Friends of Grand Rapids Parks news

Grand Rapids earns Playful City USA honor from KaBOOM!

Friends of GR Parks — Tue, 01 May 2012 23:42:02 GMT

By Matt Vande Bunte | mvandebu@mlive.com

Emily Zoladz | MLive.comAdinose Taylor, 3, of Grand Rapids, climbs on the playground at Garfield Park last month. Grand Rapids has been named a 2012 Playful City USA by KaBOOM!

GRAND RAPIDS, MI – In line for a possible $15,000 grant from Sprite, city parks also could get up to $30,000 from Dr Pepper.

Grand Rapids is one of 213 Playful City USA communities being recognized this year by the Washington, D.C. non-profit KaBOOM! for efforts to increase play opportunities for kids. Two other Michigan communities, Holly and Luther, also made the list.

This is the second time that Grand Rapids has been named a Playful City since the program started in 2007. The honor stems from several factors including the city’s overall commitment to building new playgrounds and improving existing ones, KaBOOM! spokesman Mike Vietti said.

“KaBOOM! also liked the fact that the city took the initiative to revamp the Adopt-A-Park program because that increases citizen participation in the maintenance of parks/playgrounds which, in turn, typically boosts the lifespan of park/playground amenities, equipment” and the like, he said.

A new "Parks Alive" partnership between the city and Friends of Grand Rapids Parks is being developed, said James Hurt, city director of public services.

Other communities are getting Playful City designation due to a variety of parks programs such as "Sunday Parkways" in Ferguson, Mo. where streets are closed to cars so that people can play in the streets, and a Providence, R.I. Fun Bus of sports equipment that travels around to start games with kids.

Playful City USA communities are eligible for grants of $15,000 to $30,000 through a partnership with Dr Pepper Snapple Group. Recipients will be announced next month.

Grand Rapids last year got two $30,000 Recreation Passport grants from the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, one for basketball court and restroom improvements at Martin Luther King, Jr. Park, 800 Fuller Ave. SE, and one for playground upgrades at Roosevelt Park on Grandville Avenue SW.

This city this year is seeking two more Passport grants: one would help fund resurfacing of six tennis courts at Aberdeen Park, 798 Evelyn St. NE, and the other would help pay for 3.5 miles of natural-surface mountain-biking trails at Richmond Park, 1101 Richmond St. NW.

Also, a 2012-2013 city budget proposal includes $71,100 for 26 additional miles of bike lanes as the city strives for 100 miles by 2017.

In addition to potential Playful City funds, Grand Rapids will get up to $15,000 from the Sprite Spark Parks Project for improvements to the shoddy basketball court at Westown Commons park, 752 Watson St. SW. With online voting set to run through the end of the month, the city court ranks 4th out of 25 across the country.

Arbor Day special: See the inaugural Tree of the Year in Grand Rapids

Friends of GR Parks — Tue, 01 May 2012 23:46:09 GMT

By Matt Vande Bunte | mvandebu@mlive.com

Emily Zoladz | ezoladz@mlive.com City Forester Tyler Stevenson measures a fifty five foot green ash that has survived emerald ash borer and a car crash. The tree is the mayor's inaugural Tree of the Year and is located at 933 Wealthy Street SE. (Emily Zoladz | Mlive.com)

GRAND RAPIDS, MI – With an immense girth of 43 inches and a massive crown visible from street level three-quarters of a mile away, the ash along the sidewalk in front of 933 Wealthy St. SE is the city’s king of trees.

Today, on Arbor Day, Grand Rapids will honor the 55-foot-high ash as the mayor’s inaugural Tree of the Year.

“It’s definitely one that sticks out,” said Tyler Stevenson, city forester.

But as much for its size, the city’s urban forestry committee will recognize the public street tree for the tiny little plugs around its base. Those are the marks of treatment for the Emerald ash borer, medicine injection points that have enabled the towering tree to keep producing an estimated public value of $223 per year.

“If we were to let this die, it would take another 30, 40 years (for a replacement tree) to provide those same benefits,” Stevenson said. “(This ash) represents the action we’re trying to take, a community and city effort to preserve our tree canopy.”

The ash, the largest of 1,400 street trees the city's treating for Emerald ash borer, was to be named the mayor’s Tree of the Year at a noon ceremony. The 2013 Tree of the Year will be chosen from public nominations made through a new crowd-sourced tree map, set to launch next month as part of The Urban Forest Project partnership between the city and Friends of Grand Rapids Parks.

The project aims to educate the public on the value of trees. For example, Grand Rapids street trees are worth an estimated $71 million and they produce an estimated annual benefit of $6.5 million through retaining stormwater and improving air quality, said Dottie Clune, chairwoman of the city’s forestry committee.

“We want to really raise awareness of the importance of preserving trees as well as planting trees, particularly given that the environmental benefits of larger trees are so much greater than those of newly planted trees," she said. “We tend to think of built infrastructure as having value, but there’s not a lot of awareness of the value of our green infrastructure."

The trunk of the ash at 933 Wealthy has a 43-inch diameter, and its crown - an estimated 60 feet across - can be seen from west of Madison Avenue, three-fourths of a mile away. The tree has an estimated value of $9,000 and provides $223 in annual benefit by intercepting 6,949 gallons of stormwater, absorbing 1,393 pounds of carbon dioxide and taking certain pollutants out of the air, according to an i-Tree analysis.

The ash, which is estimated to be 60 to 70 years old, has suffered damage: roots along the road were chopped off during street work, and a car likely struck the trunk where there's now a bare spot. The tree also has gotten help: fertilizing by neighboring property owners, Emerald ash borer treatment and a custom-shaped sidewalk that curves around the trunk.

“It sort of illustrates the idea that it takes a village to grow a tree in an urban environment,” Clune said. “The tree definitely is a survivor.”

Grand Rapids' Tree of the Year chosen

Friends of GR Parks — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 20:09:06 GMT

GRAND RAPIDS (WZZM)- A tree in the East Hills neighborhood is Grand Rapids' Tree of the Year. Mayor George Heartwell gave the ash tree the distinction in honor of Arbor Day.

The Urban Forestry Committee says the one tree alone captures 7,000 gallons of storm water each year and absorbs 1,200 pounds of carbon dioxide.

