parks

I love to take long walks on the streets of Batavia. It is like taking a trip to a different time in our history. So many places trigger so many memories.  

Recently, I was walking by Farrall Park. It was a beautiful fall day. I sat on one park bench, and my mind took me back to the 70s when I was a playground supervisor. I closed my eyes, and it was 9 a.m., and I could hear the front doors of the homes on James Street, Otis, Osterhout, Clifton, Jackson, Swan, Sumner, and Williams Street slamming shut as the neighbor kids ran to the park to begin their day. We had already unlocked the storage door and removed the sports equipment and the craft they would make that week. 

The children were all friends, and many were cousins. I’m looking at the old swing set and remembering the merry-go-round where we gave endless pushes to the squeals of delight from the children. 

When all the parks opened at 9 a.m. all over Batavia, all the supervisors experienced what I was experiencing. You owned that park and were there to encourage all the children to have fun and use suitable sportsmanship, but you also tried to beat the other parks in everything competitive.   

We had the smallest park, and it did not have a wading pool, but it had the best kids. I worked with two excellent park supervisors, Gary Starowicz and Tim Beers. We all said we had the best kids. 

Every week, we did a different craft. One week, it was boondoggles. Unfortunately, the little kids had no idea how to make them so that they would be clipped to the chain-link fence. A supervisor like myself would begin making them as the young child would watch in anticipation of getting their boondoggle. You can’t forget the little clip that was added at the end.

Another week would be the plaster of Paris. Hopefully, it would be a warm sunny day so the plaster would dry. I think that was one of the children’s favorite weeks. We would line up the molds, mix the plaster, pour the plaster into the rubber molds, shake the mold to eliminate the air bubbles, and insert that tiny hook into the back so your creation could hang on the wall. After we removed them from the rubber mold, the children painted them. They were all masterpieces.

Some of the weekly contests we had were sandbox, coloring, stuffed animal, jello eating, tetherball, pet show, baby picture contest, stuffed animal, scavenger hunt, peanut hunt, and bean bag contest, to name a few. Another favorite was the Park Penny Carnival. Anything you can think of was a contest, and everyone was a winner because everybody at the park was a winner. The Daily News posted contest winners from the various parks in the paper every Friday.

The highlight of the summer was the park parade. Today, my children and grandchildren can’t imagine closing Main Street and having a hay wagon pulled by a tractor showcasing the most beautiful park float. It was covered in chicken wire, twisted, and stapled to 2X4s, depicting the theme of a particular year. Children today can’t imagine building a float, making flowers out of crepe paper, and stuffing the crepe paper flowers into the holes of the chicken wire. The older park members built the float if they were not hopping a train to Pembroke! People would offer their barns or garages to construct the float. We had a garage on Liberty Street for one year and Hawley’s barn on Bank Street for a couple of years. A lot of this took place after park hours. 

I miss the sounds of voices as I sit on a park bench at Farrall Park today. I miss seeing the smiles of those kids who had a safe and fun place to go every day. The boys would jump on their bikes and ride to another park if it were a baseball game. The same was true for the girls, who were amazing athletes.

On the day of the park parade, I remember walking with our park kids down Main Street with our float and ending at Austin Park. Every park had a location to display its float. Looking at the park from the street, you would see a wonderland of children and parents standing proudly by their float. Their park scrapbook was displayed with pictures from the summer. There was also a talent show and a place for our king and queen winners, regally dressed, to be judged. Every park waited to hear the winners. 

I can’t say we ever came in the first place, but in my heart, they were all first-place winners. I cherish the memories, but my heart is so sad that children today will never have the experience that the children from the city parks had back when the parks were open from 9 to 5 with a lunch break from 12 to 1. 

Every child back then had similar memories, and in their hearts, their park was the best it could be. You can delete Farrall Park and insert Kibbe, Williams, Austin, John Kennedy, MacArthur, Woodward, or Pringle Park, and the memories will all be the same. 

As I leave Farrall Park to continue my walk, I leave the voices of children’s laughter and the camaraderie of the voices I hear daily as a supervisor. Today, children’s memories are captured on their iPhones.   That is their playground.   I don’t think kids today can relate to what it was like to belong to a park. The memories from all those beautiful summers go to the park supervisors who made the memories possible. I thank former supervisors Marcia, Bill, and Gary for their help with this article.

