The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1913-08-22

PROVIDE FOR PARKS NOW
Secure Sites While AvaiIable-Small
Expenditure Will Make the City
Beautiful.
Prof. Aubrey Tealdi, head of the de-
partment of landscape gardening and
forestry of the University of Michigan,
made his second visit to Owosso on
Monday and talked most entertainingly
upon the subject of parks, trees, streets
and other things which go to make for
the happiness of the people and i'm
prove the appearance of the city. He
started by complimenting the city up
on its many beautiful shade trees, it's
well kept streets and the neatness about
the homes; too many trees in some in
stances had kept the trees from grow
ing into their natural shape. vet
as whole few citiss have as splendid
trees as Owosso. He urged the plant.
ing of more trees in the newer parts of
the city and to replace those which
have died. Strong commendation was
given the plan of placing the curbs in
the residence sections out sufficient
distance from the lot line to make a
wide parking, this giving better op.
portunity for the trees to grow, beside
providing space for laws, flower beds or
shrubs as desired, narrowing the road
way proper to "a feet or less doing
away with much of the dust and the
unsightlv growth of weeds too often
seen. While he judged considerable
spirit of civic pride had already been
aroused in Owosso, Prof. -Tealdi urged
that the children be impressed from
their youth up with the idea that they
could do part in making the home
yards and home surrt undings and thus
the city more attractive.
Taking up the subject of parks he
told briefly what had been done and
was being done in other cities to pro-
vide parks for the enjoyment of all the
people. Owosso, he said, had splendid
opportunities along this line if action
was taken before the desirable sites
now available were disposed of for
other purposes. After having driven
oyer part of the city he gave it as bis
opinion that as much land along the
river through the city north to the
Oliver street woods as possible should
be purchased, get the land if it is not
more than l6 or 20 feet wide and plant
trees and shrubs on the banks and pro
vide space for walks, ending with a
small park in the woods; then there is
the old brick yark in the south part of
the city which could be transformed in
to beauty spot at a small outlay; in
the Emerson school woods Owosso al
ready has a natural park, and it would
almost be crime to see the land used
for anything but park purposes. Get
the land while you can, make improve
ments from time to time and within a
few years Owosso would be proud of
her work in this direction. For more
than an hour Prof Tealdi interested his
hearers and then asked for an informal
discussion upon what he had said,
which quickly resulted in his being
asked many questions as to how the
Frieseke brick yard property could be
utilized, whether it would be possible
to provide small artificial pond which
could be kept free from stagnation,
what would have to be done to protect
the banks, to provide space for the
planting of trees about its borders, etc !;
whether he would recommend park
ing in the center Of Washington street
north of Oliver to King to provide room
for flowers, shrubs. etc. AS a result of
the questions. Prof. Tealdi said he was
sufficiently interested to promise to
send later in the season two or more of
his students to make preliminary sur
vey of the brick yard and some of the
other property and that he would then
work out plan which would give sug-
gestions for identifying these places.
the parking it was his opin.
ion that wide parking along the sides
of the street was better than that in the
middle Of the street.
The one thing to be regretted is that
more persons were not present to hear
Prof. Tealdi and several suggested a
large evening meeting early in the fall
to give him an opportunity to talk to
everyone in the city interested in i'm
proving the city along the lines dis
cussed.