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Spring 2019
Parks Director Retiring
John Scholtz, Ottawa County Parks’ first and only Director since the Parks Commission was formed in 1987, is retiring in June 2019.
When John began his tenure with the county, there were nine parks totaling 400 acres. Today there are 28 parks, 12 open spaces, and nearly 7,000 acres of park land. In an effort to honor John’s vision and accomplishments, Parks staff is compiling anecdotes, memories, and photos from friends, colleagues, and parks visitors. Do you have a memory of John? A story of why Parks are significant in your life? Please help us show John how meaningful his contribution to Parks is to our community!
Send stories and photos to Jessica VanGinhoven, ocparks@miottawa.org. Be sure to include your name and contact information.
Image by 616 Media
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For more information, please click here.
Ottawa Sands Acquisition Update
Image by Mike Lozon
In December, the Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund Board recommended a $3.82 million grant to complete the acquisition of Ottawa Sands!
If approved by the State Legislature, the grant award from the Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund (MNRTF), along with $200,000 of funds raised by the Land Conservancy of West Michigan, will allow for the second phase of property acquisition for Ottawa Sands. This is expected to occur in the summer of 2019. This was the best possible outcome and what we were all hoping for.
Read the full press release by clicking here.
Stearns Creek Acquisition
About the Purchase
Agreements were reached with three landowners to sell 118 acres of land in Robinson Township at the south end of Stearns Bayou. This land includes 6,350 feet of frontage along Stearns Creek and will protect nearly 27 acres of high quality wetland.
The purchases are expected to be completed in March and are funded by a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Coastal and Estuarine Land Conservation Program (CELCP) grant, a Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund grant, and a gift from the heirs of John J. Helstrom through their donor-advised fund at the Muskegon Community Foundation. In honor of the gift, the new park will feature the Helstrom Family Trail System.
Donations like the one from the John J. Helstrom estate are so important to help the County Parks protect critical properties. Their impact goes well beyond the amount given, because they can leverage other public funding sources. In this case, the impact of the gift was multiplied over tenfold.
In order to secure the CELCP grant, Ottawa County Parks competed against proposals from the entire Great Lakes region. Similarly, the Trust Fund grant involved statewide competition.
The park is expected to open to the public this summer. It will feature a small parking area, trailhead, and hiking trails. Future additional amenities that will be considered by the Parks include access to the bayou for fishing and kayaking/canoeing, an accessible crushed stone trail loop, and overlooks for birding and wildlife viewing. Archery deer hunting may be permitted in the future.
Ecological Significance
The bayous along the Grand River serve an important function in the life cycle of many species, including rare plants and fish. While much of the bayou land along the river has been developed, a significant portion of this property has not been impacted since the logging era. That is why the project received funding at a national level and protecting this land was a priority for the Parks.
The upland portions of the site include a former family farm. Restoration work on the wetland and farm areas will likely be undertaken in order to foster diversity and provide a favorable environment for native plants, rare and uncommon birds, and other native wildlife. There are also ravines with mature forest and scenic views of the Stearns Creek corridor.
Read the full press release by clicking here.
In February, the Ottawa County Parks Foundation contributed funding for two key property acquisitions for the Grand River Greenway and future Idema Explorers Trail:
- 16.5 acres of land on the Grand River with 651’ of riverfront in Georgetown Township for $100,000
- 1,000’-long easement that will connect a parks property on Cottonwood Drive to the riverfront for $10,000
“We are getting closer everyday to achieving one of the major goals of the Grand River Greenway Initiative, which is to connect existing Kent Trails in Grandville to the future Idema Explorers Trail,” said Parks Foundation President, Bobbi Jones Sabine. “With this connection, users would be able to bike and hike from Jenison to Kent Trails, Millennium Park, and downtown Grand Rapids.”
Read the full press release by clicking here.