If you recognize your park float, please post the name of the float and your park. ENJOY!

The park supervisors in 1972 were: Debbie Lampkin, Ann Gorton, Mary Preston, Doris Holvey, Nancy Manchester, Ann Pietrovito, Marcia Macugowski, Anne Peca, Roberta Thrasher, Laurie Winegar, Dennis Buckley, Larry Barone, Mike Stevens, Marie Howe, Bill Bostwick, Gary Starowicz, Wayne Benedict, Jeff Smith, Peg Marone, Fred Francis

Summer highlights of the 60s included going to the neighborhood park, swimming in the afternoon at the New Pool, and attending the four lawn fetes scheduled throughout the summer. 

The summer recreation program was divided into eight parks. Every neighborhood had a park, and the names of the parks all have a little local history.

Austin Park was named after George Austin, a jeweler who died in 1914 and left some of his money to be used to develop a public park. 

Mrs. George Farrall gifted Farrall Park's land. The land was originally a pasture. 

Kibbe Park is named after Chauncey Kibbe.   In 1934, with the help of federal funds and purchasing land from Chauncey Kibbe, Kibbe Park was born. 

John Kennedy Playground was formerly known as Cary's Woods. It was located on Vine Street. In 1954, the park was built on land sold from the city to the Batavia School District. 

MacArthur Park got its name from Douglas MacArthur. During WWII, the city organized an air raid observation post with headquarters in the baseball dugout at the ballpark. In 1961, the city cleared a small land area and built a picnic shelter with tables and grills behind the stadium.

Pringle Park was named after Judge Benjamin. Pringle also had a playground that was used for the summer recreation program.

In 1927, Mr. and Mrs. Ernest Woodward from Le Roy gave the land along Richmond Ave. across from Robert Morris to the Batavia School District. This began the creation of Woodward Field. In honor of Mr. Woodward, his name is on the ticket booth, along with his good friend Andrew McWain, the editor of The Daily News at the time.

In 1915, the city owned a tract of land on Pearl Street that was left to the city in the will of Robert Williams. This was originally his farmland. Today, it is Williams Park.

The parks were open from 9 a.m. to noon and then from 1 to 5 p.m. Your days were filled with baseball and volleyball games and arts and crafts, and the summer's culmination was the Park Parade. Main Street closed, and the streets were crowded with spectators and store employees. Your park was judged on your float and your scrapbook. You became proficient in making hundreds of paper crepe flowers and how to add the flowers to chicken wire. The goal of each park was to create a unique float to represent the park. 

Friends were made for life at your neighborhood park. 

In 1959, the building contract was awarded to Ed Leising to excavate a choice piece of land in MacArthur Park. It would be the home of the new community pool. When it opened in 1962, another chapter of our childhood was created.     It was a 60-foot by 100-foot pool that could accommodate 600 swimmers. Your afternoons were spent swimming in what I thought was the largest pool I ever saw. You rode your bike to the pool, paid your .25, and were given a key to a locker. When you left, you were given your quarter was returned, which we immediately used on one of the vending machines when we left the pool. 

Another wonderful memory of summer in the 60s was the church picnics, or as many called the lawn fetes.   St. Joseph's Church began the summer with its fete on the first June weekend. Rides, games, food, baked goods, and a beer tent were there. My favorite part was the mammoth parade that opened the weekend's picnic.  

Our Mighty St. Joe's Drum Corps highlighted the parade. Main Street was packed with spectators. Parents and children in strollers lined Main Street. St. Joseph's Drum Corps was founded in 1931 by the Rev. T. Bernard Kelly, pastor of St. Joseph's Church in Batavia. St. Joseph's Drum Corps operated as a parade corps until the late 1950s, when it became a field competition corps. During the 1960s, Mighty St. Joe's rose to National and International prominence, consistently ranking among the top ten junior corps in the country.

The end of the lawn fete was marked by the lucky winner of the raffle ticket. You couldn't forget the grand prize, a new Cadillac that would be raffled at midnight Sunday evening. If you didn't want the Cadillac, you could choose $10,000. 

St. Joe's wasn't the only church that had a lawn fete. 

St. Anthony's had one on a smaller scale, but it was just as fun. I loved their baked goods booth. They also had a popular beer tent.   