Owners of the tree have treated it to keep the emerald ash borer away.

Crowd-sourced Grand Rapids tree map to monetize city canopy

Friends of GR Parks — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 18:42:44 GMT

Published: Friday, April 20, 2012, 11:44 AM

By Matt Vande Bunte | mvandebu@mlive.com

MLive.com File To raise awareness of the public value of the urban canopy, Grand Rapids next month plans to launch a crowd-sourced online tree map.

GRAND RAPIDS, MI – Here’s an idea for your next neighborhood get-together: Tree-mapping party.

The Urban Forest Project set to launch in late May will include a crowd-sourced online inventory of trees, like maps of Sacramento, San Francisco and Philadelphia which public "citizen foresters" help create and maintain.

The Grand Rapids map will produce a monetary value for a tree when people submit its kind and size. The data could tie into the city’s forest management and a rewrite of the city’s tree ordinance, said Steve Faber, executive director of Friends of Grand Rapids Parks.

“The citizens of Grand Rapids will help us understand what we have in our urban forest by actually helping us map that,” he said. “Hopefully, it will help us start to talk about our urban forest in different terms and really understand the true value of those trees.

"Even that concept of an urban forest is very new to a lot of people."

Public announcement of the project comes in advance of next week’s Arbor Day festivities in Grand Rapids:

the city, in partnership with the Association of Grand Rapids Landscape Professionals and students from C.A. Frost Environmental Science Academy, will plant trees 9 a.m. to noon April 27 at the southeast corner of Mary Waters Park, 1042 Lafayette Ave. NE
at noon April 27, at 933 Wealthy St. SE, the mayor's inaugural Tree of the Year will be announced. For the 2013 Tree of the Year, the city’s Urban Forestry Committee will take public nominations from the online map.

“Other volunteers are encouraged to join in the fun (at Mary Waters Park) or plant trees in their neighborhoods," said Tyler Stevenson, city forester. "This level of community involvement is the integral component of what makes us a Tree City USA.”

Grand Rapids again has earned Tree City USA designation for its support and management of trees. A 2012-2013 budget proposal includes $76,800 to plant 2,000 trees with help from a U.S. Forest Service grant.

Grand Rapids aspires to increase its tree canopy to cover 40 percent of the city. In order to do that, about 185,000 trees must be planted, and there’s only an estimated 20,000 public spots available for trees.

The Urban Forest Project, funded by the Grand Rapids Community Foundation, aims to broaden public awareness of the canopy goal. The project is expected "to take us to new levels of community engagement with trees and probably in the process garner some national attention for Grand Rapids and its urban forest work," said Dottie Clune, chairwoman of the city's Urban Forestry Committee.

“It’s only as good as we make it as a community,” Faber said. “We need to put value on these so the next time (a public or private development project happens) trees are being considered.

“Unless the whole community embraces planting more trees (and preserving existing trees), we’re just not going to hit those goals."

Email Matt Vande Bunte, or follow him on Twitter.

Related topics: environment, grand rapids

Adtegrity Announces First-Quarter Winners of Operation Spotlight Program

Friends of GR Parks — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 18:42:50 GMT

Grand Rapids-based Adtegrity, a national leader in Internet advertising, today announced the first winners of Operation Spotlight – a program through which local businesses and non-profits can win a three-month online advertising campaign. Grand Haven-based Blueberry Haven and the non-profit Friends of Grand Rapids Parks were selected to receive creative development and online advertising placement during the next quarter.

Blueberry Haven sells products ranging from chocolate covered blueberries to salsa to baked goods mixes – all made with locally grown blueberries. The company will use the campaign to increase awareness of their Holland location, as well as to drive sales to their website: www.blueberry-haven.com.

“We’re very excited to have won. When people think of Michigan, they don’t necessarily think of blueberries, but 44 percent of the blueberries on the U.S. market are grown in southwest Michigan,” said Tiffany Balk, owner of Blueberry Haven. “I can’t wait to spread the word and expose everyone to Michigan blueberries.”

The campaign will be primarily locally focused, with some larger metro areas included, such as Detroit and Chicago, to reach those who may vacation in Michigan.

Friends of GR Parks will use a locally focused campaign to promote their Urban Forest Project, an initiative aimed at engaging the community in planting and growing trees in Grand Rapids.

“With Adtegrity’s help, we plan to raise awareness about this new program through a more targeted web campaign to help grow our urban forest and enhance our public parks and green space,” said Steve Faber, Friends of GR Parks executive director.

Adtegrity and the Operation Spotlight panel of West Michigan celebrity judges noted they are looking forward to seeing the winners benefit from the online advertising and promotional campaigns, valued at over $20,000 per winner.

“I think these two organizations are a perfect fit as our first winners,” said Scott Brew, CEO of Adtegrity. “They’re both already doing great things for West Michigan and we’re happy to help get their messages out.”

The campaign includes art direction and creative for a display advertisement and insertion into Adtegrity’s online advertising system for distribution.

Nominations for Operation Spotlight are made on the designated section of the Adtegrity Facebook page. The panel of judges meets once every quarter to select the winners based on several factors, including the number of votes an organization receives, the need and justification for the nomination and how the campaign can positively impact the organization. Voting for the next quarter opened on April 1st and nominations will be accepted through mid-June. For more information on Operation Spotlight, visit https://www.facebook.com/adtegrity.

About Adtegrity
Adtegrity.com's primary business is the delivery of interactive advertising and marketing services. Since its founding in 1999, the Company has established itself as a results-driven, customer-focused firm providing consistent quality to the top advertising brands online. Adtegrity currently delivers billions of advertisements across thousands of top-tier websites each month. For more information, visit www.adtegrity.com.

Job Opening: Urban Forest Project Coordinator

Friends of GR Parks — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 20:06:03 GMT

CLOSED

Title: Urban Forest Project Coordinator

Reports to: Executive Director

Hours & Salary: Full-time (40+ hours per week), Occasional evenings and weekends - paid, salary position

Position Description:

The Urban Forest Project Coordinator will lead Friends of Grand Rapids Parks’ urban forest community engagement initiative. Key elements of the initiative include:

An urban forest web resource center
A crowd-sourced citizen inventory and tree map
A wide array of tree-related activities, events, volunteer and partnership opportunities.

