Detroit — Belle Isle Park stayed on its years-long roll of increasing attendance with visits up 4% from 2024 to 2025 and millions of dollars in upgrades, according to a recent update by park officials.
Belle Isle had 5.7 million visitors in 2025, a jump of more than 239,000 visitors from the previous year, officials told the Detroit City Council on June 30 during its annual update. It was in 2021 that annual attendance hit the 5 million mark. In 2023, attendance was 5.5 million.
“Our North Star is to make Belle Isle the most welcoming park in America,” Megan Elliott, president of the Belle Isle Conservancy, told the council. Belle Isle is the most visited state park in Michigan.
More multi-million-dollar investments, meanwhile, are planned for the historic 982-acre island park, which is the most visited park in Michigan.
Fundraising will also soon begin to potentially expand the beach and build a “commons area” that would further link the space around the aquarium and conservatory, according to the ad-hoc group of city and state government agencies, along with the nonprofit Belle Conservancy, that oversees Belle Isle.
The State of Michigan Department of Natural Resources invested $11 million in Belle Isle during the 2025 fiscal year, said Amanda Treadwell, urban field planner for the DNR. The fiscal year for the state ran from September 1, 2024, to October 30, 2025.
“This breakdown (includes) capital investments, repairs, and operations, including DNR, and other division expenses,” such as fish and wildlife and marketing, she told council Tuesday.
Among the visible improvements are the completion of a cycle track that now rings the park, the reopening of the Belle Isle Casino, and the rehabbing of several shelters that included remediating hazardous materials and improving the bathrooms.
Other work included finishing the demolition of former Belle Isle Zoo, while $6 million in major structural repairs of James Scott Memorial Fountain are ongoing.
Close to the former zoo, the state has budgeted engineering work for the “ecological restoration” of a nearby nature trail that will be expanded, Treadwell said. That work will begin next year, she said.
“Right now, we we’re working on a . . . demonstration greet infrastructure parking lot,” near the former zoo, that could add 100 parking spaces.
The fountain work includes new steel reinforcement for its concrete basin and new marble stone details.
“This is handwork done to have all details reintroduced,” Treadwell said of the marble work. She added all the improvements will allow for the fountain to be stable “for another 100 years.” The fountain is expected to reopen in 2027.
Eastside resident Matthew Dornal, 52, is one of the many bicyclists who uses the Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Trail, which connects to the nearby Detroit Riverwalk.
In 2014, the state of Michigan took over management of Belle Isle from the city, which still owns the park.
“Things are really going in the right direction,” at Belle Isle, Dornal said Wednesday. He’s been visiting Belle Ise for three decades, he said. “I know some people complain because the city doesn’t control everything anymore. Mainly, I see steady improvement, so, I’m not one of those complaining.”
Since then, the park has been managed by the State DNR’s Parks and Recreation division. The state’s Department of Transportation is responsible for the roads and bridges, and DNR law enforcement and Michigan State Police handle public safety. The nonprofit Belle Isle Conservancy is the main advocate and fundraiser for the island park.
Since the state became involved, there’s been $185 million in investments, mainly due to the DNR and Belle Isle Conservancy seeking out private and public funding. Belle Isle also received $35 million from the federal American Rescue Plan Act, which is designed to help municipalities recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.
In 2025, officials released a 10-year-plan for the island and over 12,000 Detroit residents gave their input on the top projects that they would like to see in the next decade.
The top five projects the conservancy and park officials will pursue are building the commons; improving the White House Cafe and stable grounds; restoring the Remick Bandshell and Nancy Brown Peace Carillon Tower; adding new art to the Scott Fountain; and expanding the beach.
The Commons is a potential public square or central meeting space near the conservancy and aquarium, which are the most popular attractions.
The beach expansion is an “extremely popular project,” Ellliot said. The proposed beach expansion would mean its shoreline boundaries would stretch to Inselruhe Ave. The estimated $10 million project would also include improving the beach building, incorporating more mobility options and parking.
At some point the beachfront was shrunk to its current footprint and the proposed expansion would bring it back to an earlier size, Treadwell said.
Councilman Scott Benson said he’s noticed more wildlife, including bald eagles, coyotes, snakes, turtles and osprey.
“I was unaware that we have osprey on the island,” until he saw one recently, he said.
Officials credited ongoing ecological restoration on the isle for the abundant wildlife.
“The natural habitat is coming back,” said Sareen Papakhian, supervisor at DNR’s Urban District Park. “I’ve spent my whole life going to Belle Isle and I’ve never seen it looking so; the animals are happy.
‘We have put lots of money into natural habitation along the shoreline,” Papakhain said. “We’re seeing a lot that natural life coming back.”
laguilar@detroitnews.com
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Belle Isle stays on a roll with increased attendance, major upgrades planned
Reporting by Louis Aguilar, The Detroit News / The Detroit News
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By Louis Aguilar, The Detroit News | USA TODAY Network