When our daughters were little, we would walk to the fete. I remember one year carrying our youngest daughter from the fish pond, screaming. She wasn't ready to leave, and when we got home, we discovered that she had a rubber fish in her hand from the fish pond. 

Sacred Heart Lawn fete was very special to me because you could always find my wonderful father-in-law in the church garage counting money. He was always happy to give his granddaughters cash for the games. It was a smaller lawn fete, but every booth had a church member operating it year after year. 

Every church supported the various lawn fetes. St. Mary's also had a Lawn Fete. 

It was the community that benefited from the summer events. My memories span from when I was nine to when the last lawn fete was held in 2017. It ran for 61 years. When you think of our lawn fetes, you remember the long lines for the waffle booth or the smell of Italian sausage,  pepper, onions, or, respectfully, Polish sausage being grilled at Sacred Heart's Lawn Fete. You got used to the sound of the game I've Got It or someone yelling Bingo.

So many of these beautiful memories are gone. I regret that children today will never experience the fun. We all remember walking the tarmac of the various lawn fetes, walking in their park parade with their float, or swimming in the New Pool. My heart is filled with great memories and the sadness of dealing with all the changes we baby boomers must accept. 

As you read this today, I hope you smile and remember our summers in Batavia. Smile and be thankful we lived at a time when lawn fetes, the park program, and the New Pool filled our summer days. 

Photos courtesy of Genesee County History Department.

Press release:

The City of Batavia would like to encourage members of the community to “adopt a park” and volunteer in cleaning city parks in honor of Earth Day. Residents are encouraged to take part in “adopt a park” on Saturday, April 23rd.

Batavia is very fortunate to have several local park settings with over 35 total acres of playgrounds and open land to offer to the public. Groups and individuals are encouraged to assist the City with improving parks through litter and debris pick-up in an effort to help keep parks and playgrounds clean and attractive. Your volunteer effort in our parks generates pride in our parks system, increases awareness of the importance of protecting our natural resources and will demonstrate commitment to your community in a way that promotes appreciation to beautify and keep our parks clean in Batavia.  Director of Public Works, Brett Frank said “On behalf of the City of Batavia, we’d like to thank all of our residents for the pride they take in keeping our parks clean and thank them in advance for their participation and support.”

Please use the receptacles within the parks or bring your own bags for refuse and gather yard waste in a separate pile that will be removed by the City.

Press Release:

Enjoy the forest in winter and track the secret lives of wild animals on a guided hike! Winter Wonderland Hikes are held at the Interpretive Nature Center at the Genesee County Park & Forest on the following Saturdays:

January 8th from 1:00 to 3:00 pm
February 12th from 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm

Hikes will go, snow or no snow. Snowshoes may be used, weather permitting, and are available for rent or you may bring your own. Snowshoeing lesson provided, no previous experience needed! Rental is included in the price, $5/person, $15 max/family. Recommended for ages 3 and up! Space is limited! Pre-registration is required, call 585-344-1122! Masks must be worn whenever unable to maintain 6 feet of social distance.

Join us for Winter Fun Night Hikes from 7:00 to 9:00 pm on the following Saturdays:

January 8th Meet at the Interpretive Nature Center
February 12th Meet at Pavilion A

Enjoy the tranquil beauty of the forest at night! Park guides lead you on a night hike for ages 18 and over.

Snowshoes may be used, weather permitting, and are available for rent or you may bring your own. Snowshoeing lesson provided, no previous experience needed! Rental is included in the price, $5/person, $15 max/family. Space is limited! Pre-registration is required, call 585-344-1122! Masks must be worn whenever unable to maintain 6 feet
of social distance.

Make a memory this winter with your own Private Group Snowshoe Hike! A Naturalist guides your group through peaceful woodland trails and open meadows. Listen to winter’s quiet beauty and find signs of wildlife in this 431-acre park. Private hikes are available on Saturdays in January and February from 10:00 am – 12:00 pm by reservation only at the Interpretive Nature Center. No previous experience is needed; snowshoes provided or bring your own. Rental is included in the price. Limit group size of 10 people. $5/person, minimum group fee is $50. Call 585-344-1122 to book your own adventure!

Snowshoe Rentals are available at the Genesee County Park & Forest Interpretive Center 10:00 am – 3:00 pm on Thursdays and Fridays, 12:00 pm – 3:00 pm on Saturdays and Sundays December through March, weather permitting. Snowshoes must be used in the park. Fee is $5/pair and all proceeds go to ACORNS, the nonprofit organization that supports the parks!

