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Nicholas J. Pirro, County Executive - Robert Geraci, Commissioner
Pratt's Falls

Wegmans Ups Investment in Onondaga Lake Park

On Thursday, October 9, 2008 County Executive Joanie Mahoney announced that the primary entry and activity section of Onondaga Lake Park in Liverpool has been officially named Wegmans Landing.

Mahoney thanked Wegmans for their continuation of the Parks department's most significant sponsorship program. "This $1.5 million, ten year investment has provided the embellishments which have transformed the "Central Park of Central New York" into a resort-like attraction. Over 1.3 million visitors a year partake of wonderful, primarily free recreational services courtesy of Wegmans and Onondaga County."

Wegmans Landing encompasses approximately ten acres of the the area which previously was Griffin Stadium, with elements on the grounds including two ballfields, the Onondaga Lake Park Skatepark, Wegmans Boundless Playground, sports courts, the Joseph A. Griffin Visitor Center, trails and waterfront.

County Executive Joanie Mahoney announces $1.5 million donation from Wegmans

Onondaga County Lifeguards Best in the State!

Onondaga County Parks' lifeguards won the 40th annual New York State Lifeguard Competition held at Green Lakes State Park on August 5, 2008, winning the two-guard rescue with CPR event and scoring enough points in five others to claim the title over 17 other teams from across the state.

Brothers Dan Liddell and Connor Liddell, lifeguards at Jamesville Beach County Park, and Kayla Ehle, a lifeguard at Oneida Shores County Park, comprised Onondaga's winning team.

Chenango Valley State Park won second place and Delta Lake State Park came in third at the competition, which took place Tuesday at Green Lakes State Park in Manlius.

If you are interested in joining our award winning team of lifeguards next year, call Jamesville Beach at 435-5252 or Oneida Shores at 676-7366. Lifeguard certification is required.

Zoo elephant Mali gives birth in Canada             Mom Mali, grandmother Targa and baby Chuck at the African Lion Safari in Cambridge, Ontario. Chuck weighed 235 pounds at birth and was 34 inches tall.

Mali, the Asian elephant on loan from the Rosamond Gifford Zoo, has given birth in Canada to the first third-generation calf born in North America, zoo officials said Tuesday.

The 235-pound male was born July 15 at the African Lion Safari in Cambridge, Ontario, home to North America's most successful Asian elephant breeding program, with more second-generation captive births than any other North American institution. The calf is the 12th elephant born at African Lion Safari since 1991.

The Rosamond Gifford Zoo in Syracuse has had five successful births of its own and is considered one of the top breeding programs. Asian elephants are an endangered species in the wild, where only about 52,000 remain.

It was the first calf for the 11-year-old Mali and the fourth for the father, Rex, said Lorrell Walter, a spokeswoman for the Syracuse zoo.

Zoo officials in Canada named the calf "Chuck," after Chuck Doyle, the director of the Syracuse zoo and a longtime elephant handler who was instrumental in the success of the Rosamond Gifford breeding program, Walter said.

Mali, and her mother, Targa, have been out on loan to the African Lion Safari since May 2006. The pair was relocated to give them more space and to allow Mali to begin breeding.

African Lion Safari is a drive-thru wildlife park that is home to over 1,000 birds and animals that roam freely throughout large game reserves. The park now has 16 elephants in its herd.

-by the Associated Press

 

Parks Beautification Plantings at Oneida Shores Park

Onondaga County Parks officials joined volunteer CommuniTree stewards in the beach area of Oneida Shores Park on Saturday, May 31 to take the next steps in the Park Beautification plantings. Designed to assure gateway and highly visited areas of the County have optimal first impressions upon residents and visitors, this special 2008 initiative of the Onondaga County Legislature is focusing upon Oneida Shores Park and Onondaga Lake Park. Under the guidance of Cornell Cooperative Extension, select flower beds walkways, signed areas and building fronts are being accented with a combination of mulching, colorful annuals, perennials and trees.

Group planting at Oneida Shores Park         Legislature Chair Bill Meyer & Carol Bradford of the CommuniTree Stewards

                                                                               

What's Next...Parks for Tomorrow II...

Parks for Tomorrow is the theme for early 21st century investments in the Onondaga County Parks system, with Phase II addressing improvements to six properties and highlighted by upgrades to visitor and animal features of the Rosamond Gifford Zoo. The Legislature approved five of the six projects in late 2007, with nearly $2.3 million of grant support offsetting a portion of the $12 million venture.

             

The Zoo will see pedestrian friendly repairs made to a courtyard worn by twenty years of steady use, Primate Island reclaimed into an exciting display with a rotating variety of monkeys, and the elephant facilities upgraded to assure our stature as one of the world’s premier pachyderm breeding institutions.

             

Investments in Oneida Shores roadways, parking areas, boat launch amenities including fishing tournament docking and restrooms, plus the adjacent campgrounds, will assure enjoyment by anglers, with beach goers and Arrowhead Lodge customers receiving greater value through playground equipment and landscaping upgrades in their respective activity areas.

             

Lodges in the forest parks are in high demand.  Camp Brockway at Pratt’s Falls, a circa 1949 building, needs drainage, masonry, and kitchen repairs.  In addition, WPA era infrastructure along the North Rim Trail will be repaired from storm damages. Highland Forest’s modern Skyline Lodge, one of the jewels of Parks for Tomorrow I, needs to be landscaped to provide optimal use for weddings and large group functions.

             

Onondaga Lake Park will benefit from renovations and expansion at colorful Wegmans Playground and continued repair of the crumbling Griffin Stadium columns.  The sold-out public marina will be modernized and expanded so that access to the rejuvenated waters of Onondaga Lake can be further enjoyed by residents, an exploding market of bass fishermen, and Erie Canalway transient boaters.

 

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