Electric bikes are gaining popularity in the Valley and a program called Cruise the Creek is expanding its operations into Mill Creek to fulfill the need. However many have raised questions about the environmentally-friendly alternative and how it works.
“Get on an e-bike before you make a judgment call about it,” Cruise the Creek operator Patrick Simms said.
He’s going into his third year. He has 17 electric bikes to rent to people and said though the hobby is growing, it brings a lot of questions.
“E-bikes are kind of like the ugly sister of the biking community a little bit just because, you know, they have a motor and people…they have different opinions about it,” he said.
The e-bikes have a few speeds but can’t reach more than 15 mph. They are allowed on the Mill Creek trails.
As long as you pedal – the bike helps you out. Simms said it’s a great way to make exercise more accessible.
“If you’re pedaling with the bike, you’re getting some form of exercise. And that’s more than a lot of people are getting right now,” he said.
This year, Cruise the Creek has expanded into a spot off the Mill Creek Metroparks Kirk Road Trailhead by the bikeway in addition to their spot off Bears Den.
They encourage you to use the bikes to enjoy the parks.
“With e-bikes, it kind of gives you that extra motivation to keep going further because you’re getting assistance with the motor and you’re able to see all the destinations that you wanted to see,” Simms said.
https://www.millcreekmetroparks.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/mcmp-header.png00Mill Creek MetroParks Staffhttps://www.millcreekmetroparks.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/mcmp-header.pngMill Creek MetroParks Staff2024-03-25 08:10:592024-03-25 08:10:59When e-bikes are coming to Mill Creek
The seeds that have been planted to redevelop a large children’s garden in one of Mill Creek MetroParks’ most popular destinations are beginning to bear ripe fruit — one donor at a time.
“The board and members of Friends of Fellows Riverside Gardens were captivated by the plans for transforming the northwest corner of Fellows Riverside Gardens into a true destination spot for children and families,” Denise Stewart, Friends’ president, said.
To bring such a goal closer to reality, Stewart’s organization has pledged about $341,000 toward the 1.5-acre project, estimated at $3.4 million. The monetary effort began some years ago with a $200,000 pledge for naming rights for one of the five gardens within the larger project that, with accrued interest, has grown to $241,000 before the organization’s board raised an additional $100,000, she noted.
“I’m very excited to have our organization designated in the naming of one of our gardens. It will be a beauty spot for all to enjoy,” said Stewart, who also teaches a course on human trafficking at Youngstown State University.
The Friends of Fellows Riverside Gardens is among the 112 donors who, collectively, have raised slightly more than $1 million for the effort, Chris Litton, the park’s development director, noted.
Fort Collins, Colorado-based Russell + Mills Studios is handling the design and architectural aspects of the expansive and nearly rectangular reshaped children’s garden, which will stretch from near Mahoning and McKinley avenues to the Fellows Riverside Gardens’ parking lot next to the D.D. and Velma Davis Education and Visitor Center. The project also will include security fencing, along with a stone wall with iron gates.
Another prominent donor has been the Youngstown Foundation, which, last year, pledged around $250,000 for the garden’s second phase, Litton said.
Within the larger space, for which work began in early 2022, will be six individual component units: sensory, wonder room, harvest, forest and stream gardens for children and adults to enjoy, each with its unique characteristics, he noted.
Also in the mix will be a hummock lawn in the center of the space that will emulate glacial formations with small glacial hills and cairns.
The six gardens’ specific features will include areas for children to climb and explore, raise plant-based foods, play in a small meandering stream, walk along wooden boardwalks and tree platforms and climb mounds of grass, Litton said.
The redevelopment also will represent a vast improvement to the original garden that was built in the early 1980s as an educational resource for FRG. The current work also entailed removing old tires and other outdated apparatus that had been installed in that area, he added.
“At the end of the day, kids deserve to have something like this,” Litton said.
Also on the acreage is the Margaret Cushwa Outdoor Educational Building, a 680-square-foot classroom that opened in November 2022 and served as the garden project’s first phase. Two of its sides have large sliding-glass doors that open and will face the large garden.
The building was named in honor of the late Cushwa, who died in 1995 and was a former Mill Creek Park commissioner. She and her family also were among the city’s leading industrialists.
Stewart said that she also hopes the large children’s garden will capture the spirit and vision of Elizabeth A. Fellows, an 1878 graduate of The Rayen School who willed the land and funds to Mill Creek MetroParks to build and maintain the free public botanical gardens named after her.
