Removal of beach stairs underway

Curtis Bergman begins cutting apart the 32-year-old stairs at Laketown Township Beach on Thursday morning, April 17, 2025.

How do you take down hundreds of wooden stairs that have stood on top of a steep sand dune along Lake Michigan for three decades?

You work your way up from the bottom one step at a time.

Curtis Bergman began disassembling the 32-year-old steps on Thursday, April 17, 2025, cutting the boards, pulling nails and hauling sun-bleached, sand-blasted wood to take the debris away. He plans to be done in the next few days.

For an Instagram video of the work, click here.

The township closed the stairs on March 26 due to safety concerns.

Curtis Bergman removes wood from the 32-year-old stairs at Laketown Township Beach on Thursday morning, April 17, 2025.

Possible replacement

The Laketown Township Parks and Recreation Commission on Wednesday, April 16, 2025, got an early look at a concept plan to put new steps to the beach.

Matt Levandoski, senior landscape architect of Prein&Newhof, an engineering firm, presented possible next steps for beach access.

“It’s an amazing piece of property,” Levandoski told the commission. Levandoski, Brad Laninga, parks chairperson, and township officials toured the beach property on March 27.

Laketown Township officials met with a representative of the engineering firm Prein&Newhof to go over options for stairs at Laketown Township Beach, 6710 142nd Ave., on Thursday, March 28, 2025. From left are Brad Laninga, chairperson of the Laketown Township Parks and Recreation Commission, Steven Ringelberg, interim township manager and township supervisor, and Matt Levandoski, senior landscape architect of Prein&Newhof.

The goals of the concept plan presented are to remove safety concerns, control access to the beach, construct new stairs in an area called “the bowl,” implement dune restoration and develop a plan for grant applications for other areas of the dunes.

The total concept plan includes reconstruction of the existing boardwalk and stair system from the parking lot up the dune, add 90-feet of elevated deck with a platform and possible trellis on the area called “the plateau,” then 220 feet of stairs in “the bowl” with a 180-foot walkout area to the beach.

A concept plan presented to the Laketown Township Parks and Recreation Commission by Prein&Newhof on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.

Levandoski will have a detailed proposal of the stairs in “the bowl” portion by April 30 for the parks commission to examine.

The parks commission set a special meeting for 6 p.m. Tuesday, May 6, at the township hall, 4338 Beeline Road, to discuss the plan for “the bowl” steps. The commission could decide to recommend “the bowl” stairs proposal to the township board for funding and implementation by the staff.

Other parts of the concept plan will be addressed later.

Getting to the beach

The stairs from the top of the dune to the beach were blocked off with yellow caution tape and warning signs. People must stay off the stairs. Pieces of the stairs have been removed. The stairs are not safe.

The beach is still open, but the route to and from the lakeshore is now different.

The stairs from the parking lot up the dune remain open though they are covered in sand. Please stay on the marked paths to protect the dune. Take the path through “the bowl,” a steep drop with a flat bottom. Stay off the edges and do not disturb the dune grass. Once at the bottom of “the bowl,” you’ll see another small hill. Go up and head to the lake.

Heed the no trespassing signs and follow other rules of the beach, including no fires.

To get back up the dune, stairs are no longer an option. Visitors must walk back up through “the bowl.” It is a difficult walk because of the soft sand. There are no handrails or any assistance to get back up.