The stretch of Lakeshore Boulevard between Wright and Hawley streets is a beloved section of road, what with its proximity to Lake Superior and providing a view of the Lake Superior and Ishpeming Railroad Ore Dock.

Right now, though, it looks like a war zone following a Nov. 27 storm that caused catastrophic damage.

Finally, it appears action to remedy the situation will happen soon.

The Marquette City Commission has OK’d the first phase of the plan, including a $2.27 million construction contract, to relocate this stretch of Lakeshore Boulevard inland about 300 feet at its most westerly limit and to raise it 4 to 5 feet. Utilities also will be installed, plus there will be a roundabout built at the intersection of Lakeshore and Wright with a detention basin to help with stormwater treatment.

Anticipated to last most of the summer and into the fall, the project will include relocating the multi-use path and installing new parking areas as well as stabilizing the shoreline near the south end of the stretch.

The total price tag is around $10 million, with the city waiting on a potential grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Phase one of the construction project was approved under the city’s fiscal year 2020 budget.

A second phase is expected to include shoreline restoration, with money not spent on the multi-use path or the parking lots to go toward features such as dune creation, native plants and others.

In past years, there was sort of a “hands off” approach to this section of Lakeshore Boulevard, with people wanting to keep the aging Lombardy poplars that grow along the road, for instance.

However, years of pounding winds and surf, coupled with high Lake Superior water levels, have taken their toll.

City Manager Mike Angeli noted at the meeting that the route is “very important” to the community.

We agree. Sure, people can keep on doing what they’ve been doing: taking the detour and driving on Hawley Street and then turning east to get to Presque Isle Park or whatever destination lies in that direction.

However, patience is needed during what is hopefully – and literally – the “home stretch” of the project.

Not only do local residents enjoy traveling on this section of Lakeshore, tourists enjoy it as well. Likely many visitors from out of town get on Lakeshore at some point, and then travel on the road to enjoy the Lake Superior scenery along the way.

And if the project is constructed in the manner it’s intended, what with the shoreline restoration aspect, the city might have a better section of Lakeshore Boulevard than it did before the damage.