James Street Plaza to be redesigned into Legacy Park; fundraiser planned on Badger.

James Street Plaza to be redesigned into Legacy Park; fundraiser planned on Badger. 

#DowntownLudington.

LUDINGTON — The Downtown Ludington Board is planning to enhance the gathering space currently referred to as the James Street Plaza by creating a walk through Ludington’s history and renaming the space Legacy Park. An event is planned in May to raise money for the project.

The plans include a seating area with a fire-pit to reflect Ludington’s Native American beginnings; a timber-frame pavilion will put a roof over the farmers market and will reflect the town’s lumber heritage. Artifacts from the city’s maritime history will be showcased throughout the park as well.

“This is a project that has been in the planning stages for years,” said Jen Tooman, communications and marketing manager for the Downtown Ludington Board, “I am so thrilled to see it take shape. This space is already an important part of our downtown community. The improvements will double as a gathering space and an open-air museum of sorts that will tell Ludington’s story.”

Names of donors will be recognized in a sculpture that will reside in the park.

A fund-raising event, the Doppel Dock Party, will take place on Saturday, May 20 at the dock of the SS Badger. A tapas style dinner will take place in a dockside tent from 6 to 8 p.m. and will feature food from 12 downtown restaurants along with beer brewed at the Jamesport Brewery.

At 7 p.mm, ticket holders will have a front row seat to welcome the Badger back to its home dock from its first Saturday sailing of 2017. At 8 p.m., boarding begins and passengers will find craft beer and cider from 12 Michigan breweries on the ship. Attendees can explore the ship, buy souvenirs in the Badger Boutique gift shop and listen to Djypsy Jazz Band on the upper deck.

Tickets are $49 per person and include dinner, six drink tokens (worth one 5 ounce pour each, additional tokens may be purchased on the ship) and a souvenir tasting glass. Only 500 tickets will be sold. Tickets can be purchased on EventBrite.