“We envision a beautiful and inspiring children’s garden that adds to the splendor that Elizabeth Fellows envisioned in her will ‘to create a beauty spot to be enjoyed by all,’” Stewart added.
To make a donation, go to www.childrensgarden.fund or www.lovemillcreek.org. Contributions to the project also can be made to the Mill Creek MetroParks Foundation by calling Litton at 330-718-2699.
Right now, there’s a war on an invasive species that’s happening right under your nose. You probably don’t even notice it, but it’s really bugging officials with the Mill Creek Metroparks.
Sometimes the biggest problems come from the smallest of sources.
“You would need a microscrope to really look at them. So it’s a very, very small insect,” said Nick Derico, Mill Creek Park natural resource manager.
Since 2020, the Hemlock Woolly Adelgid has been calling the Mill Creek MetroParks home. The only problem is wildlife officials don’t want it taking up residence.
“It feeds on the hemlock trees, and over time it can cause pretty significant decline or even death in the tree,” Derico said.
Native to Asia, the bug is a nuisance, attacking North American Hemlocks since it was first introduced back in the 1950s.
“How it got here to the MetroParks, hard to say,” Derico said. “It could’ve came in on an ornamental tree or carried by birds.”
Park officials are fighting back against the insect with insecticides, tagging trees that have been treated. But it takes about 18 months before they start seeing any results.
The pest appears like a small wool bundle, not much bigger than the size of a pinhead. Left untreated, infested trees can die within four to 10 years.
“The hemlocks play a super important role in the ecosystem,” Derico said. “They’re a keystone species. … They’re vital. They create very unique habitats, especially in these creekside habitats.”
Wildlife officials say they keep finding new populations every year and are treating the outbreaks as they find them.
“Once treated, the chemical will stay active in the tree for about seven years,” Derico said. “The unfortunate reality is we probably won’t be able to save every tree.”
https://www.millcreekmetroparks.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/mcmp-header.png00Mill Creek MetroParks Staffhttps://www.millcreekmetroparks.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/mcmp-header.pngMill Creek MetroParks Staff2024-03-18 09:49:082024-03-18 09:49:08The little insect that’s bugging local park officials
When e-bikes are coming to Mill Creek
/in Media Coverage/by Mill Creek MetroParks StaffElectric bikes are gaining popularity in the Valley and a program called Cruise the Creek is expanding its operations into Mill Creek to fulfill the need. However many have raised questions about the environmentally-friendly alternative and how it works.
“Get on an e-bike before you make a judgment call about it,” Cruise the Creek operator Patrick Simms said.
He’s going into his third year. He has 17 electric bikes to rent to people and said though the hobby is growing, it brings a lot of questions.
“E-bikes are kind of like the ugly sister of the biking community a little bit just because, you know, they have a motor and people…they have different opinions about it,” he said.
The e-bikes have a few speeds but can’t reach more than 15 mph. They are allowed on the Mill Creek trails.
As long as you pedal – the bike helps you out. Simms said it’s a great way to make exercise more accessible.
“If you’re pedaling with the bike, you’re getting some form of exercise. And that’s more than a lot of people are getting right now,” he said.
This year, Cruise the Creek has expanded into a spot off the Mill Creek Metroparks Kirk Road Trailhead by the bikeway in addition to their spot off Bears Den.
They encourage you to use the bikes to enjoy the parks.
“With e-bikes, it kind of gives you that extra motivation to keep going further because you’re getting assistance with the motor and you’re able to see all the destinations that you wanted to see,” Simms said.
Their rental season starts May 1.
Read the original article at WKBN.
Children’s garden vision grows
/in Media Coverage/by Mill Creek MetroParks StaffThe seeds that have been planted to redevelop a large children’s garden in one of Mill Creek MetroParks’ most popular destinations are beginning to bear ripe fruit — one donor at a time.
“The board and members of Friends of Fellows Riverside Gardens were captivated by the plans for transforming the northwest corner of Fellows Riverside Gardens into a true destination spot for children and families,” Denise Stewart, Friends’ president, said.
To bring such a goal closer to reality, Stewart’s organization has pledged about $341,000 toward the 1.5-acre project, estimated at $3.4 million. The monetary effort began some years ago with a $200,000 pledge for naming rights for one of the five gardens within the larger project that, with accrued interest, has grown to $241,000 before the organization’s board raised an additional $100,000, she noted.
