Join Mill Creek MetroParks for Earth Day Weekend as we celebrate the Earth and all the opportunities available to connect with Nature at Mill Creek MetroParks.

On Friday, April 20, join MetroParks Naturalists for a frog serenade during our Sounds of Spring hike as you wander through wetland and pond habitats to enjoy the sounds, and hopefully sights of spring. Enter your perfect bloom in the Daffodil Show at the Davis Center at Fellows Riverside Gardens (123 McKinley Avenue, Youngstown) on Friday, April 20 from 3 pm – 5 pm and Saturday, April 21 from 8 am – 10 am. The daffodil show will be open to the public, free of charge Saturday, April 21 from 1 pm – 5 pm and Sunday, April 22 from 10 am – 5 pm.

On Saturday, April 21, local Scout Units and other organizations will spend the morning helping to clean winter’s accumulation of litter across the MetroParks in the Boy Scout Earth Day Clean-Up. Take a stroll through the Gardens on a guided Daffodil Walk with Gordon Vujevic, daffodil expert. Discover over 200 different species and cultivars that are a part of the Fellows Riverside Gardens Narcissus collection, or Hike with a Naturalist to enjoy the beauty and diversity of spring, as you wander along Lake Cohasset and through the forest. Learn about spring wildflowers and more with a Mill Creek MetroParks Naturalist during Trot with your Tot, a short hike to let your children learn and explore nature, or enjoy an early morning bird walk, Birding the Sanctuary, at Mill Creek Wildlife Sanctuary.

On Sunday, April 22, bring the family for Tractor Wagon Ride, a guided tour of the farm leaving approximately every ½ hour. Riders will be updated on the spring planting progress and barns are open to visit the animals. Take a trot down to the creek to view turkeys and signs of nesting in our Turkey Trot program at Ford Nature Center. Turkeys will be strutting their stuff and we will be looking for them!

Effective Friday, March 30, 2018 the following roads in Mill Creek Park will re-open to vehicular traffic:

·         High Drive, between the Kirkmere Spur and West Cohasset Drive

·         Chestnut Hill Drive, between Canfield Road and the Kirkmere Spur

·         Calvary Run Drive, between Belle Vista Avenue and Milton Avenue 

Always use caution when driving on MetroParks roads as many of these roads are also used by pedestrians and bicyclists. Pedestrians and bicyclists should be reminded to also use caution and be aware of vehicular traffic when on these road

Mill Creek MetroParks will be holding its annual Farm Animal Baby Shower at the MetroParks Farm (7574 Columbiana-Canfield Rd, Canfield) on Sunday, April 8, 2018. Sponsored by 21 WFMJ / WBCB, this is a free, family-friendly event. Families are encouraged to visit anytime between 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. to meet new arrivals to the MetroParks Farm including goats, lambs and bottle baby calf (all born this spring), chicks, ducks, turkeys, geese, and more. There will also be mother animals who are still expecting. Bring cameras for great photo opportunities. Cake and punch will be served while supplies last. Donations are accepted. Concession trailer and drinks are available – cash only.  

Farm Animal Baby Shower is also the official opening of the barns at the MetroParks Farm. Barns will be open for the public to come and view the animals daily 9 a.m. – 4 p.m., with extended hours until 6 p.m. during summer months and Sunday’s 1 p.m. – 4 p.m. Many baby animals will be here all spring. For more information on this event, please call 330.702.3000 or visit our website at www.millcreekmetroparks.org.

A new report issued by the National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA) demonstrates the vast economic impact of our nation’s local parks. According to the report, operations and capital spending by Ohio local parks was responsible for $3,456,029,725 in economic activity and supported 30,005 jobs.

Developed in partnership with the Center for Regional Analysis at George Mason University, the report shows that nationally local parks generate more than $154 billion in economic activity and support more than 1.1 million jobs from the operations and capital spending in 2015. The top 10 states with the highest economic impact in 2015 were:

• California — $15.9 billion
• Illinois — $10.6 billion 
• Texas — $7.7 billion
• Florida — $7.2 billion
• New York — $5.2 billion
• Colorado — $4.0 billion
• Ohio — $3.4 billion
• Virginia — $3.2 billion
• North Carolina — $2.7 billion
• Washington — $2.6 billion 

“This report demonstrates the vast economic impact of local parks nationwide and for Ohio to be in the top 10 is very exciting,” says Aaron Young, Executive Director at Mill Creek MetroParks. “Our park system continues to strive towards its mission of providing park, recreational, educational, and open space facilities of regional significance.

“Parks provide tremendous health and environmental benefits; however, they are also powerful engines of economic activity,” said Barbara Tulipane, NRPA president and CEO. “This report demonstrates why policymakers and elected officials at all levels of government should prioritize park and recreation funding in communities everywhere. The impact of these investments is huge.”

Dr. Terry Clower, lead investigator for the study, observes: “Local and regional park systems are growing in economic importance, not only as generators of jobs and local business opportunity, but as major contributors to local quality of life.” Clower further notes that quality of life and the availability of recreation amenities is increasingly important for attracting and retaining workers and employers, which extends the economic impacts of park and recreation spending beyond what is captured in the current study.

Public support for parks and recreation is strong. The 2017 NRPA Americans’ Engagement with Parks Survey found 92 percent of Americans agree parks and recreation are important local government services (comparable to police/fire/schools/transportation). Moreover, 85 percent of Americans seek high-quality park and recreation amenities when choosing a new place to live. To access the survey results, click here. 

To access the report, visit www.nrpa.org/ParkEconReport.

To learn more about NRPA, visit www.nrpa.org.  

Mill Creek MetroParks Head Professional, Andy Santor, becomes a Certified PGA Professional in the PGA of America. The Certified Professional Program (2.0) is a valuable achievement in a learning strategy aimed at improving PGA Professionals proficiency and advancing facility opportunities. The program is the PGA of America’s career enhancing educational curriculum that supports the goals of the PGA members who are committed to continuously improving their business skills to meet the increasing demands of the golf industry. The PGA of America currently offers four certification career paths: Player Development, Golf Operations, Golf Facility Management and Teaching & Coaching. Each career path consist of 35+ business courses, industry related project and a thesis capstone paper submission for program completion.

“I’m extremely excited to offer the new skills I’ve recently acquired in the PGA Certified Teaching & Coaching Education program at Mill Creek this season. This will give us the ability to offer unique, expanded and cutting edge instructional services moving forward. In addition, it will help us keep our programs fresh and inviting as we look to continue the growth and popularity of our sport in the Mahoning Valley,” says Andy Santor, Head Professional. This makes Santor a member of a very limited and elite group of PGA golf professionals that are certified in the country for Teaching & Coaching by the PGA of America.