The Coordinator will work closely with the Friends of Grand Rapids Parks Executive Director and Volunteer Coordinator, as well as the Grand Rapids City Forester and a variety of local organizations involved in urban forest activities.

Position Responsibilities:

Partnerships

Build partnerships with community organizations to develop and promote urban forest engagement activities
Establish ongoing relationships with educational institutions environmental organizations, arts and cultural, City government, the Grand Rapids Urban Forestry Committee, utility companies, neighborhood associations, local corporations, etc.
Promote group and individual participation in the citizen inventory/tree map
Oversee project mini-grant program
Assist local organizations in accessing resources related to urban forestry (e.g., K-12 curriculum materials)
Build partnerships with state and national urban forestry organizations

Event Support

Support volunteer planting, inventorying and tree care events involving neighborhood groups, park volunteers, schools, employee groups, etc.
Manage an annual tree sale and/or fundraising event

Website/Social Media Support

Maintain the Urban Forest Project web resource center, providing ongoing updating of events, volunteer opportunities, resources, and other aspects of the website
Provide support to maintain and enhance the Grand Rapids citizen tree inventory/map
Assist Friends of Grand Rapids Parks in effective use of social media to promote urban forest involvement

Project Sustainability

Support Friends of Grand Rapids Parks’ activities focused on
Grant research and writing activities related to the urban forest
Sponsorship opportunities for tree-related events and programs
Revenue-generating programs and contracted projects.
Assist the Executive Director with additional fundraising activities

Required Skills:

Experience in developing and maintaining organizational partnerships and collaborative projects
Ability to establish priorities and work independently on assigned tasks
Comfortable building relationships and networking with a diverse population and volunteers
Strong written and verbal communication skills
Can passionately represent the values and goals of Friends of Grand Rapids Parks and the Urban Forest Project
Proficiency in Microsoft Office and web applications

Required Education/Experience:

Bachelor’s Degree Required
A minimum of 2 years relevant job experience in communications and/or project management
Natural Resources background preferred, but not required

Please submit resume and cover letter by Friday, April 13, 2011 (no longer accepting applications)

Friends of Grand Rapids Parks’ mission is to protect, enhance and expand parks and public spaces.

Additional Information on the Urban Forest Project

Urban Forest Project Job Opening.pdf

Grand Rapids inks parkland deals with National Heritage Academies, 'flaky' Ojibway developer

Friends of GR Parks — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 18:55:19 GMT

By Matt Vande Bunte | mvandebu@mlive.com

Grand Rapids Press, March 28th

MLive.com - Grand Rapids officials say a deal approved Tuesday will deed to the city parkland at the old Lexington school and two other former school sites, regardless of how they get redeveloped.

GRAND RAPIDS, MI – A messy process that left Grand Rapids leaders feeling betrayed over a developer’s switcheroo also has produced an outcome that, if not justifies the means, at least benefits three city neighborhoods, elected officials said.

After discussion that included barbs at the Grand Rapids Board of Education and a frustrated rebuke of the deputy city manager, Grand Rapids City Commission voted 5-1 Tuesday to amend a Brownfield deal for redevelopment of the former Oakdale School as a National Heritage Academies charter school instead of the apartments previously proposed.

The commission also inked an escrow agreement that will deed parkland to the city at two other former GRPS schools: Eastern, 758 Eastern Ave. NE, and Lexington, 45 Lexington Ave. NW.

“I think all of us felt betrayed (when the land was sold to NHA),” Second Ward Commissioner Rosalynn Bliss said. But she and her colleagues, except Mayor George Heartwell, voted to approve the documents that will deed three small pieces of parkland to the city.

“Securing those spaces for the future of our city is really important,” Bliss said.

Looking to generate revenue to pay off old debt, GRPS agreed to sell four former schools to Ojibway Development. The developer, Bruce Michael, proposed low-income apartments at the sites. But after buying three of the schools, Ojibway re-sold the properties to National Heritage Academies.

Commissioners at a hearing Tuesday took their shots at Ojibway. Third Ward Commissioner Elias Lumpkins called the transaction “unethical,” and First Ward Commissioner Walt Gutowski labeled it “deceitful.” But they both pointed to the “greater good,” as Gutowski said, of having the vacant Oakdale school building occupied.

NHA plans this fall plans to open a charter school at the Oakdale site, 944 Evergreen St. SE. River City Scholars Charter Academy initially will serve a projected 500 students in grades K-5, then will add a grade each year through eighth grade and eventually serve more than 700 students.

But because of the charter school's auto-oriented model, some of the green space at Oakdale will be paved and less land - about one acre instead of three acres, as proposed under the apartment plan - will be deeded to the city.

Still, a school will be better for the Oakdale neighborhood than apartments, said Jeff Chamberlain, an NHA real estate manager.

“At the end of all this, look where we are,” he said.

Chamberlain said NHA “wanted the (Oakdale) property and sought out Ojibway” after the Berkley, Mich. developer signed a purchase agreement with GRPS last year. The deal included a common non-disclosure clause that kept the charter-school operator’s interest in the land quiet, he said.

Heartwell, who lashed out at Ojibway after the developer sold the land to NHA, said the process involved “a breach of trust” with the "flaky" developer that he would not support, even if neighborhoods would benefit from the deeded parkland.

“The way this transaction occurred was simply not right,” Heartwell said. “A ‘yes’ vote, to me, feels like rewarding (bad) behavior.”

Ojibway sold all three GRPS schools to NHA - perhaps to meet the charter school operator’s timeline for opening a campus at Oakdale this fall, while the developer puts together financing for planned apartments at Eastern and Lexington. That deal includes a repurchase agreement that will sell the schools back to Ojibway.

A deal for Ojibway to buy a fourth GRPS school, the former Stocking Elementary at 863 Seventh St. NW, was scrapped earlier this month by the school board.

Michael has told MLive.com he still plans to develop the Eastern and Lexington schools into apartments, apparently in partnership with Detroit Affordable Homes, Inc., which is a signatory to the escrow arrangement approved Tuesday. It’s not clear whether development of Stocking School was needed to make Michael’s complex financing package viable.

