Parks and Recreation Department Recognized by NACPRO

The National Association of County Park and Recreation Officials (NACPRO) is an affiliate of both the National Association of Counties (NACo) and the National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA).  Two Palm Beach County parks and the department’s director recently won awards.

Director Earns Lifetime Achievement Award

Parks and Recreation Director Dennis Eshleman was selected as the recipient of this year’s NACPRO Professional Lifetime Achievement Award. Eshleman will retire from the county this September. He was selected for this national award based on his many accomplishments over the course of a career spanning 35 years.

When Eshleman joined the Department of Parks and Recreation, a population explosion was occurring in South Florida, and communities were rapidly expanding westward beyond the boundaries of city services. Residents looked to county government to meet ever-increasing park and leisure service demands.

Fifty-eight park properties were added to the county’s park system (4,007 acres) while Eshleman served as director.  Over 2,790 acres of parkland were developed. Seven additional beach properties were acquired when rapid urban development threatened public beach access.

The county’s park system also reflects the leisure needs unique to our community and includes waterparks, splashparks, The Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens, amphitheaters, dog parks and equestrian centers.  The county’s park system consists of more than 80 parks totalling over 8,000 acres.

Riverbend Park Wins Environmental Award

Riverbend Park gained national recognition as the recipient of this year’s NACPRO Environ-mental/Conservation Award.  This award program is presented to recognize an exceptional effort to acquire, restore, preserve, operate, or develop unique and significant conservation and natural areas and programs. Winning entries serve as a model to be shared with parks and recreation departments across the country.

Riverbend Park represents the culmination of a successful 32-year restoration and preservation effort of 684 acres of historically and environmentally significant land here in our densely populated region of South Florida.  Unique partnerships with local, state and federal agencies, a coordination of resources, and extensive community input led to the successful development and protection of this extraordinary park.  This effort successfully met its environmental restoration objectives, preserved the property as a regional county park, and ensures public access to it for compatible, passive recreation and for environmental and historic education for years to come. 

There were areas in the park that were literally covered by invasive species, but today, there is little evidence of these plant species that had once overtaken this picturesque property.  With its restored waterways, native revegetation, and the many species of native wildlife that now make Riverbend their home, the park serves as the only surviving example of a subtropical cypress forest river system remaining in Florida.  Riverbend has become the connecting hub of larger trail systems, such as the Florida Trail, the Northeast Everglades Natural Area, and the Ocean-to-Lake Trail. Visitors enjoy canoeing/kayaking, picnicking, hiking, and scenic biking and equestrian trails.

Riverbend is now recognized as a significant cultural and historical resource for our community. The site of two Seminole Indian War battles fought at this location in 1838 has been preserved, and tours are regularly offered. Special events and demonstrations provide a unique living history experience in the authentically constructed Seminole Village and Pioneer Homestead.

South County Regional Park Wins Facility Award

The South County Regional Park received this year’s NACPRO Park and Recreation Facility Award.  This award program recognizes and honors excellence in recreation and park facilities and is designed to focus national attention on the very best of facility design. The award is designed to showcase and encourage outstanding efforts in planning, design, construction, and benefits to the community.

South County Regional Park got its start during South Florida’s population explosion 35 years ago. The new park was slated to be the primary provider of recreation services for that vast, growing region. Over the years, Palm Beach County worked closely with the West Boca Community Council to ensure the park would reflect the recreational needs of western county residents.

Today, South County Regional Park encompasses 848 acres. Sunset Cove, an outdoor amphitheater with spectacular lakeside views, offers 4th of July celebrations, live theater, and national acts such as Zac Brown and Willie Nelson. Affordable Coconut Cove Waterpark, Daggerwing Nature Center, athletic fields, a racquet center, and Canine Cove Dog Park ensure there’s something for everyone. 

The park also includes accessible playgrounds, a bike trail, a freshwater boat ramp, picnic opportunities, and more. A nationally-renowned waterski school draws athletes from all over the world. South County Regional Park, ideally suited for large crowds, has also become a popular location for walk-a-thons and other community fund-raising events.

With the completion this fall of Osprey Point, a new 27-hole golf course enrolled in the Audubon International Classic Signature Golf Course program, this extraordinary regional park begun in 1975 is a tribute to all who helped make it a reality.