Call (585) 344-1122 to register. For more information visit our website at
http://www.co.genesee.ny.us/departments/parks/,

Press Release:

Enjoy the forest in winter and track the secret lives of wild animals on a guided hike! Winter Wonderland Hikes are held at the Interpretive Nature Center at the Genesee County Park & Forest on the following  Saturdays:

January 8th from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m.
February 12th from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m.

Hikes will go, snow or no snow. Snowshoes may be used, weather permitting, and are available for rent or you may bring your own. Snowshoeing lesson provided, no previous experience needed! Rental is included in the price, $5/person, $15 max/family. Recommended for ages 3 and up! Space is limited! Pre-registration is required, call 585- 344-1122! Masks must be worn whenever unable to maintain 6 feet of social distance. Join us for Winter Fun Night Hikes from 7:00 to 9:00 pm on the following Saturdays: January 8th Meet at the Interpretive Nature Center February 12th Meet at Pavilion A.

Enjoy the tranquil beauty of the forest at night! Park guides lead you on a night hike for ages 18 and over. Snowshoes may be used, weather permitting, and are available for rent or you may bring your own. Snowshoeing lesson provided, no previous experience needed! Rental is included in the price, $5/person, $15 max/family. Space is limited! Pre-registration is required, call 585-344-1122! Masks must be worn whenever unable to maintain 6 feet of social distance Make a memory this winter with your own Private Group Snowshoe Hike! A Naturalist guides your group through peaceful woodland trails and open meadows. Listen to winter’s quiet beauty and find signs of wildlife in this 431- acre park. Private hikes are available on Saturdays in January and February from 10:00 am – 12:00 pm by reservation only at the Interpretive Nature Center. No previous experience is needed; snowshoes provided or bring your own.
Rental is included in the price. Limit group size of 10 people. $5/person, minimum group fee is $50. Call 585-344-1122 to book your own adventure! Snowshoe Rentals are available at the Genesee County Park & Forest Interpretive Center 10:00 am – 3:00 pm on
Thursdays and Fridays, 12:00 pm – 3:00 pm on Saturdays and Sundays December through March, weather permitting.
Snowshoes must be used in the park. Fee is $5/pair and all proceeds go to ACORNS, the nonprofit organization that supports the parks!

Call (585) 344-1122 to register. For more information visit our website at
http://www.co.genesee.ny.us/departments/parks/

Press release:

All City of Batavia playground equipment will be open for use Monday, June 22. Please continue to take safety measures and continue to observe all public health guidelines related to COVID-19 to reduce risk of transmission.

At this time, the City of Batavia will continue to evaluate the New York State Department of Health Guidance in an effort to reopen the City’s splash pad and pavilion rentals, but they remain closed this time. 

“The City of Batavia is also encouraging sports organizations, including youth baseball and softball, to submit their event application and insurance paperwork if they would like to utilize City playing fields this summer,” said Rachael Tabelski, assistant city manager.

“Along with the event application sports organizations will need to follow the New York State Department of Health Interim Guidance for Sports and Recreation during the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency and provide the City of Batavia with a copy of their Safety Plan,” Tabelski said.

Event Application (PDF)

NYS DOH Sports & Recreation Guidance (PDF)

NYS Safety Plan Template (PDF)

The City encourages all residents to continue to take safety measures as they use common touch facilities like playground equipment and public bathrooms.

Please continue to observe all public health guidelines related to COVID-19 to reduce risk of transmission.  

The following measures are seen as best practices to keep residents safe when using shared equipment:

• Spacing: Families and individuals should stay 6 feet apart from each other.
• Masking: Families and individuals should wear masks, especially in situations when social distancing cannot be maintained.
• Hand Hygiene: Children should wash their hands or use hand sanitizer after use of equipment.
• Cleaning: The City will conduct scheduled cleaning of park equipment, but residents are welcomed to wipe down surfaces before and after use.

Yesterday I set out to take a look at the new bridge over the railroad tracks off of East Main Street Road on the eastern end of the Ellicott Street Trail, which is expected to open late in the fall.

