GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Ah-Nab-Awen Park is a Grand Rapids favorite for many visitors, like Molly Nalamasu.
"It changes so much throughout the seasons," said Nalamasu. "I love being next to the water. Got some historical sites over there with the museum. It's awesome."
However, with the planned project involving many organizations and partners, the popular rivers-edge park could soon be connected to many others.
"It would be great to have more routes or connected routes to go back and forth," said Nalamasu. "And I actually thought they all were connected when I first moved here two years ago, and I was a little bit disappointed that they weren't."
The goal of the project is to connect trail systems throughout West Michigan following the Grand River from east to west, adding up to 85 miles of non-motor vehicle trails.
While the project has been in the works for years, more and more park systems have been coming in to collaborate. Just recently, almost $1 million was given to complete the The Bass River Segment of the Idema Explorers Trail, which will connect to the Greenway.
"I think their vision is a contiguous park trail system that connects a lot of the parks that each community has and the counties have, from more outside of Grand Rapids all the way to the lakeshore," said Josh Lunger.
Lunger is the Vice President of Government Affairs for the Grand Rapids Chamber of Commerce.
He said that with the addition of other projects currently going on in Grand Rapids, the Greenway is another piece to the West Michigan puzzle.
"When we talk about the amphitheater and the soccer stadium, those aren't just for Grand Rapids," said Lunger. "Those are not just for Kent County, even, right? Those are going to draw people from across West Michigan. They're real. They're real community assets that are going to help raise everyone's quality of life in the park system and the trail system is one more element that connects it all as well."
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