March 28, 2018
Bringing the prairie to O’Fallon New O’Day Park will focus on natural environments in partnership between the city of O’Fallon and the Missouri Department of Conservation
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By Brett Auten A city just shy of 100,000 residents will have an exclusive destination to immerse yourself in nature. The city of O’Fallon has secured the funding and have begun the development of a new 55-acre addition to its park system. Located on the north side of Highway DD just one mile west of Interstate 64, the new park will be called O’Day Park keeping the namesake of O’Day Creek, a small creek that flows through the property. O’Fallon’s plan to provide O’Day Park – which is slated to open in 2019 - with natural meadows and wildflower areas received a significant boost recently from the Missouri Department of Conservation, which notified the city that it would receive a Community Conservation Grant Program matching grant of $30,000 for the O’Day Park Prairie Reconstruction project. “It is going to take a lot of work to make it look natural,” Bob Deardeuff, O’Fallon’s Landscape Division Manager said. “A lot of the credit goes to the MDC grant. Its support is the reason we will get it done correctly, and we will get it done right on the first attempt.” The grant calls for the city to control invasive species in the project area; seed at least eight acres in O’Day Park with native grasses and plants, develop and implement a 15-year, and long-term management plan to maintain habitat improvements. For its part, O’Fallon will provide $27,000 in matching funds or inkind assistance to acquire or rent specialized equipment, pay salaries and provide other ex-
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Business Premium Plastics recognized as first business user of manufacturing apprentice grant. Pg. 10 Photos courtesy Dan Zarlenga O’Day Park in O’Fallon will feature a prairie reconstruction project that will be seeded with native wildflowers like these coneflowers at the Busch Conservation Area.
penses to support the project. According to MDC Community Forester Danny Moncheski, the au naturel park model has proven to work in St. Charles County with educational setups at Broemmelsiek and Quail Ridge. “It is becoming more of a realization that urban areas can be for conservation,” Mocheski said. “We can create it in our backyards.” Both Deardeuff and Mocheski heaped praise upon Erin Shank, an MDC Community Conservation Grant Coordinator, for her
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involvement in making the grant a reality. The plan is in place to turn O’Day Park into something unlike any other in the O’Fallon parks and recreation system. O’Day Park will stay away from the human footprint as much as possible. The park will See ‘PRAIRIE’ page 2
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