If the Eastern and Lexington building don’t get converted to apartments, there would be no Brownfield redevelopment tax revenues to capture and the city could be left to fund development of the deeded parkland on its own.

Discussion Tuesday included lament that NHA will open a charter school in the city. There also was criticism of how GRPS handled sale of the schools, with First Ward Commissioner Dave Shaffer suggesting the school board failed to thoroughly vet Ojibway's plans. And Heartwell chastised Eric DeLong, deputy city manager, for adding the escrow agreement to the agenda with little notice, though others lauded DeLong's work.

Email Matt Vande Bunte, or follow him on Twitter.

Organizers hope plant sale will increase tree cover in Grand Rapids

Friends of GR Parks — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 18:52:21 GMT

by Kara Scheerhorn (Kara Scheerhorn) on Thursday Mar 22nd, 2012 03:57pm in

The Rapidian

The Spring Tree and Shrub Sale aims to make it easy and affordable for residents to help with the goal of 40 percent tree cover in Grand Rapids.

From now until April 9, greater Grand Rapids residents can do their part to green the landscape and increase urban tree cover by purchasing and planting goods at the 22nd Annual Spring Tree and Shrub Sale.

The fundraiser, which encourages people to purchase and plant native trees and shrubs by offering them at bargain prices, is a partnership between the City of Grand Rapids, Friends of Grand Rapids Parks, the city's Urban Forestry Committee and ReLeaf Michigan.

”The ReLeaf sale is a simple and inexpensive way to contribute to a greener Grand Rapids,” said Dotti Clune, chair of the Urban Forestry Committee.

There are over 40 different species of trees and shrubs to choose from with prices ranging from $18 for lilac and hydrangea shrubs to $50 for specialty trees like Snow Fountain Cherry and Regal Prince Oak.

There is also the opportunity to support Grand Rapids Parks by choosing to donate a native tree or shrub to be planted in a community park.

Planting donated trees is part of the Friends of Grand Rapids Parks volunteer work conducted in early May, according to Steve Faber, Executive Director of the organization.

“We have no trouble finding homes for donated plants," he said.

Faber said the sale is one way to reach 40 percent urban forest canopy in Grand Rapids, a major goal of The Urban Forest Project.

“A bulk of the goal has to be reached by homeowners and private property owners within the city,” he said.

Right now, downtown Grand Rapids has 4 to 6 percent tree cover according to Faber, while other areas of the city have reached or bypassed 40 percent tree cover.

The plant sale will also raise money for ReLeaf Michigan and its mission to “replant Michigan one tree at a time.”

Melinda Jones, Executive Director of ReLeaf Michigan, said nearly all of the proceeds from the tree and shrub sale go to efforts such as plantings and educational programs. In the past, some of these efforts have targeted Grand Rapids.

“In 2012 we collaborated with Friends of Grand Rapids Parks through a grant we received from the Alliance of Community Trees to plant 36 trees in the Fuller/Hillcrest parks and the Grand Rapids bike park,” Jones said. “Our volunteer-based community plantings are done on a 50-50 cost sharing basis, so the monies raised go towards covering our 50 percent of the cost plus staff time to facilitate the plantings.”

Plant orders can be placed online or by mail until April 9. Mail order forms are available at Grand Rapids' Parks & Recrecation Department, 201 Market Ave SW. After the order is placed, plants can be picked up at Riverside West Park from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, April 28. Anyone wishing to donate a plant for the community can include an extra plant on the order form and indicate which plant has been donated to a community park on pick-up day.

About: Kara Scheerhorn (Kara Scheerhorn)

Winter West Recap

Friends of GR Parks — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 17:17:12 GMT

Some quick facts:

Over 100 participants ran, jumped and slid around the park in the first ever Richmond Park Winter Rush
15 Cardboard Sledders battled it out in the Crazy Cardboard Sled Competition
24 Broomball Players competed in the Broomball Tournament
With the help of local sponsors, we gave away $3,000 worth of prizes!
Even with the abbreviated event, we still passed out over 300 packets of Hot Chocolate in the Warming Shelter!
311 people now follow WinterWest on Facebook, recording more than 2,000 page views per week
WelcomeWest.org recorded over 2,500 hits during the event

Unfortunately, the weather didn't cooperate perfectly, but we were able to make the most of it! We did have perfect conditions for the Winter Rush and the Crazy Cardboard Sled Race, and good turnouts for both. We were also able to move the Broomball Tournament to an indoor rink.

You can find links to media coverage and photo galleries of WinterWest 2012 in the box to the right.

We are already excited about WinterWest 2013 and hoping for the snow and cold weather to return. In the meantime, there will be plenty of opportunities to stay involved with the City Parks, Friends of Grand Rapids Parks and WelcomeWest.

Thanks again to everyone that supported and participated in WinterWest 2012!

Steve Faber, Friends of Grand Rapids Parks

Paul Knust, WelcomeWest

Kyle Van Strien, WelcomeWest

Jon O'Connor, WelcomeWest

"So much fun! Thanks for getting us out into the winter wonderland!"

"Broomball tournament was rad! I think I'm hooked!"

"Awesome! Can't wait for next year!"

WinterWest Participant Quotes

Coverage of WinterWest...

Rink Build Video

Rapid Growth Media Article - 1/26/12

On-The-Town Article - 1/25/12

FOX 17 Interview - 1/27/12

WZZM 13 Interview - 1/29/12

Press Article - 1/29/12

WZZM 13 was inspired - 1/30/12

FOX 17 Sled Competition Story - 1/30/12

Photo Galleries

Find more on our Facebook Fan Page

Get 'releaf' by ordering trees and shrubs through these city and county programs

Friends of GR Parks — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 13:22:47 GMT

By Jim Harger | jharger@mlive.com

File photo | Mlive Media GroupSteve Faber, top, director of Friends of Grand Rapids Parks; Tyler Stevenson, lower right, a city forester, and Dotti Clune, chairwoman of the city's Urban Forestry Committee, represent three groups collaborating with ReLeaf of Michigan.

