News Photo by Steve Schulwitz Robert Dault II, left, and his son Dillyn Dault enjoy the water features at the splash park in Alpena. The Rotary Club of Alpena is seeking public input about the expansion of the splash park.

ALPENA — The Rotary Club of Alpena will soon begin seeking public input regarding the expansion of the splash park at Starlite Beach.

The club was the primary driver in making the park a reality in 2018 and wants to add to it.

Past club President Joanne Gallagher said in order to provide amenities people want and need at the beach, the community — especially users of the park — need to provide input, suggestions, and concerns.

She said the input will be used to have an addition to the park designed.

Gallagher said there will be a social media blitz seeking information and the club will accept emails from the public on the topic.

The design of the expansion will be revealed at next year’s Brew on the Bay event in March, she said.

People can share their thoughts by emailing the club at alpenarotary@outlook.com.

“We want people to provide us information about how they use the park and what it might be missing,” Gallagher said. “We want the community to weigh-in to what the park needs to look like for the users.”

In June, Rotary Club President Stacey Parr suggested some of the money raised for splash park improvements could be used in ways that aren’t directly tied to the water features and the club hopes some new water toys are added.

Gallagher said Wednesday what the expansion will include is still up in the air, pending input from the community.

“We’re open to anything, within reality,” she said. “We know there is a shortage of seating, so that could be a component of the project, but right now, we just want to know what people are thinking.”

The splash park opened in the summer of 2018 after the Rotary Club raised money for it and other partners such as the city, the Alpena County Youth and Recreation Fund, Besser Foundation, MBank and Alpena Agency helped to make the splash park a reality.

The city also received a $250,000 Michigan Department of Natural Resource Trust Fund grant, which improved the beach area and added amenities up and down the beach.

Before the splash park opened, Gallagher said the club knew it would likely be a hit, especially for kids. The frequent use it has received since has exceeded expectations, Gallagher said, which also prompted the club to add to the park.

“We are beyond thrilled, because you never know when you do a project how it will be received and we’re really pleased that something we did for the community has had such a big impact,” Gallagher said. “I don’t think any project can be successful without asking the people what they believe is best, so once again, we want input to make the park the best we can.”

It is expected the Rotary Club will work in coordination with the city — which owns the park — on the expansion plan.

In June, City Engineer Steve Shultz said the park’s initial design allows for water features to be easily removed and swapped out. He said purchasing new water features would allow the city to exchange different features in and out when necessary.

Other unseen upgrades are needed as well to help make the park operate more efficiently, Shultz said, including an upgrade of the circulation system because more water is being used than originally projected.

He said a filter system is also being designed for the park.

Despite those needed improvements, Shultz said the park remains in good condition.

“It has held up very well,” he said. “We are working on a little filter system now because we get a lot of sand in it, but it works great. When you consider all of the elements of weather, play, and heavy use, you develop some leaks here and there, but we fix them. Overall, it has held up well and we’re very happy with it.”

Gallagher said the Rotary Club will accept comments on the splash park until the end of November. They will then turn the information over to the company that designed the existing park and the company will create a design plan.

In the meantime, the Rotary Club plans to fundraise for the project.