Holmes park district eager to unleash another natural beauty
The former Holmes County Landfill finally has a new name. The Holmes County Park District recently renamed the area Holmes County's Legacy Point. Providing plenty of scenic views in every direction, the land will soon be open to those who want to experience nature at its finest.
Holmes County is inching toward adding another natural landmark to its growing list of places to visit and enjoy.
During the board meeting held Thursday, July 11 in the Hipp Station Depot office, the board discussed several different projects that will make an impact on its future endeavors.
Among them was what will take place in the near future on the former Holmes County Landfill, which now has an official name that is quite a bit more pleasant sounding.
“It’s going to be Holmes County’s Legacy Point,” said Jen Halverson, Holmes County Park District director.
She said the board settled on the name after collaborating with volunteers and taking suggestions from others. They discussed several names but settled on something that defined the area nicely.
Halverson said the natural beauty and serenity of the land and the sheer height of the cap, which allows people to see for miles, factored into the name.
“The cap will be one of the areas people will be drawn to and what it becomes known for,” Halverson said. “So we were looking for words like peak or point and creating a legacy, something that used to be one thing that we turned into something new that hopefully for generations we’ll be able to enjoy.”
Halverson said the park district has been working whenever possible to continue the effort to create primitive trails, of which she said there is about 1 1/2 miles thus far that meanders around the park. The walking paths will be mainly dirt with some mulch mixed in, providing a delineation of where people should walk.
“We’ve done a lot of work out there. If you combine that with the driveway that already exists that goes around the cap, which is another nice loop for people, we’re getting close to opening that up for the public,” Halverson said.
She said they now have signs made to notify people when they can enjoy exploring the grounds, what times they can be on the grounds, where they can go and what they can do while they are there.
The park district also is preparing a trail leading up to the top of the cap that will allow people to climb to the summit of the property, something Halverson said will need approval from the Ohio EPA.
“We can do that as long as it’s foot traffic,” Halverson said. “I think they want to hear from us one more time.”
Halverson said they are moving forward toward a late-summer opening to the park, although they aren’t yet set to make any official date until the Ohio EPA has its final say.
She also said they have several groups who continue to volunteer to come to the park area to continue to do work. Eventually, once Holmes County’s Legacy Point is open to the public, it will serve as a natural site for nature lovers to enjoy and for walkers and bird watchers to utilize.
Once open, Legacy Point will be open from dawn to dusk, although Halverson said they will create special evenings for those who enjoy star gazing for when the heavens put on special shows like meteor showers.
The board is excited about bringing yet another beautiful addition to the Holmes County Trail and their other natural settings, which have helped draw many people to the county while providing places for locals to enjoy.