A new trail has been opened in Lake Charter Township, connecting the city of Bridgman with the popular Lake Township Park.
Lake Township Supervisor Zack Carson tells us the ribbon cutting was held Friday for the John Gast Memorial Trail, a 1.2 mile, multi-use, non-motorized pathway running along Gast Road from Bridgman High School to the park. He says the city sidewalk connects Lake Street in Bridgman to the high school, and then the new trail picks up the rest of the distance to the park.
“That road actually has very narrow shoulders, and that was one of the biggest reasons,” Carson said. “The park is utilized by the high school for some events and cross-country events go out there, so it’s a nice way to give the kids a safe way to get down there.”
Carson says the roughly $1 million trail has been in the township’s parks master plan for several years, with former Supervisor John Gast being a supporter from the beginning. Carson’s glad to see it come to fruition.
“We’re beyond excited to have it finished. It was a long time in the making. And it was a long time vision of John Gast. And again, we just really wanted to see it get finished so all the community could use it, and honestly, to dedicate in his name so he can always be remembered.”
John Gast was the supervisor of the township from 2002 through his death in 2022.
Carson says the new trail was paid for with a combination of township and grant funding. The project received support from the Frederick S. Upton Foundation, the DALMAC foundation, Lucas Brown at True Blue Financial, and the Berrien Community Foundation.
For now, the trail will be seasonal, but Carson says over time, the township may maintain in the winter as well.
