upgrades - WKTV Journal

The Kent County Recycling Center will reopen today, Dec. 18, following scheduled upgrades.

Kent County entered into a planned facility outage Nov. 28 to install equipment to mechanically sort paper cartons and corrugated cardboard to help keep up with the community’s growing recycling needs. Kent County expected the outage to go through Dec.19 but is ready to begin processing recyclables a day ahead of schedule.

“All the equipment was installed as expected and we’ve tested it to make sure everything is working property so we’re looking forward to seeing the haulers deliver recyclables to us on Monday morning” said Nic VanderVinne, Resource Recovery and Recycling Manager for the Kent County Department of Public Works. “We’ve added two major pieces of equipment that will help us manage the incoming material. Adding cartons to the recycling stream will address a type of packaging that is growing in popularity but was previously not recyclable in West Michigan.”

As a result of the upgrades, residents and businesses whose recycling comes to Kent County’s Recycling Center will be able to include cartons, including empty creamer, soy and almond milk containers, juice boxes, milk cartons and boxed water.

The Kent County Recycling & Education Center is approaching its eighth year of processing single-stream recycling. Over the past seven years, the center has undergone periodic maintenance and upgrades to adapt to changes in community recycling habits. Kent County is investing $1.5 million into this round of upgrades.

The Recycling Education Center will be open to the public and staff will be available to answer questions on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday this week from 1-5 p.m. The facility is located at 977 Wealthy SW in Grand Rapids.

By Victoria Mullen

Good picnic places are in high demand. Just ask anyone who’s tried to reserve a space at Pinery Park (2301 DeHoop Ave.) and Lamar Park (2561 Porter St.) only to be told that all spaces were booked. Over the past two years, reservations for weekend hours sold out for June, July and August, the prime months for birthday parties, company picnics, family reunions and special events. In fact, the parks are already taking reservations for this season, which runs May 1 through Sept. 30.

Wyoming Community Services recognized the need for more space and has delivered. Pinery has received one new picnic area and Lamar has received two. The cost was less than $1,000.

At Pinery, park-goers will now find two areas that seat up to 50 people, one for up to 125 and one section for up to 150 people. There’s also a lodge that seats up to 100 people. At Lamar, there are now two sections that accommodate up to 50 people, two that seat 100 and one that seats 175, along with a shelter for up to 75 people.

Overall, Wyoming’s Park Services had an impressive 2015 with 11,077 hours reserved and reported reservations attendance of 170,671 people.

There’s even more in store for Pinery Park.

Fitness trail exercise equipment and new lighting for the lodge are coming to Pinery, too.

The Wyoming City Council recently approved the purchase and installation of exercise equipment from GameTime for $26,855.09. The funding will come from a Community Development Block Grant.

“This equipment provides a great opportunity for residents who are looking to improve their health and wellness,” said Rebecca L. Rynbrandt, director of community services. “And Pinery Park’s central location means good access for those who want to use the equipment for exercise.”

In addition to the exercise equipment at the park, new energy-efficient LED lights at the lodge will replace old fluorescent fixtures. The project, which includes removal of the old lights and installing the new ones, totals $4,215, said Jeffrey Anderson, parks and facilities supervisor. Funding for this work is also from a Community Development Block Grant.

The new lighting will save on energy and maintenance costs, Anderson said.

Both projects are expected to be completed May 31, 2016.

For more information, call the City of Wyoming at 530.7272 or visit the City website. Follow the City on Twitter @WyomingCityHall and on Facebook.