Traverse City Planning Commission Greenlights Rotary Square Plaza at State and Union

The Traverse City Planning Commission unanimously found the Rotary Square plaza design consistent with the city's master plan, clearing a major regulatory hurdle for the proposed public plaza on the empty lot at the southeast corner of State and Union streets. The approval advances the design toward construction but City Commission sign-off and funding still must be secured before work can begin.

The Traverse City Downtown Development Authority has approved and unveiled a final design for the project, now being referred to as Petoskey Stone, with renderings showing a central lawn, pavilion, a lookout and an overhead layout that layers active and passive uses. Traverseticker describes the design language in project documents this way: “Inspired by the organic forms of the Petoskey Stone, the layout layers active and passive uses around a central lawn,” and “These layers create opportunities for both quiet, intimate moments and larger gatherings when the space is activated.”

Project renderings and DDA materials show amenity details intended for downtown activation: a large grassy central lawn, a pavilion, a canopy area with a small stage, swing benches, multiple seating types and Petoskey stone paving to create hard-surface gathering areas. One rendering includes a lookout with views toward the Boardman-Ottaway River and the city’s FishPass project. The design extends across an adjacent alley toward the river; removable bollards are proposed along the alley’s southern edge so the space can remain accessible daily but be closed to vehicles during events.

Cost estimates published with the final design place construction at just under $2 million, with a total projected budget of $2.55 million after contingencies, construction management and a 15 percent variance are added. Burkholder said, “The next step (for Rotary Square) is to finetune the schematic design and hyper-calibrate those costs so we can move ahead in next year’s budget.” The DDA’s fiscal year runs July 1–June 30; the DDA board will refine costs during spring budgeting ahead of required June adoption by both the DDA board and the City Commission. Officials have projected that, if approvals and funding align, park improvements could start in mid-to-late 2026 and potentially continue into 2027, though funding has not yet been secured.

The design reflects more than a year of community engagement and “over 1,000 points of feedback” gathered through a public survey, multiple stakeholder meetings, five pop-up events at locations including the YMCA and Oryana Community Co-op, and two public open houses. Jason Ball, senior planner with Progressive Companies, emphasized priorities from that process: “From the beginning, this rose to the top one or two things we heard from the community. We can’t miss the opportunity to make that connection to the river and FishPass via Rotary Square.”

Planning commissioners largely praised the concept, with Planning Commission Chairperson Anna Marie Dituri calling it, “These are like the perfect projects. These are what young people want. They’re meant for the future and in alignment with the master plan.” Commissioners also raised specific concerns about long-term maintenance costs and an increase in impervious surfaces compared with the site’s current condition. City Commission approval and identified funding remain the decisive next steps before construction can proceed.