Courtesy Photo This rendering provided by Rogers City shows what the Avenue of Flags could look like if a proposed project moves forward.

ALPENA — Rogers City continues to move forward with a plan to repurpose the popular Avenue of Flags.

The city wants to enhance the property on the south side of Michigan Avenue, where the Avenue of Flags is located, and do away with the westbound lane and replace the concrete with a park.

The eastbound lane would transition from the one-way street it is today, to a two-way road.

Rogers City Mayor Scott McLennan said public input will be accepted about the proposed project before any final decision about moving forward or not is made.

The city received a $220,000 National Fish and Wildlife Foundation grant via Huron Pines to put toward the project.

Huron Pines was able to acquire the grant money because of the positive impact the project would have on the local environment.

If completed, the new construction would help limit the amount of stormwater that enters the city’s storm drains and drains into Lake Huron.

By adding grass and soil, the rain water would be absorbed into the ground and filtered as it runs into the lake, McLennan said.

The city is also accepting donations that are deposited into the Eugene Lingo Avenue of Flags fund, which is held by the Community Foundation for Northeast Michigan. People can make a donation on the foundation’s website.

McLennan said adding more green space downtown, which would include benches and other amenities, would enhance the beauty of the Avenue of Flags and save taxpayers money. He said the one-lane street costs about $160,000 to repave and converting that side of the road would eliminate the cost of road improvements and maintenance.

“We are on a listening mission and we are going to listen to the community to hear what it has to say about what they want,” McLennan said. “Maybe they will want to spend the money to keep the road or maybe they will want to have a nice lawn where the pavement was. We want people’s thoughts and opinions.”

McLennan said the city intends to host a workshop about the project no later than May.

The Avenue of Flags dates back to the 1970s when Calcite employee Eugene Lingo had an idea of creating an avenue of flags in the heart of downtown. The 33 flagpoles were erected and flags of Great Lakes shipping lines were placed on display.

That was fitting because of Rogers City’s rich shipping history, but over time, many of the companies closed and now the Avenue of Flags looks a bit different.

McLennan said now, flags representing the state, Rogers City, Onaway and Posen, the military, as well as police and firefighters, wave above the street. He added that local groups and organizations are represented with flags sometimes, as are important initiatives, like suicide awareness month and flags that salute the nation’s missing in action and prisoners of war.

The mayor stressed that if the improvement project moves forward, it will not diminish the Avenue of Flags as they are now, but it will likely make it more appealing because of the added greenery and amenities.

“It would eliminate concrete and add greenspace,” he said. “We don’t want to take anything from the Avenue of Flags, but only enhance it, while saving taxpayers dollars.”

Steve Schulwitz can be reached at 989-358-5689 or sschulwitz@TheAlpenaNews.com. Follow him on X @ss_alpenanews.com.