TOWNSHIP OF COVERT

1 TOWNSHIP OF COVERT VAN BUREN COUNTY michigan COMMUNITY PARK, RECREATION, OPEN SPACE, AND GREENWAY PLAN 2017 2022 Prepared by the: COVERT TOWNSHIP PARK ADVISORY BOARD With assistance from: WIGHTMAN & ASSOCIATES, INC. 2303 Pipestone Road Benton Harbor, michigan 49022 219-927-0100 COVERT TOWNSHIP BOARD Dennis Palgen, Supervisor Daywi Cook, Clerk Marilyn Rendell, Treasurer Kenneth Harrington, Trustee Lonzey Taylor, Trustee COVERT PARK ADVISORY BOARD Daywi Cook, TOWNSHIP Board representative Wayne Rendell, Planning Commission representative Flozene King, Secretary Pauline Hoadley Stanley Robinson COVERT TOWNSHIP PLANNING COMMISSION Lonzey Taylor, TOWNSHIP Board representative Amy Muenchow, Chairperson Pauline McGuire, Secretary Austin Harding Mary Joyce Haywood Tom DeRosa Wayne Rendell COVERT TOWNSHIP HALL 73943 Lake Street P.

2 0. Box 35 COVERT , michigan 49043-0035 (269) 764-8986 (269) 764-1771 FAX TABLE OF CONTENTS A. COMMUNITY DESCRIPTION .. 1 Jurisdiction and Purpose .. 1 Location .. 1 Historical Overview .. 3 Planning, Zoning, and Environmental Considerations .. 4 Soils .. 4 Vegetation .. 5 Climate .. 5 Land Use Patterns .. 5 Utilities .. 5 Economic and Employment Characteristics .. 7 Population .. 7 Community Population Projection for Planning Purposes .. 8 Age of Residents .. 8 Sex and Racial Composition of Residents .. 9 Educational Attainment of Residents .. 9 Resident Income Levels .. 9 Special Population Groups ..10 Planning Implications of Population Trends ..10 B. ADMINISTRATIVE STRUCTURE ..13 Formation and Legal Authority ..13 Membership ..13 Organizational Design ..13 Funding ..14 C. FACILITIES INVENTORY AND FUTURE NEEDS.

3 17 Existing COVERT TOWNSHIP Park and Recreation Facilities ..17 Analysis of Land Area Compliance with Planning Standards ..19 Facility Standards Analysis ..20 Regional Pathways/Trails ..22 Pathway/Trail Plans Impacting COVERT TOWNSHIP ..22 Benefits of Pathways/Trails ..23 Recreational Opportunities Outside of the Community ..24 Barrier-Free Compliance ..24 D. DESCRIPTION OF THE PLANNING PROCESS AND THE PUBLIC IMPUT PROCESS ..25 Description of the Planning Public Input Process ..26 E. MISSION, GOALS, AND OBJECTIVES ..29 Background ..29 Mission Statement ..29 Need for the Plan ..30 F. ACTION PROGRAM ..33 Introduction ..33 Facility and Trail Plan, Background, Rationale, and Recommendations ..33 COVERT TOWNSHIP Park Beach and Campground ..33 Bicentennial Park ..36 Reading Garden ..37 COVERT TOWNSHIP Pathway and Trail Plan.

4 45 Capital Improvement Plan and Schedule ..47 LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1. Regional Location Map .. 2 Figure 2. Existing Land Use Map .. 6 Figure 3. Park Location Map ..18 Figure 4. Overview of the Public Input and Plan Development Process ..27 Figure 5. Beach Campground ..33 Figure 6. Bicentennial Park and Reading Garden Park Location Map ..39 Figure 7. New Bicentennial Park Concept ..41 Figure 8. New Reading Garden Concept ..43 Figure 9. COVERT TOWNSHIP Pathways/Trail Plan ..46 LIST OF TABLES Table 1. Population .. 7 Table 2. Age of Residents in 2010 .. 8 Table 3. Educational Attainment of Residents in 2014 .. 9 Table 4. Household Income & Poverty Data .. 9 Table 5. Revenue and Expenditures ..15 Table 6. Existing Land Area as Compared to National Standards ..19 Table 7. Facility Development Analysis ..21 Table 8.

