Ever wanted an ultimate Frisbee court? Hoping to have a splash pad at your park? How about more walking trails? Now is the time for Wyoming residents to speak up as the City of Wyoming asks for their input on what Gezon Park should offer.
Through Jan. 11, the City of Wyoming is seeking Wyoming residents’ input on a new master plan for Gezon Park.
The Gezon Park project is part of the library millage proposal that Wyoming voters approved in May. Voters approved a proposal that allowed the city to open up its current library millage to help with park improvements. About .16 of the .39 library millage, about $800,000 a year, is being used to help pay a 15-year bond of $4.4 million.
The master plan will be the basis of the future park development plans. Residents are encouraged to take a survey at www.surveymonkey.com/r/GezonParkMasterPlan. The survey only takes about a couple of minutes to complete. The survey will be available until Jan. 11. After the survey information has been processed, there will be two public meetings on the park as well. The first is scheduled for Jan. 18 at 6:30 p.m. KDL Wyoming Branch, 3350 Michael Ave. SW. The second will be on Feb. 8 at 6:30 p.m. at Metro Health University of Michigan Health Conference Center, 2225 Main St., located in the hospital.
Gezon Park, which includes 94 acres with two entrances, 5651 Gezon Ct. SW and 1940 52nd St SW, actually had a site plan developed in 1996. However much has changed since then, noted Wyoming’s Director of Community Services Rebecca Rynbrandt, who oversees the parks.
“With the growth in the City’s southern region, from developments at Metro Health Village to expanded residential housing along Wilson Avenue, we need the facilities of Gezon Park to align, not only the community needs of today, but well into the future,” Rynbrandt said. “We really look to our community and area residents to guide this process so Gezon can be exactly what is needed for the area.”
The walking path at Gezon Park during the summer.
While Gezon Park runs from Gezon Parkway and 52nd Street, only the entrance areas have been developed. The north end of the park (the 52nd Street entrance) serves as a neighborhood park with basketball courts, a picnic shelter, playground area and walking trail.The south end of the park (the Gezon Parkway entrance) is an active sports park with baseball, softball, and football fields along with restroom facilities. The vast majority of the park remains undeveloped. The City of Wyoming Water Treatment Plant is located adjacent to the park on the City property as well.
Gezon Park is one of four parks included in the proposed park improvements. The other parks are Ferrand Park, a pocket park on Byron Center Avenue; Jackson Park, located at 1331 33rd St. SW; and Ideal Park, located at 5843 Crippen Ave. SW.
For more information about Gezon Park or the greater Wyoming Parks system or program, contact the City of Wyoming Parks and Recreation Department at 616-530-3164 or parks_info@wyomingmi.gov or visit www.wyomingmi.gov.
2017 top story: Grace Bible College’s Kate Shellenbarger makes a difference by working with Wyoming police Det./Lt. James Maguffee. (WKTV/K.D. Norris)
As 2017 comes to a close, I thought it would be fun to take a look at some of the most popular stories for the cities of Kentwood and Wyoming.
In compiling this list, I took a look at both page views on a story, which indicates the number of people who clicked on the article, and also social media statistics. The result is a mix of both most read and shared articles from the WKTV Journal website.
A room with a view: The partnership to make the Kelloggsville Library a community library wrapped up the year and our list for most read and shared stories of 2017.
The first Kentwood City Commission met on Feb. 27, 1967. The city kicked off its 50th anniversary by hosting a commission meeting on Feb. 27, 2017.
The biggest event that took place in the City of Kentwood was the city’s year-long 50th anniversary celebration, so it only makes sense that many of the most read and shared Kentwood stories centered around the celebration. Some of those stories were:
Who does not love a good animal story? Through partnerships with such groups as Crash’s Landing and the Humane Society of West Michigan, we have featured a number of adoptable animals and of the top five, Nessarose, Jamie, Heihei, Cuervo, and Salsa (All from Crash’s Landing), three have been adopted, Nessarose’s adoption is pending and Jamie is being fostered.
Wrapping up our list of the 2017 biggest stories is Kelloggsville, KDL join together to open high school library to entire community, which I could not think of a better way to cap off the year. The story, which was published in December and did remarkably well for the short time it has been up, serves as an excellent example of how various community groups working together can find a way to fill a need. Those partnerships are what has enabled the cities of Wyoming and Kentwood to accomplish some pretty amazing things, as you can tell from this list of 2017 most read and shared stories.
And with that said, we look forward to covering the amazing things that both the cities of Wyoming and Kentwood accomplish in 2018.
