the bunny that defended youngstown's easter

The Wick Park Neighborhood Association (WPNA website here) successfully launched a new tradition in the city - the Wick Park Easter Egg Hunt.

On hand was a 6 foot easter bunny...


Students from nearby Ursuline High School were instrumental in the success of the event, volunteering time to help kids with arts and crafts throughout the day.


A great diversity of people made it out to this historic neighborhood on the North Side.














more bunny videos...










The next meeting of the Wick Park Neighborhood Association will be this Monday April 19th at 6pm at the Unitarian Church. The agenda includes:

Housing/Street/Safety:
- Wick Park Neighborhood Input/CDBG Program
- Housing Update, North Side Citizens' Coalition Update
- Arson Suspect Update
- Weed & Seed Meeting Recap
- MVOC Corner Store Analysis Data, Grant Writing Volunteers ($500 Grants)
- Land Bank/Code Enforcement/Zoning Code Update

Other Projects/Events/Announcements:
- Wick Park Project, Senate Leadership Tour & Mayor's Presentation in Pittsburgh
- Wick Park Easter Egg Hunt Recap
- Farmer's Market Update
- Grey to Green Festival Planning Meeting Recap
- Fairgreen Neighborhood Garden - Garden Party (Thurs, April 22nd - 4-6pm)
- Concert @ Peace House (4/28/10) & Music at Madison (Dorian Books) - Upcoming Performances
- Wick Park Neighborhood Spring Clean-Up - Set Date
- Neighborhood Assistance Projects - Peace Pole, Wick 6 Building

all looking to improve this section of the city welcome...

free walking tours of historic Wick Park this saturday june 6th

along with some other fun bits this weekend, Youngstown CityScape along with the Mahoning Valley Historical Society will be hosting walking tours of north side's Wick Park and the historical structures around its perimeter.



The one mile walk will begin at both 4:30pm and 6:30pm, and will leave from the First Unitarian Universalist Church at 1105 Elm Street.


A major effort is underway to redesign Wick Park for future generations of Youngstowners. You can read more about the initiative here.

After the tour, refreshments will be provided at the UU where you can check out the final design plans for the Wick Park Revitalization Project.

kielbasa, veggieburgers, and wick park neighborhood cleanup

Fresh from the announcement of the final plan for Wick Park 2.0, the group Resettle Youngstown is organizing a little cleanup for the surrounding neighborhood and needs your help.


set to begin at 10pm this Saturday April 18th, volunteers will be meeting at the Unitarian Universalist Church (the site of the summer north side farmers markets) on Elm Street on the east side of Wick Park.

then at 1pm after a few hours of taking care of the hood, there will be a potluck.

kielbasa, bratwurst, and veggieburgers will be provided.

bags & gloves donated by Youngstown Litter Control and Recycling. please bring your own rakes.

You can see some pictures of the homes Resettle Youngstown is helping to link up with some urban pioneers here.

if you are reading this and have not been involved with any springtime projects in the Mahoning Valley - this one could be a great starting point.

yes, that means you.


lent is over. no more excuses.

vote your opinions on Wick Park proposal

the final design has been chosen!

After a year-long effort into Youngstown-style "open source community development", a crucial component of one neighborhood's revitalization is now available - for public comment on what projects to tackle first.


see a larger image here.

click here to provide opinions in the next few weeks on your favorite ideas.

see why this effort of openness and multiple iterations of fully-advertised public input should become the new standard.

kudos to the many many people and organizations involved with taking this project from a dream to a final plan.

now work shifts to implementation.

design concepts out for Wick Park, 3rd public meeting Nov 15th

Some preliminary designs for adaptations to Wick Park are now online, and the next public meeting to discuss these plans has been set.


This project is a great example of Youngstown's "open source community development" model.

Click here for the main website of the project - for video, presentations, images, discussion, etc.

Chere here for this blog's review of the 2nd meeting.
Click here for a review of the 1st meeting.
Prelim of the project here.


Here is another online document at archive.org which contains additional potential design components.