5 Campground Utilization Rate ..34 Table 9. Capital Improvement Plan and Schedule ..47 COVERT TOWNSHIP Parks and Recreation Plan 2017 - 2022 P a g e | 1 A. COMMUNITY DESCRIPTION JURISDICTION AND PURPOSE The planning area under consideration is the limits of COVERT TOWNSHIP . This represents the jurisdictional limits of the COVERT TOWNSHIP Park Advisory Board. The purpose of the Community Park, Recreation, Open Space, and Greenway Plan (referred to throughout the document as the Parks and Recreation Plan) for the development of the COVERT TOWNSHIP Parks System is to establish a strategic plan of actions which will result in the continued provision of park lands for parks and related facilities. The plan is designed to serve as a measurement tool, determining the amount of park land and facilities available in the TOWNSHIP when compared to state and nationally recognized park and recreation standards for communities with a similar size population.

6 The plan is a working document. It will serve as a guide for the orderly completion of specific actions for continued improvement. It also serves to resolve any current and future identified needs within the COVERT TOWNSHIP Parks System. This document has been prepared to conform with the community recreation planning guidelines established by the michigan Department of Natural Resources (MDNR), Recreation Services Division. This completed plan will be submitted to the MDNR to fulfill the requirements for an approved recreation plan update which is a prerequisite to the submission of applications for MDNR financial assistance. That assistance will be sought to implement specific projects included in the COVERT TOWNSHIP Parks and Recreation Plan. LOCATION COVERT TOWNSHIP is in Van Buren County on the west side of the State of michigan .

7 Located on the eastern shore of Lake michigan it is 35 square miles in size. It is transected by I-196, a major arterial route providing easy access between the TOWNSHIP and the Chicago, IL, northern Indiana population centers, and the greater Grand Rapids, MI area. COVERT TOWNSHIP Parks and Recreation Plan 2017 - 2022 P a g e | 2 Figure 1 Regional Location Map COVERT TOWNSHIP Parks and Recreation Plan 2017 - 2022 P a g e | 3 HISTORICAL OVERVIEW COVERT TOWNSHIP was originally known after its organization as the TOWNSHIP of Deerfield. Its name was suggestive of the early pioneer days, when the deer roamed unharmed through its forests. However, with other towns and villages of the same name in the State, a bill was introduced into the Legislature in 1876, changing the name to COVERT . It is located on the western side of Van Buren County, its western border being the waters of Lake michigan .

8 On its northern side is the City of South Haven, on the east the Village of Bangor, while Berrien County joins it on the south. Following its formation, very little progress was made in its development until the mid 1800 s. The heavily timbered lands represented an obstacle to the pioneer There were no rich prairie lands and every acre of tillable soil was obtained at a cost of much labor in clearing. In 1845 the first settler Benoni Young migrated from the distant State of Maine where he lived an isolated life on 160 acres with his family, amid the forest. An early saw mill was built in 1857 which started the true development of the TOWNSHIP . With the harvesting of timber to fuel the growth of Chicago, cleared land was available for settlement. The TOWNSHIP historically served as the center of agriculture and commerce for the surrounding countryside, due to the location of the rail line and proximity to Blue Star Highway running parallel to the Lake michigan shoreline.

9 The TOWNSHIP today retains its agricultural orientation with several farming operations located principally in the southern and eastern portion of the TOWNSHIP . However, per the 2014 American Community Survey estimates, more TOWNSHIP residents commute to jobs located in more distant communities than work in jobs located in the TOWNSHIP . Over sixty (60%) percent of the TOWNSHIP residents employed in the work force commute 20 minutes or more to their place of employment. In addition to providing housing for residents a newer emerging demographic trend has developed. Seasonal and other weekend residents have acquired homes in the TOWNSHIP for part-year occupancy. Some of those part-year residents do become full-year residents. This trend lost some momentum during the Great Recession, however, there are indications that this newer historical trend is being re-established concurrent with an improving overall economy.

10 COVERT TOWNSHIP Parks and Recreation Plan 2017 - 2022 P a g e | 4 PLANNING, ZONING, AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONSIDERATIONS The TOWNSHIP prepared its first Master Plan in 2004. A companion document the COVERT TOWNSHIP Coastal Management Plan was also completed in 2004. In combination, both documents established a framework for future land use. In the preparation of these two documents, the TOWNSHIP addressed many critical future development issues. The preparation of the initial Park and Recreation Plan was a result of discussions completed in the preparation of those two documents. It established the need to have a formal Parks and Recreation Plan for the TOWNSHIP . SOILS The General Soils Map of Van Buren County indicates the primary soil type within the TOWNSHIP are of the Oakville Association. This association is characterized as having undulating to very steep topography with well drained sandy soils on beach ridges and dunes.