St. Cloud Residents Have Been Quietly Tending Their Parks For Decades

ST. CLOUD (WJON News) -- The next time you visit one of St. Cloud's 100 parks, take some time to appreciate the hard work that someone has put into it.  Or, if you think it could use some sprucing up, consider taking on the project through the city's Adopt-A-Park program.

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Barden Park/Jim Maurice

Barden Park

The Southside/University neighborhood group has adopted the city's oldest park.  The group started raising money for the park over 25 years ago.  They helped to work on the fountain and restore the bandshell.

Spokeswoman Juliana Elchert says they are now in more of a maintenance stage.  This year, as many as 11 people helped plant the flower beds that surround the fountain.  She says it is definitely a group effort.  The flowers that are planted are grown in the city's greenhouse, the volunteers make suggestions of what they want to plant, and then the city delivers the flowers to the park.

Elchert says she personally volunteers at Barden Park because she understands its history.  It was established in 1855 and is the city's oldest park.

She says the city is very supportive of the neighborhood group's efforts, and St. Cloud State University is happy to see the park come back to life.

The St. Cloud Municipal Band is getting ready for its regular summer concert series at Barden Park.  Their first concert is on Thursday, July 9th.

Eastman Park/Jim

Eastman Park

A couple who live in the Lake George neighborhood have lovingly taken on the flower beds you see in Eastman Park.  John and Janice Uberecken have maintained the flower beds for about 10 years now.

John says it started as a project for the Lake George Neighborhood group.

They work to keep the two large flower beds near the boathouse looking beautiful throughout the summer. He says every fall they dig up the perennials, store them in the basement over the winter, and replant them in the spring.

John says, they are getting older, so they could use some help from the neighbors if anyone wants to help them with weeding the flower beds.

He says they continue to volunteer because he grew up in the neighborhood and has lived there for about 60 years.  Also, Janice has a great interest in flowers, so this is a good way for them both to give back to the city in a positive way.

The Rotary Club's Summertime By George concert series on Wednesdays is a great time to appreciate the garden beds.

Community Services & Facilities Director Scott Zlotnik says,

"Adopt- A – Park is a historical name that was carried forward through time. It is essentially a volunteer program for parks and a means for folks to perform community service initiatives. Folks do, however, take ownership of spaces, etc. We do have a lot of folks who take care of items within parks."