MUSKEGON, Mich. — A big construction project underway in Muskegon sparked quite the controversy over a Muskegon bike path, particularly the portion running along the shoreline near the Adelaide Pointe development.
A post on social media had a lot of people talking about the project and rumors spreading over whether the project would take that portion of the path away permanently. The city manager and developer said it won’t.
“What we've seen on Facebook that transpired on the Muskegon Informed page is that it's going to be taken away, it's going to be redirected away from the shoreline, and that's false,” Aubrey Glick, operations and marketing manager at Adelaide Pointe/Leestma Management said.
Glick said the new bike path they plan to put in at the development site will be better than before and bikers will have a better view and more space.
“The bike path is not going anywhere, it's going right back to where it was but even better,” Glick said. "It’s going to be back; it’s going to have several different express routes and ways through the shoreline. Basically, all of the false narratives that are being debunked right now is that public access is being taken away and it's not, it's going to be there and ready to go.”
The extensive construction project will bring condos, restaurants, bars and new recreational space to the area. The development company said the entire project is expected to be completed sometime in 2026, but the new bike path will be accessible as soon as this summer.
“During the construction project process, the bike path is not accessible in that portion of Adelaide Pointe. However, when the project is complete, the bike path will largely be the same as it was prior to the project,” Jonathan Seyferth, city manager of Muskegon said. "In some instances, the bike path will be closer to the water than it was before.”
The city manager said he does understand people’s frustration. However, with safety being first, the dismantling of the bike path near Adelaide Pointe was necessary while work is underway.
“During this time of construction, it is disconcerting to go out there and seeing there is a fence and the bike trail that was there has really been ripped out, but it will be replaced as the construction wraps up, and it's safe for folks to ride through on their bikes,” Seyferth said.
The woman who made the original post made a new post stating she was misinformed about what she said about the bike path. For more information on the construction project, or to track the progress, visit adelaidepointe.com, or visit the City of Muskegon's website.
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