My Turn with Jean Starr

Valparaiso has a greener look to it these days. If you pay attention and maybe walk or bike instead of driving through, you'll notice newly-planted shade trees, swathes of prairie flowers where there once

was boring lawn, and the accompanying liveliness that comes with it.

Steve Martinson, horticulturist for the Valparaiso Parks Department, said the detention basin on Chicago Street east of Roosevelt Road is doing very well. It's the most colorful spot on the landscape right now and you can get to it from Kirchoff Park. It's hard to assign a street address to a park property, but if you start off at Kirchoff, which is east of Roosevelt Road between Beech and East Institute Streets, and go south toward Chicago Street, you can see how the project is progressing. Eventually that path will continue on to Valparaiso University.

Another area in its prime is the Prairie Project on North Campbell Street Bullseye Lake Road near the Parks offices. It's part of Foundation Meadows and benefits by a periodic burn. Stop in at Westside Park, which is between Bogota Street and Westside Park Avenue just south of Joliet Road for another slice of prairie color. Whether or not you

are a golfer, take a ride to Forest Park Golf Course, which was planted

four or five years ago, Martinson said. Forest Park is at 1155 Sheffield

Drive.

Even the downtown area will receive some long term benefits from plants. Martinson and his crew are planting trees along Lincolnway, completing four blocks this year. Trees are all natives that get along well with

heavily-populated areas. They include Hackberry, Coffee tree, Ironwood, swamp white oak, black gum a maples. "It's part of the downtown renovation phase," Martinson said. "The goal is to have a shady shopping area downtown."

If you've avoided the area on Lincolnway in front of City Hall, take another look. After all the construction was completed, Martinson's goal was to put the landscape back and make it look better than it did

before. That's not an easy feat in the heat of mid-summer. We turned it around in just two weeks, he said.

For more information on Valparaiso Parks, stop in at the administrative office, 3210 North Campbell St., or call them at (219) 462-5144.

Go to town on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays for some plants, fresh fruits and vegetables. The Valparaiso Farmer's Market runs from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. three days a week at the corner of Lafayette and Indiana Streets in the city parking lot next to Greek's Pizza.

In case you missed it, Valparaiso has been known for its Popcorn Parade through the downtown area for the past 29 years. This year the Popcorn Festival is from 7 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Sept. 6. For more information, call the Valparaiso Community Festivals & Events office at (219) 464-8332.

The opinions are solely those of the writer.