The Mill Creek MetroParks board wants to protect its trees. But right now, it can’t because it doesn’t have properly-trained personnel.

However, the board is doubling the budget to look for diseased and dying trees in Mill Creek Park. The current budget sits at $10,000 and will become $20,000 heading into 2018.

The money will go towards training certain staff to becoming certified arborists — professionals in the cultivation, management and study of individual trees.

“There are people on our staff who have shown interest in becoming an arborist,” Lee Frey, president of Mill Creek Park’s commissioners, said. “This will allow not only to have an arborist, but also trained in other things that if we need them in either capacity, they will be able to do it.”

With winter setting in, insects commonly referred to as “wolly masses” threaten the health of Hemlock trees, which are commonly found in Mill Creek Park. Right now, the insect has come as close as Beaver County.

“We’re watching for it,” Frey said. “It’s coming this way. As far as we know, it has not gone into the park yet.”

The threat of diseased trees sparked the debate at the MetroParks special board meeting Monday night. The horticulture committee then requested there be a certified arborist in the park.

The park has not staffed an arborist since 2016.

“Nobody’s looking. Nobody’s out there,” one member of the horticulture committee said. “It’s nobody’s job to do that right now.”

They debated on just how to fill the position.

Some want it filled now, while others suggested paying for training and promoting within the current staff.

Horticulture committee member Ellen Speicher said the schooling for certification takes around three years — which she believes is too long to wait. She added that dead trees are hazards that can fall and harm both people and animals.

The board and the horticulture committee ultimately decided on training within. The compromise was that a third-party arborist will be hired to monitor the trees in the park until the staff they have now is fully-trained.

“In the meantime, we’ll use a service,” Frey said. “There are 70 arborist services within a 30-mile radius of the parks.”

The vote for this compromise was almost unanimous, with just one board member voting against it.

Now that the motion has passed, the board will start interviewing within the staff to decide who will get the training to become a certified arborist.

View the full article at wkbn.com

The 20-degree temperatures Thursday did not stop people from getting to Mill Creek MetroParks. Tons of families and friends bundled up and braved the cold for some winter fun.

The sled hill at the Wick recreation area is open for the season now that there’s snow sticking to the ground. Some people came back like they do every year, while others started up a tradition with their children.

“I don’t know if I’ve ever brought the kids here, but I used to come here as a kid,” Lindsay Wharry said. “Grandma lives across the street, so we’re sharing it with the kids.”

The park also has ice skating, a warming house and concession stand.

It’s free to sled and open every day from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., but it is depending on weather.

You can contact Mill Creek MetroParks with any questions at 330-702-3000.

View the full article at wkbn.com

 

Toys from generations young and old are filling the halls of the D.D. and Velma Davis Education & Visitor Center at Fellows Riverside Gardens this holiday season.

“The idea is to tie in some nostalgia so that the grandmas, grandpas and parents that come have something to show the kids,” horticulture educator Lynn Zocolo said. “It kind of gives you a warm, fuzzy feeling.”

Fellows, 123 McKinley Ave., is celebrating the holiday season, which runs through Dec. 31, with Toyland, a departure from the center’s nature-oriented themes of the last few years, Zocolo said.

The Davis Center’s interior is decorated with a number of toy- and holiday-themed attractions, and has planned activities for younger patrons, and part of the gardens is decorated with holiday lights.

“It’s for the young and the young-at-heart,” she said.

Read more about it in Sunday’s Vindicator or on Vindy.com.

Mill Creek MetroParks is preparing for winter and closing several roadways. 

Beginning Friday, December 8th, park visitors will not be able to use the following streets: 

•      Chestnut Hill Drive between Canfield Road and the Kirkmere Spur
•      High Drive between the Kirkmere Spur and West Cohasset Drive
•      Calvary Run Drive between Belle Vista Avenue and Milton Avenue

While closed to traffic, these roads are available for recreational use for hiking, cross-country skiing, and sledding. 

According to the park, the benefits of winter road closures include cost savings associated with snow/ice removal as well as a reduction of negative environmental impacts from deicing salt. 

In the winter months, snow and ice can create slippery roadway conditions. 

Park officials say roads with limited shoulders, lack of guardrails and steep grades can become increasingly hazardous for motorists. 

All roads will reopen in the spring when weather permits.

View the full article at wfmj.com

Bright colors, sparkling lights and whimsical displays will greet anyone who visits Fellows Riverside Gardens this month.

The Gardens’ annual Winter Celebration runs through Dec. 31.

After a couple of years featuring more natural themes, such as last year’s focus on Mill Creek MetroParks’ 125th anniversary, Gardens staff and volunteers opted for something a little more playful with this year’s “Toyland” theme.

Toys, both modern and vintage, are on display. Giant game pieces and 10-foot toy soldiers line windows and walls. More than 50 trees, decorated by different Mahoning Valley organizations, adorn the building. Also, visitors are invited to play with some of the displays.

“This is very interactive for children. We have different stations throughout the building where kids can play with blocks,” said Andrew Pratt, Mill Creek MetroParks gardens director. “What I like about it is, it has a nostalgic feel to it so people of all ages can see some of the vintage toys we have, and young children can come and see some of the more modern toys.”

MetroParks volunteers and staff were hard at work this week decorating the D.D. and Velma Davis Education & Visitor Center.

Planning for the event, however, dates back to the summer. Since then, a group of volunteers met twice a week to organize for Winter Celebration.

Among them was Sharmon Lesnak of Youngstown, whose professional background makes her an ideal person to help decorate for the holidays. Lesnak worked for 43 years in visual merchandising, preparing displays for department stores such as Strouss and Macy’s.

“There is a science to colors and how you present things. I just drew on all of those things,” said Lesnak, who helped devise the “Toyland” theme. “I just enjoy the creative process, and if I can make somebody smile, it’s all worthwhile.”

The process is creative, indeed – Pratt estimated that approximately 75 percent of the display items were hand-crafted by volunteers.

In addition to decorations in the visitor center, trees in the Gardens will be decorated and lights will be on display.

A number of other holiday events are scheduled at the Gardens, as well. For a full schedule, visit www.millcreekmetroparks.org.

Breakfast with Santa, hosted by Inspired Catering by Kravitz, will take place Saturday. Seats are still available at the 9 and 11:30 a.m. events.

Fellows is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Tuesday through Sunday, with hours extended to 7 p.m. Saturdays this month for Winter Celebration Nights.

Pratt encouraged people to stop by the Gardens to check out the holiday festivities.

“It’s fun. It’s festive. It’s the holidays, and it’s just a good time of the year to come out here,” he said.

View the full article at vindy.com