GRAND RAPIDS – Area residents who want to plant trees and shrubs on their property this spring can participate in two public programs aimed at greening up West Michigan.

The City of Grand Rapids, Friends of Grand Rapids Parks, and the City’s Urban Forestry Committee are taking orders for their 22nd Annual Spring Tree and Shrub Sale through their partnership with Releaf Michigan.

The city’s “ReLeaf” sale offers more than 40 species of trees and shrubs to choose from with prices ranging from $18 for shrubs, like lilacs and hydrangeas, to $50 for specialty trees, like Snow Fountain cherry and Regal Prince oak.

The sale is open to city and non-city residents, according to City Forester Tyler Stevenson.

“The ReLeaf sale is a simple and inexpensive way to contribute to a greener Grand Rapids,” Dotti Clune, chair of the City’s Urban Forestry Committee, said.

“When you plant the right tree in the right place, you can beautify your yard, save energy, improve air and water quality, and increase the value of your property.”

Orders must be placed online by April 9 at releafmichigan.blogspot.com. Mail order forms are available at the city’s Parks and Recreation Department, 201 Market Ave SW.

Trees will be delivered for pickup at Riverside West Park on April 28 from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m.

Releaf tree customers also can donate a native tree or shrub to a city park by including an extra tree on their order form and notifying Releaf workers when they pick up their plants.

The Kent Conservation District also is taking orders for its bi-annual spring tree and shrub sale. Orders are due March 30 on forms that are available online at www.kentconservation.org.

Trees will be delivered for pickup between 8 a.m. and 1 p.m. on April 14 at Kent Conservation District Offices, 3260 Eagle Park Drive NE.

E-mail Jim Harger: jharger@mlive.com and follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/JHHarger

School Park News: Riverside, Oakdale, Lexignton, Eastern, Stocking

Friends of GR Parks — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 16:23:43 GMT

Below are links to the stories related to the sale of school buildings and land.

Veterans' Memorial Park remodeling idea: Fence off monuments

Friends of GR Parks — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 16:05:42 GMT

By: Matt Vande Bunte - Grand Rapids Press

Press File Photo: The leader of a Kent County veterans' group wants to erect a fence around the monuments in Veterans' Memorial Park.

GRAND RAPIDS – With improvements being planned for a military-themed downtown park, the commander of a local veterans' group has an idea: fence off the monuments.

Grand Rapids Downtown Development Authority will convene a group to design improvements to the 1.6-acre Veterans’ Memorial Park, along Fulton Street east of Sheldon Boulevard. The middle of the park, adjacent to Grand Rapids Public Library headquarters and the Grand Rapids Children’s Museum, includes several war memorials and a reflecting pool.

“There have been kids swimming in the pool, people having their grills going right there by the pool, and that kind of activity bothers me a little bit,” said Mike Burri, commander of the United Veterans Council of Kent County. “One of the things that really upset me last year was the children’s museum during ArtPrize put crayons all over the sidewalk right up to the monuments.

“That park is overrun at times with various groups and I just don’t think the reverence is there. It’s my desire to see them isolate that (monument) section of the park with a nice, black, wrought-iron fence. That would portray a little bit of respectfulness or solemnity to that area of the park, and then they can have the rest of the park.”

A brownfield redevelopment deal between Grand Rapids and the developer who turned the former YMCA at 33 Library St. NE into The Fitzgerald condominiums had earmarked $747,500 in future tax revenue for park improvements. But that deal recently was amended to let the DDA do the upgrades and get reimbursed, at 4.5 percent interest, over time.

Fewer-than-expected condo sales have slowed growth in property tax receipts and made it impractical for the developer to front the cost of park improvements, said Kara Wood, the city’s economic development director.

Press File PhotoA sculpture placed on the grounds of Monument Park in 2006 irked some area veterans.

The DDA, which already had planned to improve nearby Monument Park, now also will take on Veterans' Park upgrades.

“We’re still trying to define the scope of work, but our general vision would be to do some improvements at Veterans Park as well as redo the public area in front of the Children’s Museum” at the 0.2-acre Monument Park, said Eric Pratt, a downtown planner with the DDA. “Our hope is to convene a working group of stakeholders and work with a landscape architect to develop an overall vision and goal for what we’d like to see happen in those two public spaces.

“The current condition, particularly of the public walkway (by Monument Park), is in pretty rough shape. We have to start moving relatively soon to address some of the deficiencies there.”

The DDA will have to balance concerns of veterans with those of the park's other stakeholders, including nearby residents, said Steve Faber, executive director of Friends of Grand Rapids Parks.

“They see it as a place where they walk their dog, not as a place where they go and honor veterans,” Faber said. “Everybody sees that as valuable green space, and at the same time it has this unique purpose to it.

“How do you have this sacred space and public space in the same space?”

Email Matt Vande Bunte, or follow him on Twitter.

Recreation Passport grant could fund mountain-biking trails at Richmond Park in Grand Rapids

Friends of GR Parks — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 16:21:02 GMT

GRAND RAPIDS PRESS

Press File Photo Grand Rapids may seek a state grant to help fund 3.5 miles of mountain-biking trails at Richmond Park.

GRAND RAPIDS – A state grant could speed development of a “grand loop” of area mountain-biking trails.

Grand Rapids plans this spring to apply for two Recreation Passport grants from the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. One would help fund resurfacing of six tennis courts at Aberdeen Park, 798 Evelyn St. NE. The other would help pay for 3.5 miles of natural-surface mountain-biking trails at Richmond Park, 1101 Richmond St. NW.

The project proposed at Richmond Park would be part of “The Grand Loop” that will enable riders to access a network of off-street trails via on-street paths, said Kevin Allen, president of the West Michigan Mountain Biking Alliance.

“Why it’s so attractive at Richmond Park is because it marries with the urban bicyclist as well,” Allen said. “You can literally leave from your driveway and ride a little bit on the street and head out from there and hit some mountain-biking trails.

“There’s a lot of little parcels of property that are untouched, and our plans are to develop trails in these (areas) that not only the mountain bikers, but runners and joggers and cross-country skiers, could enjoy.”

Existing mountain-biking trails in the city are at Ken-O-Sha Park, 3155 Kalamazoo Ave. SE, and Grand Rapids Bike Park, 580 Kirtland St. SW. There also are existing trails at Richmond Park “that are not very sustainable,” Allen said.

