The Tri-County Shade Standard is a freestanding municipal demonstration shelter beside State Route 118 outside Marl Pit, maintained by the Upper Flint Regional Recreation Commission and opened, according to the roadside panel, to provide a "uniform reference condition" for picnic-table procurement across three counties. The structure is not large—essentially a permanent patch of standardized shade with benches, a concrete pad, and a metal plaque listing approved noon-temperature readings—but it appears to have generated enough procedural paperwork to justify its own lay-by. The posted comparison chart for roof tint, slat spacing, and late-afternoon coverage suggests a fuller history involving bids, inter-county disagreement, and at least one repainting cycle.