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Ray & Alma Statema Park Stewardship Fund
Ottawa County Parks has created an endowment fund to celebrate a legacy of environmental leadership and honor the many contributions of Ray and Alma Statema. The Ray and Alma Statema Park Stewardship Fund is housed at the Allendale Community Foundation and will provide grant awards to schools throughout the county to participate in service-based work days in Ottawa County Parks.
Workdays enhance the natural features within the park system and instill a stewardship ethic to future generations. Additionally, educators meet curriculum goals through hands-on, real-world experiences. Along with bussing, the grants will also assist in the purchase of tools, equipment, and materials, plus costs related to outreach and education for the work days. Ottawa County Parks will solicit applications from schools and make recommendations for funding awards on an annual basis.
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Image by Mike Lozon
Image by Mike Lozon
Schedule a spring outing and support the Friends of Ottawa County Parks at the same time! Enjoy interesting speakers, great scenery and wildlife, live music, and the fun of a paddle wheeler experience.
Reservation forms are available online: friendsofocp.org
- Print, complete, and return the form (with payment)
- Cost is $15 per person
- Provide a name and email address for your group confirmation
Trips depart and return to the boat launch at Grand River Park. Excursions will be held rain or shine (no refunds). If you are unable to attend, you may transfer your reservation to a friend; notify Friends of any changes.
Funds raised from these trips support Friends of Ottawa County Parks’ projects, including a Grand Lady Riverboat field trip for students! Friends is dedicated to connecting people with nature, recreation, and community by partnering with Ottawa County Parks.
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Step it Up! participants can look forward to:
Achieving fitness goals
Weekly guided group walks with varying distances & paces (dates available to registered participants)
Guided group adventures including kayaking, mountain biking, nature navigation, & more
Discovering new parks in Ottawa & Allegan counties
Meeting new people
Incentive prizes
Motivation & accountability by logging activity
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Progress continues on the Ottawa Beach Marina, located in Holland near Mt. Pisgah and the Black Lake Boardwalk. Parks staff recently hired the first marina employee, Ben Page, to be the seasonal Marina Supervisor. The mild start to the winter season helped keep construction on schedule. Seasonal slips are expected to be ready for customers by Memorial Day, and public slips will be available to transient boaters by July.
Interested in planning a trip on the lake? Or bringing your boat along for a stay at a local campground? Transient slips will be available to book on the DNR online system this summer: michigan.gov/harbors. Parks staff is working to provide day and overnight trailer parking near the marina.
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North Operations Center
Construction will soon begin on a second Park Operations Center on the north side of the county, located at Eastmanville Farm. The need for a proper park maintenance facility in this area has been apparent for years. Staff has been working to find a location and design the needed features that fit the Parks budget. Park visitors will benefit too! Upon completion, the new building will have a public modern restroom that will be open year-round.
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Park Management Plans
The Natural Resources Management team is working to create land management plans for every park and open space. The plans will document the physical characteristics, natural features, and any relevant history, as well as set clear goals for the future of the properties and proposed strategies for reaching those goals. Individual park plans will be components of the system-wide plan. Many informal plans have been created since the formation of this team in 2011. The current project will produce a much more comprehensive, system-wide plan. The plans will likely be available to the public in June 2019.
Management plans are important because they provide consensus for parks staff and the public of our vision for the future for each property and also outline specific goals to pursue. They also serve as a benchmark and can be helpful for documenting changes that occur over time, both positive and negative.
Example: Examining Deer Exclosures
Throughout the lakeshore, wildflower populations have declined as deer populations have increased. Deer exclosures (an area deer cannot enter) at many of our parks demonstrate the impact of overpopulation on these dune ecosystems. Comparing areas within deer exclosures to a control areas outside of the exclosure shows fewer plants and less diversity of plants within the control area. Many people who have lived in West Michigan before the deer populations increased recall dunes covered in trillium, which is not currently the case.
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Help us care for the parks you love! If you have never volunteered for a stewardship workday before, here’s what you should know:
- Bring work gloves (preferably leather), insect repellent, and appropriate attire for the outdoors.