For example, a wooded amphitheater is one concept:


Dog parks, athletic fields, playgrounds and pathways are all to be discussed at the next meeting.


and so the 3rd public discussion meeting is set for:

Saturday, Nov. 15th 2008
10am to 12pm
Park Vista Community Room
(west side of park entrance along 5th)

please rsvp to 742-4040 if coming (area code 330)

first-ever, jam-packed, music-filled, youngstown grey-to-green festival is this saturday

"even all the forks passed out by the food vendors will be made of biodegradable potato starch."

it's amazing what passionate individuals with dedicated sponsors can put together.

wow.


while I encourage you go to Youngstown Moxie's site to see the full schedule of activities, here is a quick sample of things at the first-ever Grey to Green Festival at Wick Park (north side 44504) in Youngstown on Saturday, September 13th:

farmers market
live music
ethnic food
belly dancing instruction
compost instruction
tai chi instruction
puppet shows
children's activities every half-hour

- - -

And as a special treat, Grow Youngstown is teaming together with the Shout Youngstown blog to present the demonstration:

Urban Permaculture: What is it?

The time: Saturday 4pm to 5pm, Sept. 13th
The place: right next to the Wick Park Pavilion
The presenters: Tracie Haynes and Brad Masi of the New Agrarian Center.

This talk is supported by the Cleveland-Pittsburgh-Youngstown Regional Learning Network.

10 days till first Grey to Green fest

To friends in Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Erie, Buffalo, Akron, Wheeling, Canton, Meadville, Lorain, Columbus, and East Liverpool:

The first-ever Grey to Green Festival is 10 days away - Saturday September 13th - and you are all invited to join together in Youngstown's Wick Park.


over 40 booths and organizations . . .

green energy workshops . . .

music, entertainment . . .

food, farmers market . . .

how cities can minimize their footprints . . .
how individuals can save energy and money . . .
how a region can learn from each other . . .

want to lean more?
contact Deb Weaver at debraweaver2000 (at) hotmail.com

and check back here for more updates.

recap: 2nd wick park planning meeting + G2G info

Immediately after the celebration of Youngstown Tree Day, another event took place: the 2nd public planning meeting concerning the future of Wick Park.

Click here for a recap from the Youngstown Vindicator.

Between 50 to 60 people were at the meeting at Park Vista. (click here and here for a review of the first one and how this is the new standard)


The interim director of the city’s parks and recreation department discussed how even before the final design plan is determined, changes are taking place in the park bit by bit.

The water element/fountain in the park's southeast entrance will be repaired and functioning soon. And as pointed out in the newspaper story, the four corners of the park have been landscaped with flowers during the recent CityScape event.


A presentation by Jim McKnight, a landscape architect out of Cleveland, presented a quick walking tour highlighting possible design improvements including:

"making the front of the community center more defined for first-time visitors; spreading seating throughout; removing some unsightly barriers and guardrails; finding a more discreet location for trash bins; and redesigning a play area to make it easier for parents to supervise their youngsters." (vindy.com)

Two groups were then formed as the audience took turns drawing on maps and adding their suggestions.



Additionally, Wick Park will be the home to Youngstown's first ever "Grey to Green Festival" on September 13th, 2008.


Click on the next two images to read more information about the festival concept and sponsorship opportunities.

The goal of the Grey to Green Festival is to increase awareness of environmental issues in general, the grey-to-green concept in the Youngstown 2010 Plan, and the Wick Park revitalization effort that is currently underway.

The Grey to Green Festival organizing coalition includes The Green Team, Youngstown Litter Control, Defend Youngstown, CityScape, ReCreate, Treez Please, Grow Youngstown, First Book Mahoning Valley, the Oakland Center for the Arts, Green Energy TV, Art Youngstown, the Wick Park Revitalization Committee, The City of Youngstown’s Planning Department, Youngstown State University’s Environmental Studies Society, faculty and staff from YSU, as well as concerned citizens, block watches, and youth groups.

Throughout the park, there will be workshops, displays, demonstrations, musical entertainment, and food and “green” merchandise vendors.