CHILLICOTHE— The Ross County Park District sent out a request for help on Facebook, and the community answered the call.
The park district applied for about $240,000 in grant money for a new bike path extension into the Coppel Athletic Complex and planned to spend around $75,000 out of pocket to achieve the estimated project cost of $315,000.
However, the district was only awarded $150,000 in grant money. Joe Letsche, Ross County Park Districts Director, looked into other ways to complete the project with less resources. He put out a request on Facebook for anyone who would be willing to donate their time and heavy machinery to clean up piles of tires, concrete, trash, brush and stumps.
Three local people answered the request. Tristen Carter, Karl Gearhart and Joe Lott donated several thousand dollars worth of labor and the use of their personal heavy equipment on Saturday, May 7 to help clean up the area.
“I put out a request for help on social media, and the response has been amazing," Letsche said. "If the community continues to step up like these guys have, I think we can not only complete the extension but also install high-quality ADA parking and access for seniors and those with disabilities.”
The railroad bed is part of what will become a one half-mile extension of the Paint Creek
Recreational Trail that will connect the Coppel Complex to the main bike path. Cleaning up the railroad bed was the first step in converting the corridor to green space for the
The bike path extension was made possible by land donations from Steve Houseman, Jeanne Pahl and Sunrush Enterprises, LLC.
Letsche said the district is planning a second heavy equipment "party," as well as other volunteer clean-up days for those without heavy machinery.
Interested volunteers can find information on Facebook on the page "Joe Letsche - Ross Parks." Willing participants can also contact Myranda Vance at the Park District office at (740) 773-8794 to put their names on an email list for Project Greenspace volunteers.
Megan Becker is a reporter for the Chillicothe Gazette. She can be reached at 740-349-1106, email her at mbecker@gannett.com or follow her on Twitter @BeckerReporting