BRUNSWICK – The Medina County Park district is expected to unveil its long-term plans for Brunswick Lake Park in early 2019, park district officials announced last month.

After the city agreed to lease the park to the MCPD for a period of 25 years in early 2018, park district Director Nate Eppink told city council this month that the county has been working steadily to finalize its master plan for the park, which is expected to include a number of amenities requested by the Brunswick community.

The park district’s planning department is in the process of finalizing the first draft of the master plan with a goal of presenting it to City Council and the administration for review in early 2019.

Eppink said the community can expect the plan to include one of its most sought-after requests – a link that will connect Brunswick Lake Park to Plum Creek Park Creek Parkway.

“We also hope to have many more good things in store for the community,” Eppink said.

As part of a series of meetings conducted last spring with the help of a community ad-hoc committee, Eppink said the park district has been considering recommendations brought forward by residents. Among those requests, he said, are fishing piers, public restrooms, boat and canoe ramps and possibly even a dock that can be used as a stage for special events.

“Our goal is to look at what is possible,” City Manager Carl DeForest said as part of the ad-hoc committee’s discussions. “This is already a great park and we want to maintain its viability and make it a great place for years to come.”

In addition to recommending a variety of adventure programming, which includes kayaking, fishing and kite flying classes, as well as new nature programming, including night hikes, astronomy classes, tree identification classes and even day camps, the committee also developed a list of capital improvements needed for the park’s trails.

While extending the trails at the lake to Plum Creek Park was a top request, the committee also suggested installing fitness stations around the trails and even extending the trails north to the recreation center and Brunswick High School and possibly as far as North Park.

The group also suggested several capital improvements be made to the park itself, including fishing platforms, restrooms on each side of the lake, water fountains, more picnic tables, boat ramps and climbing structures and more natural looking playgrounds.

The group also recommended the planting of several trees along the eastern edge of Brunswick Lake and Brunswick Lake Parkway that would be able to function as a separation from Brunswick Town Center.

Once park district’s draft of the plan is unveiled to the city, Law Director Kenneth Fisher said the city and the park district plan to host public hearings on the plan itself.

“It’s important that whatever is done to the park, the community has input in the process,” Fisher said. “This is an important amenity and we want to do everything we can to enhance and preserve it.”