Ottawa County is home to many of West Michigan’s premiere recreational resources. Because of this, the Department has been working to highlight these assets and offer a unique experience to both residents and tourists by developing a series of pre-selected bike route maps for residents, tourists, and cyclists to showcase all of the great regional pathway and paved shoulder connections that exist in Ottawa County. These will include pre-selected restaurant and brewery tour maps, park tour maps, historical Ottawa tour maps, popular cycling route maps, festival tour maps, and many more. This information will eventually be available through a mobile-friendly website.
The Department also continues to seek opportunities to assist in expanding Ottawa County’s non-motorized network. The Department was able to successfully raise the funds to construct four-foot paved shoulders along the entirety of Lakeshore Drive between Holland State Park and Robbins Road near Grand Haven. Completed in 2021, road cyclists and vehicles now have ample room to travel the western shoreline of the county.
The effort to construct four-foot-wide paved shoulders on Lakeshore Drive began in 2002 when the Ottawa County Non-Motorized Pathway Plan was created. This plan identified the route as an important regional corridor and sought to improve non-motorized facilities for cyclists of all ages and abilities. In addition to the separated Lakeshore Drive pathway, paved shoulder facilities allow for faster cycling, providing a resource for road cyclists and those training for competitive cycling events.
The project is the result of collaboration between public, private, and nonprofit organizations. The four-foot-wide paved shoulders have been constructed in various stages over the years in partnership with the Ottawa County Road Commission. The latest segments of these improvements would never have been possible without the generous donations of the following organizations:
- Ottawa County
- Haworth
- Ottawa County Parks Commission
- Shine Foundation
- Park Township Rock ‘n’ Road Cycle
- Macatawa Area Coordinating Council
- Velo City Cycles