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Emergency Management Welcomes New Director

 

The Division of Emergency Management’s new director, Bill Johnson, brings many years of expertise to his new position. 

 

Prior to joining Palm Beach County, Johnson worked for two years as the assistant director of the Broward County Emergency Management Division where he was instrumental in reconfiguring the entire emergency management program to become more “ICS-centric;” both physically and procedurally.  Projects under his leadership included a major redraft of the county’s Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan.  Before working with Broward County, he served for three years as a consultant. 

 

Johnson was also the director of the Emergency Management Program for the Florida market for URS Corporation.  Prior to that, he served as the assistant director for the Miami-Dade County Office of Emergency Management (OEM) for nearly 11 years.  Some of his key accomplishments with OEM included designing its current state-of-the-art emergency operations center and deployment to several major disasters including to New York City to assist with incident command after 9/11. 

 

Before his emergency management career, Johnson worked as a flight nurse/medic and as the director of a Level II trauma center in Wisconsin.  He is a registered nurse, certified paramedic and certified emergency manager.

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Landscaping Tip:  Proper Tree Pruning for Summer

 

Is your goal to prevent wind damage in your home landscape?  One way to prepare your yard is to properly prune overgrown or neglected trees.  A tree that could fall on your roof or car or the neighbor’s fence can possibly fall during a windstorm.  Examine each tree carefully for dead or diseased branches.  These branches can easily break off in slight winds and should be properly pruned off.

 

You should also look for large branches growing out of the trunk that are very narrowly attached.  These v-crotches are branches that have minimal attachment to the main trunk and can grow to push each other apart, causing the trunk to split at that connection.  These narrowly attached branches should be removed early while they are still relatively small.  Proper pruning encourages trees to grow with strong branch structure.

 

If you would like more information on proper pruning, call the hotline at 233-1750 or visit the Cooperative Extension Service Master Gardener Help Desk at 531 North Military Trail, West Palm Beach and  pick up the University of Florida publication “Pruning of Landscape Trees and Shrubs.”  You can stop by the Cooperative Extension weekdays from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., or visit http://www.pbcgov.com/coextension.

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Consumer Trap & Tip:  Swimming Pool Maintenance and Repair 

Trap

 

Joe’s kids have been waiting for the warm weather to jump into the backyard pool. Because of lack of use during the cooler months, the pool looked green and in need of attention.  Joe heard his neighbors talk about the high cost of pool service contracts and problems with unnecessary repairs.  Should he do the job himself or is he better off hiring a professional?

 

Tips

Before you hire a pool maintenance company, consider these tips:

·      Pools require routine maintenance. The water should be tested regularly, chemicals added, pool vacuumed, filters cleaned, fittings inspected for leaks and the pump operation checked.

·      Pool maintenance and repair contractors are certified to maintain and treat the water in your swimming pool, spa or hot tub. They can also make minor repairs to existing pool masonry and perform preventive maintenance on equipment such as filters and chlorinators. To confirm a contractor is certified, call the Palm Beach County Contractors Certification Division at 561-233-5530 or visit http://www.pbcgov.com/pzb/Contractors.

·      If you decide to have a certified pool maintenance company provide the service, get at least three quotes for the work (one time or on a regularly scheduled basis) and ask for the quote in writing.

·      Retail stores specializing in pool supplies have the products necessary to keep your pool in top-notch swimming condition and are often willing to guide you through the steps. Many will test your pool water for free.

For more information, contact Consumer Affairs at 561-712-6600 (Boca/Delray 888-852-7362 toll free) or check consumer complaints against pool contractors by visiting http://www.pbcgov.com/consumer.

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Bromeliad Workshop at Mounts Botanical Garden

This workshop is for beginner and advanced bromeliad growers to discover the many bromeliads that grow so well in South Florida.  Representatives from the Boca Raton Bromeliad Society will identify the variations that thrive in the sunny, shady and other challenging areas of your Florida garden. 

 

Tips on the best bromeliad growing, culture-water, light requirements, pests and fertilizing will be explained using live plants.  Rare and hard to find varieties will be offered for purchase at the end of the workshop.

 

 

When:         Saturday, July 17, 9 a.m. to noon

Fee:            members $30; nonmembers $40

Where:        Mounts Auditorium, 559 N. Military Trail, West Palm Beach, 33415                              

 

For more information, visit www.mounts.org or call 233-1759.

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