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Gateway to Orr Park Gifted to City

Thu, 28 Oct 2021 11:35:41 GMT

Gateway to Orr Park Gifted to the City of Orrville

Community partners and friends gathered at the corner of W High and N Ella on Saturday, October 23 to dedicate the Orr Park Gateway.

“There have been many additions to the park over the years.” remarked Mark Zook, ODF Board member and Gateway Project Manager. “It's kind of unique that after almost a hundred years, we were actually able to add 7 acres in the middle of the park, after the City had already built around it,”

The project, led by the Orrville Development Foundation (ODF), commenced in spring 2019 with the goal of creating an attractive entryway to Orr Park and the Orrville City Schools campus. The Gateway Planning Committee included all adjacent landowners so that everyone was an equal partner in creating a vision for what the entire property would become.

In his opening remarks, Dave Hershey, president, ODF, reflected on how the Gateway Project refocused the organization’s efforts towards meaningful development opportunities for the betterment of the Orrville community.

Lori Reinbolt, ODF Vice President and Secretary, recognized the individuals that participated on the Gateway Planning Committee for the past two years and thanked them for their dedication to seeing the project to completion. The committee included: Mayor, Dave Handwerk, Steve Wheeler, Kristin Endsley, Dan Lowe, Ryan Immel, John Scott, Paul Vance, CJ Handwerk, Jon Ritchie, Maribeth Burns and Kyle Zook. M Zook was recognized for his leadership as project manager.

Research of Orr Park’s historical timeline was credited to Nicole LaFlamme, Heritage and Creative Assets Manager, The J.M. Smucker Company (JMS) and Elizabeth Wagner, Orrville Historical Society. Niko Elenchevski, Graphic Designer, JMS, volunteered his talents to design the six historical markers that line the walkway.

Funding for the walkway was provided by the Carl E. Congdon, Jr. and Susanna Congdon McIntyre Memorial Fund at the Wayne County Community Foundation and designated funds from the ODF.

“It is fitting that the grant for this project came from the Congdon Fund, because Carl Congdon was the great-great-grandson of Judge Smith Orr, founder of the City of Orrville, for whom the park is named,” noted Sally Patton, Executive Director, WCCF. “In addition, Carl’s mother Maud and her sister, Charlotte Chamberlin, donated the initial 15 acres of park land in 1921.”

Zook acknowledged the many local vendors that contributed their services, most notably his son, Kyle, who volunteered his architectural skills and worked with the committee to develop a vision for the property.

Kyle explained that the horizontal pavers, darker in the middle of the walkway and lighter on the edge, were selected to reflect Orrville’s railroad heritage. Corten steel, the material used to craft the large Orr Park signpost and the smaller historical markers, was actually used in the 1930’s to build railroad cars.

The dedication concluded with a ribbon cutting to officially hand off the property from the ODF as a gift to the City of Orrville.

Future development on the site between the walkway and the Pickle Ball Courts is yet to be determined but may include a restroom facility, entertainment area and additional Pickle Ball Courts.

The public is invited to visit the Gateway to discover more about the original park commission, the individuals whose foresight to preserve land for the purpose of a community park continues to provide recreational benefit to the Orrville community.

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Orrville Development Foundation officially gifted the Orr Park Gateway to the City of Orrville in a Ribbon Cutting Ceremony on October 23. Members of the planning committee on hand for the celebration included: Lori Reinbolt, Maribeth Burns, Jon Nicole Laflamme, CJ Handwerk, Jon Ritchie, Mayor Dave Handwerk (with scissors), Steve Wheeler, Kyle Zook, Mark Zook and Dave Hershey.

Orr Park Gateway

Mon, 02 Aug 2021 11:31:56 GMT

More Orr Park Enhancements To Come

“Before any project becomes a reality it must exist in the mind of someone,” stated George H. Irvin, one of the seven founders of Orr Park.

