Posted on December 20, 2018
The fundraising campaign to resurrect Bay Beach has hit a milestone.
And now a real beach is on the horizon.
“We won’t need to do anything out there for another 50, 75 years,” said Mayor Jim Schmitt.
The Green Bay Packers put up $250,000 for the cause investing in Green Bay’s future, and the beautification of Bay Beach.
“We just thought it was a perfect time to provide an impact grant,” said Mark Murphy, Packers President/CEO. “Hopefully people across the community will rally and match our grant.”
The timeline is 18 months–start work in 2019 and open in the spring of 2020.
And geology is in the city’s favor.
“It’s actually a nice, firm sand that’s there, so we have a good base to start with,” Dan Ditscheit, the city’s park director. “All that we’re really doing is adding sand over what’s there right now.
Swimming stopped in the 30s and now, nearly 90 years later, it is coming back.
“We’ve done a lot of water testing over the last few years, and what we’ve found is that it’s really similar to all other beaches along Lake Michigan,” he said.
The restored waterfront will run 1,000 feet long, have seating overlooking the beach, and a pier 450ft over the bay.
“We really want to focus on getting the Ferris wheel built, and getting the beach and pier and boardwalk done,” said Ditscheit. “Those are our highest priorities right now.”
The city plans to announce additional amenities to the bay beach plan as the project develops.
Source: Green Bay