“Our goal is to redesign those trails and make them something that everybody can use,” he said.

The Passport grants, which are funded by sales of $10 recreation passports sold by the Secretary of State, will range from $7,500 to $45,000 this year. Recipients must pay at least 25 percent of the total project cost.

The mountain-biking alliance will provide matching money for the Richmond Park trails, while Grand Rapids Tennis Patrons and Grand Rapids Public Schools will pitch in for the Aberdeen tennis courts, city officials said.

“Those courts have been perpetually on the list” of park needs, said Steve Faber, Friends of Grand Rapids Parks executive director. Unlike some parkland development monies, the passport grants are a way for the city to get money for upgrades to existing parks, he said.

City Commission is expected to hold a March hearing on the grant applications.

Grand Rapids last year got two $30,000 Passport grants: for basketball court and restroom improvements at Martin Luther King, Jr. Park, 800 Fuller Ave. SE, and for playground upgrades at Roosevelt Park on Grandville Avenue SW. The local match for each of those projects is $15,000.

Email Matt Vande Bunte, or follow him on Twitter.

G-Sync: Cool-laboration (No Stagnation) - Rapid Growth Media

Friends of GR Parks — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 17:48:26 GMT

Tommy Allen, Lifestyle Editor | Thursday, January 26, 2012

Tommy Allen enjoys the winter. Photos Courtesy Tommy Allen

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When people speak of incubators in West Michigan, my mind often wanders to office spaces disguised as imagination stations with stylish furniture recalling the glory days of our furniture city. Naturally, there is the smell of pour-over coffee and young, 20-something hipsters buzzing about in search of the next "it" idea to place into fabrication.

Of course, this incubator image is mostly a fantasy. Recently, I sat down with members of the creative thinking West Grand Neighborhood team who, for a second year, are bringing WinterWest to the West side.

Neighborhood organizing group WelcomeWest may have been incubated at the West Grand Neighborhood Organization, but on the eve of this second-year event, it is clear this model is not just a West side thing anymore.

“We have always said that neighborhood associations have a role to fill in addressing the issues facing a community,” says WinterWest event co-organizer Kyle Van Strien. “But our group’s mission at WelcomeWest has always been to be proactive in approaching the community as we seek to build just that -- community.”

Although WelcomeWest has had a series of successes, WinterWest really resonates with the neighbors and is also quickly becoming one of Grand Rapids' most exciting winter events.

WinterWest stands out from most other events held in our neighborhoods because the production is collaborative in its approach.

The neighbors of West Grand remembered Richmond Park as a place to skate during the winter months. However, due to a series of cutbacks, community-building activities like this have had to take a budgetary backseat in an effort to make the city more financially stable.

It is not to say these park activities are not valuable. Our city had, at one time, 22 ice rinks in neighborhood parks for people to access. Over time, budget cuts have eliminated many of the rinks so that more pressing matters could be sorted out at City Hall.

Van Strien and his group of neighbors knew they had a great idea and plenty of volunteers to help perform some heavy lifting, but they needed someone to help bridge the gap between the city and their needs.

At that point, WelcomeWest brought in the Friends of Grand Rapids Parks, who have made incredible inroads creating such partnerships in our community over the past few years.

“After meeting with Friends, we were able to determine that the current environment is perfect and ripe within our local government for such ideas to begin to take hold,” says Van Strien. “Through this unique collaboration of neighborhood groups, nonprofits, engaged businesses (sponsors) and our local government, we could get people fired up around creating a positive form of civic engagement.”

And who wouldn’t get excited about a winter wonderland in your neighborhood?

A large part of the group’s success is due to its historical context, often overlooked when telling this story.

“Richmond Park was the perfect place in the city to host WinterWest,” says Steve Faber, executive director of Friends of Grand Rapids Parks. “This park, when founded, was built to be a winter playground for the city.”

“It’s true,” adds Van Strien. “I was inside the warming hut the other day and noticed a 1950s article tacked to the wall where a person is quoted as saying that the purpose of Richmond Park’s creation was to build a ‘premier winter park’ in the heart of the city.”

Need more proof? Then grab a sled and head to the massive, popular hill at Richmond Park. WinterWest once again will host the Crazy Cardboard Creation sled competition with some of the most incredible designs this side of Milan on Sunday, Jan. 29.

The festival is a place where neighbors can meet on the slopes in an urban environment to create dialog and maybe incubate the next great idea, too.

“WinterWest builds community by bringing people together to perform things together,” says Faber. “It is also fitting to mention that the very act of neighbors coming together to build something together builds up a community.”

When I think of WinterWest, I recall those famous images of the Amish coming together to build a barn in one day.

Faber also imagines a new era in our city, not necessarily where every community hosts a WinterWest event, but a place where other unique projects incubate and grow in our city.

“One key place to start is to look around your community and take inventory, see what is considered your community’s asset,” says Faber. “And then, begin to identify those items which might need a little love, as in the case of Richmond Park, to incubate a renewed glory for your neighborhood.”

If you doubt what the power of a good idea can do, then look no further than 2012’s WinterWest.

So, if you think the next and new big thing in Grand Rapids is reserved for those with deep pockets and a fancy zip code, just look to the humble beginnings of WelcomeWest incubated in the office of one of our neighborhood associations. When you do that, you will begin to see the impossible become the possible as neighbors work together to benefit the community.

Together, we can create unique partnerships and exciting, innovative solutions between our neighborhoods, our nonprofits and city hall. In fact, we can transform the slogan frequently repeated just over the river a mantra for our entire region: “The West side is the best side.”

For a complete look at all the events and times, including the new WinterRush, an extreme race with a variety of zany, snow-fueled challenges,
please visit WinterWest’s site.

The Future Needs All of Us.
Tommy Allen

Crazy Cardboard Sled Competition is part of WinterWest : WZZM13

Friends of GR Parks — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 17:45:04 GMT

Winter Fun: FOX 17 Coverage of WinterWest Cardboard Sled Race

Friends of GR Parks — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 17:41:50 GMT

VIDEO LINK:
http://www.fox17online.com/news/fox17-snow-finally-some-winter-fun-in-west-michigan-20120129,0,1316413.story

Jason Volentine FOX 17 News

9:58 p.m. EST, January 29, 2012

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich.