“I’m very excited to have our organization designated in the naming of one of our gardens. It will be a beauty spot for all to enjoy,” said Stewart, who also teaches a course on human trafficking at Youngstown State University.
The Friends of Fellows Riverside Gardens is among the 112 donors who, collectively, have raised slightly more than $1 million for the effort, Chris Litton, the park’s development director, noted.
Fort Collins, Colorado-based Russell + Mills Studios is handling the design and architectural aspects of the expansive and nearly rectangular reshaped children’s garden, which will stretch from near Mahoning and McKinley avenues to the Fellows Riverside Gardens’ parking lot next to the D.D. and Velma Davis Education and Visitor Center. The project also will include security fencing, along with a stone wall with iron gates.
Another prominent donor has been the Youngstown Foundation, which, last year, pledged around $250,000 for the garden’s second phase, Litton said.
Within the larger space, for which work began in early 2022, will be six individual component units: sensory, wonder room, harvest, forest and stream gardens for children and adults to enjoy, each with its unique characteristics, he noted.
Also in the mix will be a hummock lawn in the center of the space that will emulate glacial formations with small glacial hills and cairns.
The six gardens’ specific features will include areas for children to climb and explore, raise plant-based foods, play in a small meandering stream, walk along wooden boardwalks and tree platforms and climb mounds of grass, Litton said.
The redevelopment also will represent a vast improvement to the original garden that was built in the early 1980s as an educational resource for FRG. The current work also entailed removing old tires and other outdated apparatus that had been installed in that area, he added.
“At the end of the day, kids deserve to have something like this,” Litton said.
Also on the acreage is the Margaret Cushwa Outdoor Educational Building, a 680-square-foot classroom that opened in November 2022 and served as the garden project’s first phase. Two of its sides have large sliding-glass doors that open and will face the large garden.
The building was named in honor of the late Cushwa, who died in 1995 and was a former Mill Creek Park commissioner. She and her family also were among the city’s leading industrialists.
Stewart said that she also hopes the large children’s garden will capture the spirit and vision of Elizabeth A. Fellows, an 1878 graduate of The Rayen School who willed the land and funds to Mill Creek MetroParks to build and maintain the free public botanical gardens named after her.
“We envision a beautiful and inspiring children’s garden that adds to the splendor that Elizabeth Fellows envisioned in her will ‘to create a beauty spot to be enjoyed by all,’” Stewart added.
To make a donation, go to www.childrensgarden.fund or www.lovemillcreek.org. Contributions to the project also can be made to the Mill Creek MetroParks Foundation by calling Litton at 330-718-2699.
Read the original article at the Tribune Chronicle.
The little insect that’s bugging local park officials
/in Media Coverage/by Mill Creek MetroParks StaffRight now, there’s a war on an invasive species that’s happening right under your nose. You probably don’t even notice it, but it’s really bugging officials with the Mill Creek Metroparks.
Sometimes the biggest problems come from the smallest of sources.
“You would need a microscrope to really look at them. So it’s a very, very small insect,” said Nick Derico, Mill Creek Park natural resource manager.
Since 2020, the Hemlock Woolly Adelgid has been calling the Mill Creek MetroParks home. The only problem is wildlife officials don’t want it taking up residence.
“It feeds on the hemlock trees, and over time it can cause pretty significant decline or even death in the tree,” Derico said.
Native to Asia, the bug is a nuisance, attacking North American Hemlocks since it was first introduced back in the 1950s.
“How it got here to the MetroParks, hard to say,” Derico said. “It could’ve came in on an ornamental tree or carried by birds.”
Park officials are fighting back against the insect with insecticides, tagging trees that have been treated. But it takes about 18 months before they start seeing any results.
The pest appears like a small wool bundle, not much bigger than the size of a pinhead. Left untreated, infested trees can die within four to 10 years.
“The hemlocks play a super important role in the ecosystem,” Derico said. “They’re a keystone species. … They’re vital. They create very unique habitats, especially in these creekside habitats.”
Wildlife officials say they keep finding new populations every year and are treating the outbreaks as they find them.
“Once treated, the chemical will stay active in the tree for about seven years,” Derico said. “The unfortunate reality is we probably won’t be able to save every tree.”
Read the original article at WKBN.