Improved Ford Nature Center to Reopen on Earth Day

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – With a three-year, $4 million renovation project now complete, Mill Creek Park’s Ford Nature Center will reopen on Earth Day, April 22, with an open house from 10:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The project improved and expanded the center to better serve the community, according to a press release from the park system. It also preserved the historic and physical attributes of the 1913 building.

Reconfiguration and expansion of interior spaces will allow for more public programming and educational opportunities with new interactive exhibits, interchangeable displays and interpretive signage. Accessibility throughout the facility has also been improved, and new public spaces have been added.

The new features within the building include a nature exhibit hall, history room, bird observation room, gift shop, educator offices and new restrooms. 

Outside the building, a rooftop garden with porch seating, native wildflower meadow, outdoor classrooms, amphitheater seating, an improved Axtman Trail for All People, as well as improved parking, and pedestrian/trail facilities have been added. In addition, the adjacent carriage house building has been renovated to include two classrooms.

Published by The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.