MUSKEGON HEIGHTS, MI - The Muskegon Area Transit System is planning to hold a second community engagement workshop to present its plan for a proposed passenger transfer terminal in Muskegon Heights.
The meeting is scheduled from 5-6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, March 21, at Muskegon Heights City Hall, 2724 Peck St. MATS representatives will use the meeting to present proposed site and concept plans. They'll also ask for additional community input.
MATS hopes to build a brand new terminal to replace its existing, enclosed passenger area at the Muskegon Heights Farmer's Market, located at the intersection of Center and Baker streets. The new terminal may be designed to offer better amenities for riders such as heating and cooling and public restrooms.
MATS System Manager Jim Koens said a design study and site plans are still in the earliest phases, but MATS staff have narrowed down two possible locations. The first option would be to build a larger terminal at the current location, but that would mean having to move the Farmer's Market to a portion of the Rowan Park and Strand Theater parking lot.
The second option includes building the terminal on an unused section of Rowan Park on Maffett Street between Columbia and Broadway avenues. This option would position the terminal closer to the downtown business corridor.
Both locations have financial and logistical challenges. Keeping the location at Baker and Center would benefit MATS because it wouldn't have to change its bus routes.
But a location at Rowan Park could also prove fruitful for riders and the city's Downtown Development Authority as it seeks to increase visitor foot traffic downtown.
The MATS project management team hopes to pay for the new terminal with $500,000 allocated from federal and state grants, which they hope to receive by 2020, Koens said. MATS will seek additional grants and external funding if the project's cost exceeds $500,000.
MATS has been collecting community input on the project since late 2107. A community forum helped locals get a broad understanding of the project and helped inform MATS on ridership needs. That input later informed consultants who narrowed down the potential terminal locations from 50 different options.
The goal of the upcoming meeting will be to close the "feedback loop" with the community, and to collected user perspectives to help select a possible site or design concept, according to a news release.
For more information on the meeting and the proposed terminal, visit http://matsbus.bria2.net.