Coming Soon signage has been placed at the corner of W High and Ella depicting plans for the Orr Park Gateway. The property, currently owned by Orrville Development Foundation (ODF), Orrville City Schools and the City of Orrville, will soon be developed into a new addition to Orr Park.

“There have been some hints given to the public about the Orr Park Gateway project, but the full scope has not been revealed until now,” stated Lori Reinbolt, Interim Executive Director, ODF. “We are very excited to share our vision for this property with the community.”

In the spring of 2019, the idea for the Orr Park Gateway project started to emerge among the ODF Board of Directors following receipt of a monetary donation to purchase the former Parkview Lanes Bowling Alley property at the corner of W High and Hall to be used to enhance Orr Park. The building was demolished in August, 2019 and the site was transitioned into green space.

The creation of green space improved the property, but that was only the first step. The ODF formed a planning committee with adjoining property owners, City of Orrville and Orrville City Schools to expand the vision for the entire 7 acre property.

The Wayne County Community Foundation (WCCF) awarded the Orrville Development Foundation a generous grant from the Carl E. Congdon, Jr. and Susanna Congdon McIntyre Memorial Fund to assist with the construction of walkways, landscaping, and a special entrance feature.

WCCF Executive Director, Sara Patton, commented: “It is fitting that the grant for this project came from the Congdon Fund, because Carl Congdon was the great-great-grandson of Judge Smith Orr, founder of the City of Orrville, for whom the park is named. In addition, Carl’s mother Maud and her sister, Charlotte Chamberlin, donated the initial 15 acres of park land in 1921.”

Maud and Charlotte were the great granddaughters of Smith Orr, the original owner of the land where Orr Park is located.

The vision for the project will include a paved walkway with benches and historical markers to recognize the founders of Orr Park, Pickle Ball Courts and a new parking lot near the existing ball fields. Funding for these elements has been secured and construction will be seen over the coming months.

“The project has presented a unique opportunity to enhance and expand one of Orrville’s quality features – a central park,” remarked Mark Zook, chair of the Orr Park Gateway Planning Committee. “What makes the project unique is that we are able to actually add acreage to the park that Orrville has built around since 1930 and to honor the original park founders. It’s been a privilege to be part of the collaboration effort between the city, the schools, and Orrville Development Foundation.”

Kyle Zook, an architect working in Cleveland who happens to be a 2011 graduate of Orrville High School, has assisted the planning committee with project design.

“Kyle is incredibly talented,” stated Reinbolt. “We would not have been able to develop such a special space without his vision and expertise. He has given Orrville a very special gift.”

The second phase of development may include restroom facilities near the ball fields, a water spray zone and entertainment pavilion. Funding has been applied for but not yet secured for phase two.

It has been 90 years since the residents of Orrville gathered for the dedication of Orr Park on July 25, 1930. Records of the event state that the older residents considered the occasion the greatest day of its kind in Orrville history. An estimated 10,000 people came form near and far to celebrate.

Plans for the dedication of the new Orr Park Gateway have not yet been determined, but the hope is to hold a special celebration for the completion of phase one in the summer of 2021.

A History of Orr Park

Wed, 07 Jul 2021 11:26:59 GMT

“Before any project becomes a reality it must exist in the mind of someone.”

George H. Irvin, Orr Park Dedication, 1930

In 1909, Orrville founder, Judge Smith Orr, signed over four acres of land to the Village for the purpose of digging a well and building a pumping station to supply water to the town. Over one hundred years later, the site still provides refreshing water to Orrville, but of the chlorinated variety. Today residents can swim, splash, and enjoy our community pool. The pool itself has been around since August, 1934, and is one of the many amenities offered by the nearly 70-acre park in the heart of Orrville, Ohio. Orr Park has grown from being just an idea in the mind of someone, to a sprawling recreation space; from humble beginnings of idle farmland, to place to swim, play, watch a ballgame, walk a dog, ride a bike, and admire the scenery.

