By JAN LARSON McLAUGHLIN
BG Independent News
Bowling Green residents are being asked to help add to the wild at Wintergarden/St. John’s Preserve.
The park on the west side of Bowling Green has an opportunity to expand by approximately 20 acres.
The Carlene Creps family, which owns land adjacent to the park, has signed an agreement with the Black Swamp Conservancy that protects the acreage from future development.
The Creps land, which is mainly open area, sits off Wintergarden Road, south of the park entrance. All of the property, except for the house and barn, will become part of the city park.
The Black Swamp Conservancy has selected Bowling Green Parks and Recreation Department as the land manager for the new property. The city will be required to keep the property in its natural state.
“They are fantastic,” BG Parks and Recreation Director Kristin Otley said about the conservancy, which will be handing the deed over to the city.
“Our natural resources staff, all of us, have eyed that property for a while,” Otley said. “It’s the last contiguous property to Wintergarden that we would have the opportunity to preserve.”
The conservancy has agreed to help purchase the land for $480,000, with the majority of funding coming from state and federal grants. The Bowling Green Parks and Recreation Foundation has agreed to raise approximately $100,000 toward the purchase.
So letters have gone out to local residents asking them to contribute to a fundraising campaign. The conservancy and park foundation have nearly two years to raise the funds.
“They said ‘absolutely,’” Otley said about the foundation’s response to undertaking the fundraising campaign which is being called “Wintergarden Grows.”
“The park caters to those residents who appreciate a walk in the woods, a chance to study wildlife, an opportunity to recharge the senses and a place to breathe deeply in a nature setting,” the Bowling Green Parks and Recreation Foundation letter to citizens states.
The park currently offers more than 100 acres of meadows, forests, woods and wetlands for citizens. It has miles of trails, areas where families can eat lunch, play in the woods, and catch a glimpse of local wildlife.
After the letter portion of the campaign, some events may be scheduled to help raise funds, Otley said.
The addition of the new land will mean Wintergarden/St. John’s Preserve will have about 120 acres. Minimal plans have been made for the new acreage, though Otley said she expects some trails through the land.
The parks and recreation department is undergoing a master planning project, starting this fall, when the new property will definitely be discussed, she said.
