North Fork History Park Planning Underway
Park Service Assistance Program Will Help Local Groups
NORTH FORK, CA – On September 16th, landscape architects from the National Park Service made a site visit to North Fork. They conducted a workshop at the Community Development Council (CDC) office to plan the construction of the Old Mill History Park in North Fork, California.
The National Park Service “Rivers, Trails and Conservation Assistance” (RTCA) team, local organizations, and community members participated in the planning event, site visit, and workshop. The purpose of the event was to create draft conceptual drawings and cost estimates for the components that will make up the park. The site is located where the three-story lumber mill building stood at today’s CDC property.
The National Park Service team will provide final concept drawings based on the input received and generate costs for components of the History Park. These will be used by the Boosters Club and the North Fork History Group (NFHG) in the near future to apply for construction grants for the park.
The North Fork Boosters Club owns the History Park site and will manage it. The NFHG has been the advocate and docent for the site for over 20 years and has an agreement with the Boosters to assist them in developing the park. In addition to the two landscape architects from the National Park Service, Patrick Johnston and Kerry Lankford, nine local community members participated in the event: Cathy Thornburg, Presidents of the Boosters Club; Wade Wheeler, CDC President; Elaine Fink, Mono Rancheria Tribal Council member; Katrina Brown, Mono Rancheria Executive Assistant; Fred Fasel, Fasel Construction; Richard & Jenny Pearson, Connie Popelish, & Michael Olwyler, North Fork History Group.
The CDC took over ownership of the 135-acre sawmill site in 1996. In public meetings held over the next few years, participants identified many possibilities for the site. The most common suggestion by participants in public meetings was to memorialize the lumber mill in some way, so that the community can remember its history and attract tourism to the area.
When the mill closed and was subsequently demolished, the two large saws were left in place, serving as a visually striking monument to that history, which will be integrated into the park’s design.
The NPS RTCA program supports community-led natural resource conservation and outdoor recreation projects nationwide. RTCA assists communities and public land managers in developing or restoring parks, conservation areas, rivers, and wildlife habitats, as well as creating outdoor recreation opportunities and programs that engage future generations in the outdoors.
The grant for technical assistance was a boon to the community. Progress from the site visit will help launch the next step in the construction of the history park and achieve what the community has been advocating for: to be remembered for its history.