This winter has been a crazy mix of warmer than usual temperatures, rain and scant amounts of snow so far. With the wintery blast this weekend, snow lovers found a weird and wacky way to make the most of a cold situation in Grand Rapids.

The annual WinterWest event at Richmond Park in Grand Rapids kicked off this weekend with a snowy run on Saturday and a crazy cardboard sled race on Sunday.

WinterWest continues the next two weekends with a broom ball tournament and three-on-three hockey tournament to name just a couple of events.

Visit the WinterWest website for a schedule of all the upcoming events.

"Winter Rush" competitors scale walls, climb hills for ultimate running challenge

Friends of GR Parks — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 13:24:54 GMT

GRAND RAPIDS PRESS

Nicole Maag doesn’t consider herself much of a runner.

But when her husband, Joe Maag, signed up for a wintry trail run complete with an obstacle course at Richmond Park, she knew she couldn’t stand by and watch.

Nicole Maag and her husband, along with several other couples, opted to compete against one another. Gender rivalry seemed to be the theme of their race day.

“My husband played ‘Eye of the Tiger’ all the way here and laughed at me,” she said on Saturday, just before the full-out winter challenge began.

The first-time competitor stood, looking out at the course, as her husband walked by, joking and holding up his cell phone that played the song ‘We Will Rock You.’

“Are you scared?” He asked.

The two were ready for a good time.

More than 100 runners laced up their shoes Saturday morning and braved a 1 1/2 mile snow and ice-covered course at Richmond Park for the first annual “Winter Rush” challenge.

Participants moved through several obstacles along the way, including a limbo station where they attempted to bend low without collapsing, a wall they had to climb and a special “Mount Everest” right before the end.

The hill may not have been a real mountain, but it sure seemed like one, runners said.

Nate Phelps, race director, said he designed each of the obstacles with a goal of challenging participants and offering them a new experience and a chance to explore the park.

The big hill was his favorite partundefinedthough he smiled sheepishly while explaining why.

“You think you get to the top and you’re just beginning,” Phelps said, explaining a mid-hill turn leading to a continuing incline.

The race ended with participants jumping into sleds to slide down another hill leading to the finish line.

As Blair Smith wiped the snow off her jacket and congratulated Nicole Maag on her finish, the two realized their husbands came out well ahead.

Smith described the experience in two words: “Painful and embarrassing.”

But she laughed.

“I survived.”

The two planned to be back again for another attempt next year.

“It was fun, but you might want to prepare a little better,” they said.

Plan to turn Grand Rapids schools into apartments moves ahead

Friends of GR Parks — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 23:39:25 GMT

By Matt Vande Bunte | The Grand Rapids Press

The Grand Rapids PressEastern Elementary, which closed in 2008, is one of four vacant Grand Rapids schools pegged for apartments.

GRAND RAPIDS – The transition of four empty schools into “workforce housing” could start this summer, launching what one green space guru called the future of urban park development.

A $14 million plan by Ojibway Development for three of the former Grand Rapids Public School buildings got city Planning Commission approval this week, with a $4 million plan for the fourth forthcoming. The approved projects will turn the vacant Eastern, Lexington and Oakdale schools into 107 low-income apartments, with the playgrounds converted into 4 acres of city parks.

Financing plans include Brownfield re-use incentives, with a portion of future tax proceeds to help fund park development. A City Commission hearing on the Brownfield reimbursements is Jan. 24.

"We know these aren't going to be the last schools that go on the market, and we really would love to get out in front of this to make sure that going forward we're not losing parkland," said Steve Faber, Friends of Grand Rapids Parks executive director.

“We’re demonstrating a model. This is how we’re going to do parks going forward.”

File PhotoThe old Lexington School building on Lexington Avenue NW.

With more than 20 percent of Grand Rapids parkland on school sites, public green space is at risk as GRPS closes campuses, Faber said. The partnership with Ojibway will help preserve park acreage in the former school neighborhoods, he said.

Residents near the schools have mixed feelings about the projects. Steve Huyser-Honig, who lives near the Oakdale site, 944 Evergreen St. SE, said he’s happy to see the empty school re-used, and “the green space really is icing on the cake.”

But Barb Hickedy, who lives near the 45 Lexington Ave. NW site, called the parkland “the carrot to tease the donkey” and win support for the apartments. She fears the apartments will further clog an already-cramped parking situation near her home.

“It’s an invasion into the neighborhood,” she said. “We have a right to peace.”

File PhotoThe empty Oakdale Elementary School on Evergreen Street SE

Developer Bruce Michael called the apartments "workforce housing" targeted to tenants with annual household incomes from $27,000 to $36,000. Those amounts are required under the low-income housing tax credits being used to help finance the project, he said.

The school hallways will stay intact, with classrooms converted into dwellings. The Lexington school will have 25 apartments, mostly 2-bedrooms units. Oakdale will have 39 units: half with two bedrooms, 13 with one bedroom and 5 with three bedrooms, along with two studio apartments. The Eastern site at 758 Eastern Ave. NE will have 43 units: 27 with two bedrooms, 14 with one bedroom and 2 with three bedrooms. Stocking would have an estimated 35 units.

Monthly rents will be $493 for a studio, $633 to $703 for a 1-bedroom unit, $760 to $844 for a 2-bedroom unit, $975 for a 3-bedroom unit and $1,087 for a 4-bedroom unit.

"Our intent is to leave the buildings look virtually like they do now," Michael said. "It isn't going to look a whole lot different (on the exterior) than it does now."

The Grand Rapids PressGrand Rapids students play outside Stocking Elementary school. The school closed in 2010, and the district has an offer to buy it to convert into apartments.

The Planning Commission voted unanimously to grant permits for the redevelopment, swayed in part by the limited potential of the buildings for re-use as schools.

“The only reason this makes sense is because (the building) is there now and the looks are going to be the same” as apartments, said Commissioner James Doezema, noting that he would not have supported new apartment construction at the sites.

