Reporter Steve Schulwitz informed us recently that backers of a proposed River Center at Duck Park have nearly reached their $300,000 fundraising target.

That $300,000 is important because is marks the threshold at which backers of the project can start matching grant funds, and those grant funds will help them reach the full estimated $4 million price tag for building the educational center along the Thunder Bay River.

Kudos to the River Center board for all the hard work board members have done toward bringing the project to fruition.

The River Center could be big for Alpena and all of Northeast Michigan, highlighting the natural beauty that makes our region so special, providing important education on those natural resources to local schoolchildren and adults, and creating another tourist draw that could bring more visitors to our community and their wallets to our local businesses.

The River Center would feature aquariums, a platform for research on the river itself, and more.

We hope you’ll send your congratulations to the River Center board, too, by donating to the effort.

Visit thunderbayrivercenter.org for more information or to donate.

(THE ALPENA NEWS)