New York: parks for tomorrow program brings more fun today.After 70 years of use by millions of visitors, Onondaga Lake Park in New York was named one of 10 "21st Century American Heritage Parks" in September 2003 for its three-year transformation from a historic park to a newly-updated leisure area. The Americans for Our Heritage and Recreation give this designation to 10 parks that best promote recreation and conservation, and are at least partly funded through The Land and Water Conservation Fund The United States' Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) is a Federal program that was established by Act of Congress in 1965. The Act designated that a portion of receipts from offshore oil and gas leases[1] (LWCF) or the Urban Park and Recreation Recovery Program (UPARR UPARR Urban Park and Recreation Recovery ). The parks in Onondaga County started receiving a makeover in September 2000 when Parks Commissioner Robert Geraci and Onondaga County Executive Nicholas J. Pirro presented their idea for a program called Parks for Tomorrow Parks for Tomorrow is a Canadian conference on parks and protected areas, held May 8-13 2008 in Calgary, Alberta Canada. It is hosted by the University of Calgary. The conference specifically focuses on future management challenges and mirrors a first parks conference held . "The facilities got to the point where they were one step above being called degraded," Geraci said. "Nick [Pirro] is really a visionary in the world of parks and recreation and I presented the idea to him that we have to invest some serious money, and do an across-the-board renovation. We wanted to make sure we weren't just rebuilding what was there, but were answering today's needs as well." The program outlined plans that would involve not only using funding from LWCF or UPARR, but also using resources from area organizations, corporations and grants from private industry and state government. The project would also need input from the residents of Onondaga County as to what they wanted their new park to be. Included in the Onondaga Lake Park project was the addition of the first-ever boundless playground in New York for children with disabilities, which was funded by Wegman's grocery store and the surrounding community They also added a skatepark after asking more than 100 skaters and bikers ranging in age from 8-17 about their opinions. The skatepark was completed in November 2003, and the maintenance and operation costs will be offset by equipment rentals, concession sales and advertising. The park also renovated an existing historical building to create a family activity center. The Parks for Tomorrow program also added improvements to other Onondaga County Parks, including a $3 million Conservation Education Center paid for by the Friends of the Rosamond Gifford Zoo The Rosamond Gifford Zoo at Burnet Park is a zoo in Syracuse, New York. It is owned and operated by Onondaga County Parks. The zoo is home to over 600 animals. Highlights include a renowned elephant exhibit, several wildlife trails, a petting zoo, waterfowl ponds, a social animals at Burnet Park, which will open a penguin exhibit in 2005. In addition, Onondaga County will now showcase renovated sites such as Oneida Shores Boat Launch, Carpenter's Brook Fish Hatchery hatchery a commercial establishment dedicated to the hatching of bird eggs to provide day old chicks and poults to the poultry industry. hatchery liquid the contents of unfertilized eggs. Used in petfood manufacture. , Pratt's Falls Park, Highland Forest Skyline Lodge and Hopkins Road Sports Complex. Geraci says, "What we say every chance we can is that parks are forever things. We were handed these facilities by the prior generation, and have to take care of them for future generations. They are not to be taken for granted Adj. 1. taken for granted - evident without proof or argument; "an axiomatic truth"; "we hold these truths to be self-evident" axiomatic, self-evident obvious - easily perceived by the senses or grasped by the mind; "obvious errors" , and they are part of who we are as a community." Other parks that received the 21st Century American Heritage Parks designation were: * French Broad Riverpark, Asheville, N.C. * Sweetwater Elementary School, Devils Lake, N.D. * Lake Umbagog National Wildlife Refuge  National Wildlife Refuge , Errol, N.H. * University Park Community Center, Portland, Ore. * Bull Run Regional Park, Fairfax County, Va. * Riverfront Park, Spokane, Wash. * Lewis and Clark Caverns Lewis and Clark Caverns is a State Park located in Jefferson County, Montana. The primary feature of the park is its namesake cavern. The cavern was discovered in 1895 by D. A. Morrison. State Park, Three Forks, Mont. * Catalina State Park Catalina State Park is located adjacent to the Coronado National Forest in the western slopes of the Santa Catalina Mountains north of Tucson, Arizona. Catalina State Park has an average elevation of 3,000 feet, but varies dramatically with high ridges and low creek beds. , Tucson, Ariz. * Stephen Foster Culture Center State Park, White Springs, Fla. |
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