GRPS last summer agreed to sell Ojibway the three sites for $1.6 million. A $535,000 deal for Stocking Elementary School, 863 Seventh St. NW, is forthcoming. Renovation of all four sites could start in August, with occupancy in 2013, the developer said.

The timeline for Stocking was thrown off due to complications regarding the city's first right of refusal on the property, said Suzanne Schulz, city planning director.

Friends of Grand Rapids Parks got a grant* to fund design of the parks. Public meetings are planned in the coming months: Feb. 4 for Eastern, Feb. 11 for Lexington and in March for Oakdale.

Email the author of this story: localnews@grpress.com

*Dyer-Ives Foundation

Grand Rapids Community Foundation awards $1.1 million in local grants

Friends of GR Parks — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 18:03:56 GMT

Published: Tuesday, December 13, 2011, 1:41 PM Updated: Tuesday, December 13, 2011, 2:06 PM

GrAND RAPIDS -- The Board of Trustees of Grand Rapids Community Foundation recently awarded $1.1 million in grants to support a variety of projects in the community.

The Foundation also awarded $100,000 in grants to 32 schools for new programs.

Community grants include:

Arbor Circle undefined A grant of $100,000 for providing home and school based intervention services for families with risk factors for child abuse and neglect.

Bethany Christian Services undefined An award of $80,000 for the startup of a program that will help connect refugees relocating to Grand Rapids with health services.

Johnson Center for Philanthropy/Community Research Institute undefined A grant totaling $350,000 will support community-based research and data gathering for nonprofit and philanthropic organizations in the greater Grand Rapids area.

Friends of Grand Rapids Parks undefined A grant of $253,825 to increase public engagement and support for the City’s urban forest through citizen inventory, website and events to engage citizens.

Goodwill Industries of Greater Grand Rapids undefined A $100,000 grant to assist former prisoners to transition into the community with workplace training, a paid work experience and job placement and follow up.

Nonprofit Technical Assistance Fund undefined A grant for $50,000 to a pooled fund that helps nonprofits with consulting services to build capacity.

Grand Valley State University undefined An award of $50,000 to create a mini grant program to local church and faith congregations to participate in the 2012 Year of Interfaith Understanding.

West Michigan Sports Commission undefined A grant of $150,000 will help construct a 12-field youth baseball and softball complex that be home to hundreds of youth and amateur sports competitions in the coming years.

Give an apple, get an apple: Grand Rapids' first urban orchard

Friends of GR Parks — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 17:52:54 GMT

Rapid Growth Media

Did you know we have an urban orchard in Grand Rapids? It’s located in Aberdeen Park, thanks in part to the planning and generosity of the Creston Neighborhood Association.

An urban orchard consists of trees planted in a public space for the entire community's benefit. The idea was brought to light at a sub-committee meeting of the neighborhood association earlier this year. Board member Amanda St. Amour knew well the advantages of trees since her brother has been an arborist for many years. She was excited to work on the Living Green in Creston sub-committee.

“The committee really liked the idea and we created a proposal to present to the Board of Directors,” explains St. Amour.

The proposal contained planning, implementation and strategy. Likewise, it also outlined the benefits of creating an urban orchard such as storm water quality, providing fruit and nuts to the community, as well as the aesthetic value.

With approval, the committee met with the Grand Rapids Area Parks and Recreation department, who was very supportive and excited that citizens were taking an initiative with city assets. Joining forces, the group decided to plant trees at Aberdeen, Briggs and Riverside Parks.

Antique apple and pear trees as well as Chinese chestnuts were donated by Michael St. Amour of Athens Arborist to the project. Community members sponsored trees to cover the planting materials needed and the idea was well on its way to reality.

They settled on an orchard-like grid at Aberdeen Park to complement the already existing layout. Friends and neighbors came together to complete the hard work of planting. The Creston Neighborhood Association turned it into festivities which included a bake-off, pie-eating contest, brick decorating and, of course, tree planting.

“The orchard is for everyone,” explains St. Amour. Twenty-nine trees in all were planted among the three parks, and the bounties will be enjoyed by all who visit for years to come.

Want to be a do-gooder too? Here’s how to get involved with projects at the Creston Neighborhood Association:
·         Visit the Creston Neighborhood Association website
·         “Like” them on facebook
·         Check out upcoming events
·         Become a member

Source: Amanada St. Amour, Creston Neighborhood Association
Writer: Jennifer Wilson, Do Good Editor

Friends of Grand Rapids Parks news

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Adtegrity Announces First-Quarter Winners of Operation Spotlight Program

Job Opening: Urban Forest Project Coordinator

Grand Rapids inks parkland deals with National Heritage Academies, 'flaky' Ojibway developer

By Matt Vande Bunte | mvandebu@mlive.com

Organizers hope plant sale will increase tree cover in Grand Rapids

Winter West Recap

Get 'releaf' by ordering trees and shrubs through these city and county programs

School Park News: Riverside, Oakdale, Lexignton, Eastern, Stocking

Developer accused of deceiving Grand Rapids with charter school says he's committed to apartment plan - GR Press 2/22/12

Developer accused of deceiving Grand Rapids leaders sold not one, but three schools to charter group - GR Press 3/1/12

National Heritage Academies releases statement about buying Grand Rapids schools from controversial developer - GR Press 3/2/12

GRPS voids sale of Stocking school - WoodTV 3/5/12

Veterans' Memorial Park remodeling idea: Fence off monuments

By: Matt Vande Bunte - Grand Rapids Press

Recreation Passport grant could fund mountain-biking trails at Richmond Park in Grand Rapids

G-Sync: Cool-laboration (No Stagnation) - Rapid Growth Media

Related Images

Crazy Cardboard Sled Competition is part of WinterWest : WZZM13

Winter Fun: FOX 17 Coverage of WinterWest Cardboard Sled Race

"Winter Rush" competitors scale walls, climb hills for ultimate running challenge

Plan to turn Grand Rapids schools into apartments moves ahead

Grand Rapids Community Foundation awards $1.1 million in local grants

Published: Tuesday, December 13, 2011, 1:41 PM Updated: Tuesday, December 13, 2011, 2:06 PM

Give an apple, get an apple: Grand Rapids' first urban orchard