Posted on March 19, 2025
BERRIEN COUNTY, Mich.– The City of St. Joseph joined Benton Harbor and St. Joseph Charter Township to launch a new entity, the “St. Joseph River Harbor Authority,” to oversee future dredging projects and more.
Local marina owners say an entity like this is needed; every year the water levels are different, and businesses rely on boating for the local economy.
“It’s unusual in that the St. Joe River in this area of Berrien County passes right through the middle of three bordering communities,” said Dan Fette, Berrien County’s Director of Community Development.
Where the river meets the lake, the Army Corps of Engineers is responsible for yearly dredging and maintenance to maintain the shipping routes. But what about upriver?
“It really is a shared responsibility but one that we haven’t had a formal arrangement for in the past,” said Emily Hackworth, St. Joseph city manager.
The harbor authority is five years in the making, Fette said.
“It’s become even more apparent in the last year for the need to have an entity like the harbor authority,” he said. “The water levels throughout the Great Lakes basin are very low right now. The St. Joe River has become, in some cases, impassible for recreational watercraft, and that’s kind of a mad scramble right now to figure out how to temporarily address that issue.”
COVID-19 interrupted the work, but on Monday night, the St. Joe River Harbor Authority became official. It’s essentially a municipal corporation between the City of St. Joseph, the City of Benton Harbor, and the St. Joseph Charter Township.
“This gives us the opportunity to work together to make sure that we are appropriately investing in this area,” Hackworth said.
What will it do?
“[It is] empowered to perform activities such as river dredging, the adoption of ordinances regulating the recreational use of that waterway and also recommending improvements to the shoreline properties and developments,” Fette said.
The authority must now be registered as a corporation in the State of Michigan. Then, each municipality will appoint two members and will jointly choose a seventh member.
The seven-member authority will then create an overall work plan for the next few years.
“It’s so important for recreation, for commerce, people love seeing the ships come in and out, it’s just really essential that we maintain the harbor, and that it continues to work for everyone,” Hackworth said.
The work plan could include some kind of financing plan for river dredging and other maintenance work.
“It’s going to take a while to establish exactly what the goals and objectives of the new authority will be, but it’s largely going to be focused on managing the waterway, ensuring it’s accessible for recreational uses, and trying to improve some of the amenities on the shoreline,” Fette said.