Next month, the opening of the “Gateway” will mark the newest expansion of park offerings. The newly constructed path leads visitors into the park and the Orrville City Schools campus. The paved path and design elements take cues from our town’s railroad heritage, mimicking the railway ties in the pavers, referencing the steel of rails and spikes. Dotting the path are signs that relay the park’s growth since 1909. As with every advancement of Orr Park, the completed Gateway project involved members of our community. The efforts of the Orrville Development Foundation, the City of Orrville, Orrville City Schools, the Wayne County Community Foundation, the George T. Dunlap Foundation, local corporate sponsorship, and the volunteer efforts of Kyle W. Zook, architect, and The J.M. Smucker Company’s Creative + Design team have culminated in the completion of the Gateway project.

Orr Park was officially underway in 1920, when the mayor selected George H. Irvin, William H. Heebsh, J.M. Smucker, and Harvey L. Zimmerman to the Park Board. The Board was later joined by Leroy B. Webner in 1929 when Mr. Irvin stepped down. Each civic-minded individual came from a different avenue of Orrville life. Mr. Irvin, a physician; Heebsh, the editor of the Orrville Courier-Crescent newspaper; J.M. Smucker, owner of a small cannery on the outskirts of town, Zimmerman, local grocer and real estate agent; and lastly, Mr. Webner, of the First National Bank of Orrville. These locals started with an idea…and a budget of $200…and built the foundation of Orr Park.

Irvin penned an article for the Courier-Crescent in 1927, calling on the community for support. He wrote: The greatest pride and asset of our little city is not our Banks or our Merchantile [sic] Houses, nor our Manufacturing establishments, but our BOYS and GIRLS. …They are the future Men and Women of the Community. Every advantage and uplift we can put in their path will equip them better to meet life’s battles.

The park grew from the original four acres to include another tract of three acres on the corner of Elm and High streets, purchased from the Board of Education. A generous donation of additional land grew the park to ten acres. The donation came from the great-granddaughters of Judge Smith Orr, known as the Brenneman sisters, Charlotte Chamberlain and Maud Congdon.

On July 25, 1930, the park, now named Orr’s Park in honor of the Brenneman sisters’ donation, was dedicated to the community. Over ten thousand visitors flocked to the site to enjoy picnics, speeches, contests and entertainment. The Goodyear blimp Vigilant also made an appearance to offer rides to a lucky few. Of historic note, after the stock market crash of 1929, the Orrville community came together during times of severe hardship to provide funds and volunteerism, to continue the Park’s growth all through the Great Depression. This culminated in the opening of the pool in 1934 with CWA labor and the continued efforts of original Park Board member, J.M. Smucker. At Orr Park’s dedication, Irvin stated: “The one man, probably above all others, who is responsible for Orr Park being a reality, is our fellow townsman, J.M. Smucker. He has thought park and talked park, and as a result we are this day to formally dedicate this, the beginning of one of the most beautiful and most useful parks in central Ohio.”

The park expanded northward to encompass Orr Woods in 1943, which was purchased for this purpose by Burt Cope of Will-Burt, a local repair shop, and now the premier manufacturer of mobile telescoping masts, towers, trailer systems, and pan and tilt positioners today. Two other major expansions saw Orr Park grow, as in 1940, Ms. Chamberlain sold another parcel of the former Orr farmland to the city, and in 1992, Chamberlain’s son-in-law donated the 40-acre space that now encompasses the dog park and wetland area. Orrville High School seniors wrote for and obtained a $15,000 grant from the GTE Foundation to build a wetlands east of the school on this land.

Lastly, we have the most recent land donations from the Orrville City Schools as well as the purchase of the former Parkview Lanes bowling alley to complete the Gateway entry to Orr Park. It is not from a single donor or philanthropist that the park became reality, but with the spirit of generosity, community service, and volunteerism that Orr Park was realized.