SOUTH BEND — Residents will have to put their white-water rafting plans on hold for the summer as the East Race Waterway plans to close for an entire year, possibly starting May 18.
“No matter when we start, it would affect at least one season of the East Race,” Director of Project Management Patrick Sherman said. “The East Race will not be in operation because they won’t have a dock. They won’t have an entrance area and the bridge over the East Race there is also being replaced.”
The East Race improvements are just one of many upgrades coming to South Bend’s riverwalk between Seitz and Howard Parks for $5.2 million, The Tribune previously reported.
Although the construction may cause some temporary pain, Sherman said it will certainly be worth it in the end. The white-water course has had a replacement dock for quite some time after its original one fell apart, and although the temporary dock has worked, it’s inconvenient for the organization’s operations and not ADA accessible, Sherman said.
The current bridge leading to the course has also been covered in “slippery compost material” previously.
The city plans to repave the East Race parking lot and design a new entrance as well as widen the waterway dock and ensure it’s ADA accessible. The bridge leading to the course will be widened and will receive the same improvements to match the design of Seitz Park. Seitz Park was given its own makeover over a period of six years, including a new performance pavilion, concessions and restrooms.
Sherman said the riverwalk starting from underneath Jefferson Boulevard Bridge to the entrance of Seitz Park will be closed until May 1, 2027. The Jefferson Bridge portion of the riverwalk is to receive a stairwell access point and a widened walkway. The rest of the riverwalk between both parks will be extended to 14-feet-wide concrete with overhead lighting.
“Anyone who’s walked on [the riverwalk] noticed it has a slant,” Sherman said. “It’s kind of starting to sink into the river, so all that wooden boardwalk has to be removed.”
There will be maintenance traffic signs, Sherman said, to alert residents about sidewalk closures and what direction they should use as a detour.
Email South Bend Tribune business reporter Jessica Velez at jvelez@usatodayco.com.
This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: New riverwalk, dock improvements lead to East Race closure for summer
Reporting by Jessica Velez, South Bend Tribune / South Bend Tribune
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