By Jessica Mathews / news@whmi.com


The City of Brighton is looking to secure grant funding to help revitalize Millpond Park.

As part of the upcoming Downtown Streetscape project set to take place in spring of 2023, the Brighton City Council will be voting to submit a grant application to the Land & Water Conservation Fund. The grant would cover the revitalization of the part of Millpond Park that is between the south-end of the Millpond and Main Street.

The project would establish an ADA-compliant route from Main Street and the new Festival Square into the park and connect to the rest of Millpond Park. Natural seats/benches would be located throughout Festival Park with a proposed fire pit feature extending activity at the park throughout the year.

Safety measures would be implemented at the Millpond shoreline such as barrier plantings at the pond edge and a hardscape element such as gabion/riprap. The naturalized shoreline aims to deter wildlife from easily accessing Festival Park from the Millpond. A naturalistic park design would integrate the Millpond into the downtown area and help with stewardship of the Millpond.

The City says the project would also create new opportunities for people to access the Millpond Park and it would serve as a hub for regional bike trails with bike racks and amenities to be provided. The project is said to support future plans to update the Tridge structure and existing kayak access near City Hall could be expanded in the future.

The anticipated grant amount is $112,357 with a 50% local match for a total project cost of $224,715.

The design concept is attached. A link to the full Downtown Streetscape project is provided.