MARQUETTE — Several Marquette County land acquisition projects have been signed into legislation through the Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources announced.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer recently signed the legislation, which authorizes $26 million in MNRTF acquisition grants and recreation development grants for the state.

An acquisition grant of $200,000 will go toward Iron Belle Trail easements, specifically acquisition of 10.44 miles of 30-foot-wide hiking trail easements in Marquette and Ontonagon counties.

The project is to secure permanent trail easement rights for the hiking portion of the Iron Belle Trail and the North Country National Scenic Trail.

A $29,600 grant will go to the Iron Ore Heritage Recreation Authority for acquisition of 3 acres of property in Negaunee along the 47-mile Iron Ore Heritage Trail.

A trailhead will be developed to support a variety of trail users, including walkers, bikers, off-road vehicles and snowmobiles.

The parcel of property is at the corner of Marquette County Road 492 and M-35. The future trailhead will include parking and restrooms that will be open 24/7 year-round. It also will provide an access point for users of the Marquette-to-Negaunee segment, a distance of 14 miles.

Other land acquisition grants in the Upper Peninsula include $300,000 for 157.5 acres adjacent to Tahquamenon Falls State Park for a public water access site on the Tahquamenon River. Another grant of $41,900 is for acquisition of a roughly 2-acre parcel on M-134 to be developed for parking to serve multiple recreational venues, including the nearby Hessel Harbor and Launch as a trailhead for regional snowmobile trails, and the adjoining 40-acre Michigan Nature Association Beaver Dam Nature Sanctuary.

Grants for recreational development projects in the U.P. include $297,000 to Grant Township for development of 15.6 miles of a 30-mile bike-optimized, looped multi-use non-motorized trail through terrain paralleling Lake Superior at Keweenaw Point; $280,000 to the city of Ironwood for its Miners Memorial Heritage Park Mountain Bike Trail System; $58,000 to Bates Township for Paint River Access Site improvements on the Bates-Crystal Falls Township Paint River Water Trail; and $50,000 for replacement of a raft canopy at Palms Book State Park.

Other U.P. recreational development project grants are: $300,000 to the city of Escanaba for the north city limits non-motorized pathway; $50,000 for accessibility at the A. Gene Gazlay Visitor Center at Fayette Historic State Park; $299,900 for development of a 3-mile long, 10-foot-wide paved recreational trail from Bessemer to Ramsay as part of the Iron Belle Trail; and $85,000 for developing a 25-site semi-modern campground at Rapid River Falls Park.

Collectively, the $26 million of trust fund grants is matched with nearly $16 million of additional funding for a total of $41.9 million being invested in land acquisition and development projects across Michigan.

Christie Bleck can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 250. Her email address is cbleck@miningjournal.net.