the "fringe" of the property, along Butterworth and Maynard Avenue.
"It doesn't amount to much, and we didn't buy any land last year," he said.