- All tools, drinking water, and snacks will be provided.
- No preregistration is required.
- All ages welcome; those under 16 must be supervised by an adult.
Work days are cancelled if raining (or snowing). Questions? Contact us: (616) 994-4748
Coming soon: Park Steward Workdays
The Park Stewards program was created in 2016 when a number of particularly enthusiastic volunteers expressed interest in volunteering more often. The program was modeled after a Chicago-area program where volunteers, who develop expert knowledge of the land over time, help build the capacity of a Natural Resource Team by assisting with developing land management plans, as well as leading work days.
Our Park Stewards have been volunteering for at least two years and are all incredibly knowledgeable and passionate about their work. We are excited to announce that in the summer of 2019, many will be hosting workdays at select parks! Their ability to host work days means more opportunities for the general public to assist in land management. Dates will be included in our summer newsletter.
Become a volunteer!
Forest Pests Along the Lakeshore
Our Natural Resources Management team has been largely focused on managing invasive plants, like garlic mustard, Japanese knotweed, and oriental bittersweet on park properties. Recently, they have had to allocate more time and resources to focus on the threat of forest pests.
While plant invasives are challenging to eradicate and control, we can rely on the seedbank to regenerate wildflowers and other plants to grow back quickly once invasives are removed. Forest pests present a different kind of challenge because they can do so much long-term damage. They are difficult to manage in our parks because they are widespread in the surrounding landscape (not shown on map).
A well-educated and responsible community who understands the need to stop these pests is crucial to fight them at a landscape level. It’s up to homeowners to educate themselves and their neighbors to follow best practices and protect their resources. Consequences of not taking action could include not only impacts on our forests, but also on our infrastructure (roads, houses, etc), should the loss of forest create dune destabilization.
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Familiarize yourself with forest pests
OAK WILT
Oak Wilt is fatal for all red oaks; it spreads quickly, and treatment is expensive. Oak wilt is spread by pruning and trimming during active months (April-October).
Use this website to determine whether you or a contractor should be pruning: michiganoakwilt.org
HEMLOCK WOOLLY ADELGID (HWA)
HWA is an insect that feeds on hemlock trees. Without treatment it is fatal to the tree. It is easily spread and difficult to spot and has devasted forests on the east coast. The good news is, early treatment is affordable and effective.
Learn more / Report HWA: saveMIhemlocks.org
BEECH BARK
Beech Bark is Ottawa County Parks’ newest forest pest. It is a disease that causes mortality and defects in beech trees; the disease occurs after extensive bark invasion by the beech scale insect. Treatment is currently unknown.
Learn more: michigan.gov/invasives
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Registration opens on March 12!
Call to register for summer camps: (616) 786-4847
Online registration for summer camps coming in June.
Online registration opens in June. Children must be the age listed by June 1, 2019; Pricing is per child, per session.
The Ottawa County Parks Foundation is a 501(c)(3) dedicated to raising funds to assist the Ottawa County Parks Commission in achieving goals for:
- Acquiring land and developing parks
- Leveraging public dollars
- Providing parks and recreation services to residents and visitors of Ottawa County
Art for the Parks
March 23 | 5-8 PM
Hemlock Crossing County Park
Join the Lakeshore Visual Arts Collective for their biggest show of the year as they transform The Nature Center at Hemlock Crossing County Park into an art-filled space. 60+ local artists and 200+ original works.
Live music. Cash Bar. Light snacks.
A $10 donation is suggested at the door and 10% of all art sold to benefit the Ottawa County Parks Foundation.
From Old Soldiers Homes that cared for Civil War veterans to the V.A. today, Americans have recognized the responsibility to provide haven for our nation’s wounded and aging warriors. But, not all in need found their way to those facilities. A few serviceman and women, who ranged in service from the War of 1812 to World War II, wound up at the Ottawa County Poor Farm. This is their story, one of patriotism, sacrifice, and remembrance. Presented by local historian, Marjie Viveen.
RSVP here
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