It was a pretty scenic spot so I ended up walking the length of the trail from the bridge to West Main Street Road, where a crossing is being installed. Then I went over to DeWitt Recreation Area to see where a bridge is being installed at the back of the park.  

The bridge that will span the Tonawanda Creek as part of the Ellicott Trail is being installed today.

The $1.7-million project will provide a biking and walking trail from just west of Williams Park to Seven Springs Road (see map).

(Editor's note: For a closer look at the trail map, click here.)

Press release:

Students from Genesee County’s Reality Check program have noticed a big problem of littered cigarettes scattered all across county parks. So they’ve decided to do something about it.

This Saturday, Sept. 30, with plastic bags in hand, the students will go through DeWitt Recreation Area and pick up all the cigarette butts littering the park. The event will kick off at 10 a.m.

Reality Check is New York State’s youth-led movement aimed at exposing the deceptive marketing practices of the tobacco industry and supporting a tobacco-free generation for their peers.

Shelly Wolanske, youth engagement coordinator at Tobacco-Free GLOW, said the students got the idea when they were working out in the park this summer and noticed all the smokers and the butts they were leaving behind. The group wants their generation to be tobacco-free, and all citizens of Genesee County to breathe cleaner air when they are enjoying a picnic, bike ride or play time.

“I have trouble breathing when people around me are smoking,” said Ben Streeter, a freshman at Notre Dame High School. “Plus, we see so many cigarette butts near the playground where little kids play.”

To prevent children in the community from feeling those same effects due to secondhand smoke, Streeter and his fellow Reality Check advocates decided to rally for smoking bans in all the parks in Genesee County. Their Cigarette Butt Pickup on Saturday is the first event they are sponsoring to raise awareness for a smoking ban.

Wolanske said she and the students will take the plastic bags of cigarette butts collected with them to meetings with Genesee County elected officials to discuss a possible ban in the future. If Genesee County declares its parks tobacco-free, they would be following the lead of the City of Batavia, as well as other counties in New York State, including nearby Erie County.

NOTE: Earlier this year, the Chamber of Commerce published its annual Genesee County Tourism magazine and for the second year in a row, The Batavian participated in the publication by producing photos and stories. Today, for our Sunday reading, we're publishing four of our stories. For more on why Genesee County is a great place to live and to visit, click here for VisitGeneseeNY.com.

Doug Kelly gets to do things every day he really enjoys: Helping to maintain a diverse and interesting ecosystem and providing people with a place to play and relax.

"This park is a kind of joy for me," said Kelly, who is manager for Darien Lakes State Park. "I enjoy being able to work outdoors and have interaction with people who have come to be in the outdoors. I can teach them a little and give them something to enjoy."

Kelly overseas a more than 1,800 acres of woodlands and meadows with thousands of plant and animals species, a 12-acre recreational lake (boating, swimming and fishing), and 158 campsites.

In his four-year tenure as park manager he's introduced weekly music concerts and disk golf as well as overseen various conservation measures, including partnering with a local group to reclaim several acres of former farmland into meadows.

The park is traversed by more than 18 miles of trails, both for hiking and snowmobiling, and the picturesque-in-places Eleven Mile Creek.

"The amount of open space is really one of the park's strengths," Kelly said. "There are a variety of paths for activities and all of it is open for recreation, hiking, snowmobiling, cross-country skiing, hunting. That's a real plus for the park. You're able to camp here, hike here, swim here. That's the benefit of the park."

Kelly, who is married with two school-age children, lives in his hometown of Perry, in Wyoming County, just south of Genesee County. He started his parks career as a teenager at Darien Lakes, working as a recreation assistant.

As he completed his bachelor's in technology of wildlife management at SUNY Catskills, he moved his way up in park management. After a stint with the Delaware parks system, he moved back to New York and managed Beaver Island on Grand Island.

When the chance came to return to Darien Lakes, he couldn't let the opportunity pass by.

"The biodiversity of the park is special," Kelly said. "The land can vary so much, from older forest -- stands of trees that have been here before the park was formed -- to meadows we are helping to restore and maintain, and the shrub in between. That kind of layout gives the park a great number of different communities and habitats."

One of Kelly's biggest innovations at the park has been disk golf. The year-old course is bringing in amateur and pro golfers alike from throughout Western New York. Expert golfers find that the new course, which winds through an old apple orchard and wooded hills, presents a fun challenge.

Though Kelly doesn't play the sport himself, he learned how successful a course could be at Beaver Island.

"To see people that come in, a new group of people that never would have come if we didn't have this activity here, is really exciting," Kelly said.

He believes the challenging course will grow in popularity as more disk golfers learn about it.

All-in-all, Kelly said he will continue to work to find ways to improve the park and make it more attractive to the people of Western New York.

"Once in a while I hear, 'wow, I never knew this park was here,' " Kelly said. "If we can reach out and grab people who wouldn't normally come to the park and then they see what we have and come back year after year, that is really good."

Cub Scouts and Girl Scouts were in DeWitt Park today for Earth Day to do a little clean up. The girls found a whole area of old auto parts that had been dumped, no doubt, decades ago, and dutifully picked up every scrap.

Here's a media release from Chris Barons, Assemblyman Steve Hawley’s possible opponent this November, in response to Hawley’s ‘No’ vote on re-opening state parks:

Although I deplore the backroom politics and pretentious raiding of the Environmental Protection Fund, Mr. Hawley's assessment is short-sighted.

In March 2009, a study prepared for Parks & Trails New York by the Political Economy Research Institute (PERI) (Heintz et.al., 2009), University of Massachusetts-Amherst, found that the combination of annual state and visitor spending at all New York State Parks supports up to $1.9 billion in economic output and business sales and up to 20,000 jobs throughout the state.

In February, the Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation (OPRHP) released a list of closures and service reductions in order to meet the budget reduction, part of a comprehensive plan to close an $8.2 billion deficit.

The OPRHP’s list of closures included 41 parks and 14 historic sites, and service reductions at 23 parks and 1 historic site. Included in the closure list was Allegany State Park, which provides $62 million in revenue and 860 jobs to its three-county area.

Park visitor expenditures within the Allegany Region were estimated to be between $33.7 million and $69.3 million annually with 87% of its visitors from outside the tri-county area.

Clearly the nine Finger Lakes Region Parks and three Genesee Region Parks would generate more local revenue than the $14.9 million outlay to keep them open. Allegheny Park alone generates nearly five-times the outlay, and there are eight other regions across the state.

Assemblyman Steve Hawley announced last week that the Downstate Assembly Majority "under the cover of darkness at 3 a.m." introduced legislation to reopen state parks and historic sites which were closed due to budget constraints.

In a press release, Hawley said he could not vote in favor of the bill, however, "due to its proposed $14.9 million tax increase on businesses and manufacturers, an $800,000 additional cost to Kodak, and the sweeping of the Environmental Protection Fund to the General Fund, instead of making the necessary cuts in state spending."

He says the bill will also be harmful to the agricultural industry since it will reduce funding for farmland protection and soil and water conservation.

"I have advocated for the reopening of state parks throughout the budget process, but this legislation and its increased burden on employers will only discourage job creation, while also setting a precedent for Albany to sweep state funds to close budget gaps,” Hawley said.

Assemblyman Steve Hawley (R,I,C—Batavia) released the following Tuesday in response to the 2010-11 New York Executive Budget:

According to the Executive Budget, there would be reductions in the operation budget of the Office of Parks, Recreation and Historical Preservation (OPRHP), resulting in the closure of 57 State Parks and Historic Sites throughout the state, including the Oak Orchard State Marine Park.

"The planned closing of the Oak Orchard State Marine Park, and other state parks, as part of the state’s budget reduction proposal is the wrong approach and just another one of Albany’s budgetary gimmicks,” Hawley said. “Once again Albany is forcing Upstate residents to make unfair sacrifices because the special interests in New York City won't give up their demands.

"At a ratio of 33 to 1, these closures will overwhelmingly damage Upstate communities that depend on their state parks not only for local recreation and ‘staycations,’ but for support of their local economies through job creation and tourism. Additionally, many parks charge admission and parking fees, which with longer hours and a longer season could help cover their operating costs.

"Closing parks and restricting operating hours is unwise at a time when the slow recovery from the recession and higher gas prices will lead many families to spend their vacation dollars in local state parks and historic sites,” Hawley continued.

"Despite the announced closures, the State Assembly and Senate can allocate an additional $5 million from the Environmental Protection Fund (through a 21-Day Amendment to the executive budget) to help pay for operational costs at selected parks throughout the state. However, to date the Orchard State Marine Park is not listed among the selected parks that would be eligible for the funds.

“If the state is serious about closing the impending budget deficits then real budget cuts should be made, not cuts to our parks and historic sites. Earlier this month, I joined many of my colleagues, from both sides of the aisle, in sending a letter in opposition to these closures to Speaker Silver. It is my hope that the legislature will find a bipartisan solution that properly allocates the $5 million from the Environmental Protection Fund in a way that prevents any state park closures this year,” Hawley concluded.

I go to Dewitt park every morning to walk  I have been walking there twice a day all summer as part of my routine (before and after my knee surgery the end of June) .   I think it's a beautiful park.  Here are a few pics from a recent walk. 

My grandson Christopher came for a walk with me friday morning.

Veiw from the path.

another veiw from the path.

Christopher took this sunny veiw from the dock.

Mirror image.

It started actually Saturday as temperatures were rising in the upper 30's climbing to low 50's overnight.  We had received about 2+ feet of snow just in the last week and now it was melting very rapidly.  Today's high was in the upper 50's and the tonawanda creek was above flood stage of 9 feet and peaked around 11.4 feet according to the weather channel this morning.  It's now at a little over 12 feet and hopefully cresting soon.  Also during this time we had very high winds which were approx 35-45mph most of the day.  This morning there were gusts passing through around 50+ mph for about an hour.  As the day went on the city crews were on scene along with tree and power companies to help battle the flooding and tree damage due to high winds.  On every street I saw tree limbs, debris and even uprooting in some areas that had left much damage through the city.

Here are some pictures to share of areas around the city:

A tree fell hitting a house on east avenue and pulled utility wires.

Tree was uprooted on Lincoln Ave. damaging houses and a red SUV due to the 50+ mph winds.

Many side streets had flooding on the south side.  Ganson Ave, Elmwood and pictured here is Jackson Avenue.

Kibbie park or should I say Kibbie lake?  The winds were very high in the afternoon during this time.

The tonawanda creek filled up rapidly due to the fast melting of snow.  Here is a picture showing the River Street bridge with a vehicle coming across.

Look familiar?  Corner of Walnut and Law streets had major flooding.  A trucker was able to pass through heading south on Rt 98.

Let's hope the worst is over and we can recover a bit before heading into the New Year.

Genesee County's ACORNS held a volunteer day today, welcoming folks to come out and help the group with some of their outdoor activities. For those who don't yet know of the ACORNS (that is: the Association for the Conservation of Recreation and Natural Spaces), they describe themselves in this way:

"ACORNS is a volunteer group formed to support Genesee County Parks ... by assisting with environmental programs and park maintenance, offering recreational opportunities and promoting the parks. ACORNS' membership dollars support the parks' programs and help with improvements in the parks and at the Genesee County Park & Forest Interpretive Nature Center."

Today, some volunteers got together to help with a couple of the group's projects: GPS mapping of the county's parks and their "made-from-nature" display at the Holland Land Office Museum's Wonderland of Trees.

ACORNS member Judy Spring told us a little about the GPS mapping. Essentially, surveyors walk the park trails with a receiver stuck out of a backpack and send up signals to satellites at certain waypoints. Those positions are then synced up with a computer program that marks all of the points on a general map of the area.

The group has already helped get this done at the Genesee County Park and Forest. Now they're making the rounds of the rest of the recreational parks.

Once the data has been synced up with the satellites, the waypoints are marked on traditional maps that can be given out to tourists or any area parkgoers. This helps, because locations are exact, not merely estimated, so trail walkers can know exactly where they are at each waypoint.

Waypoints can also be transposed onto topographical maps and used by programs such as Google Earth.

After a chilly, snowy morning of walking the trails, the volunteers then met up at the Holland Land Office Museum, where they set up their display. This year's theme is Frosty's Holiday, so the group put together a big snowman, made of painted leaves, corncob, stones and tree bark. Their display is impressive: a community of critters made of pine cones, twigs, bark, nut shells... whatever you might find in nature.

Julia Garver, president of ACORNS, told us that the group used the book on the Brandywine Critters for some inspiration, although most of what they made was dreamt up from their own active imaginations—such as the pine cone jamboree and the tree bark top hat up above.

If you're looking to find out more about ACORNS, or if you're interested in joining the group, give them a call at (585) 344-1122.