Wythogan Park Still Closed; Contractors To Begin Cleanup Next Week

Posted on Author WKVI

Wythogan Park in Knox is still closed as work remains underway to clear the debris and remove precariously-balanced branches dangerously dangling overhead. Park Superintendent George Byer told the city council this week that the contractor who has been hired to do a lot of the clearing will begin on Monday.

Despite Monday, Sept. 3 being a holiday, Byer says the contractor is anxious to get started on the cleanup. The walkway has been cleared and a very large amount of branches, limbs, logs, and other wood has already been hauled out, but they’ve got a long way to go.

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Wythogan Park Still Closed – Mayor Urges Residents To Stay Away

Posted on Author WKVI
Knox Mayor Rick Chambers

Knox Mayor Rick Chambers would like to remind all residents that Wythogan Park is still closed while cleanup crews continue efforts to remove branches, limbs, debris, and other items strewn about and destroyed from the July storms.

Chambers says the park is closed until further notice, but he’s hopeful that it will open toward the end of September. He says the council is hoping to let a contract this week for the cleanup work, but the contractors have indicated that it would take roughly four to six weeks after the bid is awarded before the cleanup can be completed.

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Clean-Up Continues In Wythogan Park

Posted on Author WKVI
This is just an example of the devastation at Wythogan Park.

Knox Park Board President Kurt Snearly says Wythogan Park is still closed to the general public, but loggers and tree service professionals will soon be hired to help clean up the hundreds of trees, branches and limbs that littered the park after a huge storm rolled through Knox on July 24.

Snearly says the park employees are doing their best to clean up as much as possible and progress has been made. Loose branches are still hanging from atop many mangled trees and until those are taken care of, the park will remain closed.

Knox Mayor Rick Chambers is working on getting quotes for clean-up and removal of debris.

Wythogan Park Still Too Dangerous For Visitors

Posted on Author WKVI
Many branches like this one are dangling dangerously above, presenting a serious hazard to visitors.

Uprooted trees, downed power lines, fences torn asunder – this is just some of the damage at Wythogan Park in the wake of the July 24 storms.

The park has been closed as a result of the devastation, and Park Superintendent George Byer urges residents to stay away. He says the risk of injury is too great to enter the park, because there are a lot of branches dangling by a thread that could fall at any moment.

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Harvest Fest to Be Moved From Devastated Wythogan Park

Posted on Author WKVI
Wythogan Park suffered a lot of damage from the storms.

Park crews continue to clean up after last week’s storms that caused damage to Wythogan Park as well as the Starke County Airport, the Starke County Courthouse, and the Starke County Sheriff’s Department dispatch tower.

There is such destruction at the park that Knox Park Board President Kurt Snearly says the Harvest Fest will need to be moved elsewhere.

“We met with the Harvest Festival Committee Chairman, Michelle Bechtel, and she had as much concern about holding it in the park as we did,” explained Snearly. “Due to safety concerns, we’re just not so sure we can even have it at the park.”

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Wythogan Park Suffers Extreme Damage From Storms

Posted on Author WKVI
The 70 mph winds bent this tree in half and uprooted others.

Wythogan Park sustained an extreme amount of damage during Tuesday morning’s storms. Park Board President Kurt Snearly talks about the destruction.

“We had six utility poles that had to be replaced and NIPSCO did a fantastic job,” explained Snearly. “They worked extremely hard for four straight days to get that cleaned up. There was fencing damage to the tennis court and our brand new $12,000 slide was damaged. The playground equipment like the spring toys, the curly slide, the climbing equipment and swings were all damaged. The shelters and fields did make it…somehow. The amount of trees that are down in the park right now is staggering.”

The three-man park crew have been cleaning up the smaller debris, but it’s going to take much more to clean-up the park.

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WWII Reenactment To Take Place June 9 and 10

Posted on Author WKVI

If you hear gunfire near Wythogan Park in Knox on June 9 and 10, don’t be alarmed– it’s merely World War Two happening all over again.

A WWII reenactment is being hosted by the US 1st Infantry Division, known as the “Big Red One,” a part of the World War Two Historical Re-Enactment Society. The sounds of battle will be heard coming from Wythogan Park, where the re-enactors will try to offer visitors a feel of what this exciting period of history must have been like. The re-enactors are collectors and serious students of history, representing several different nationalities who will try to dress, equip, and conduct themselves in proper 1944 manner.

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Notes from the WKVI News Desk

Posted on Author WKVI

Knox Park Superintendent, George Byer, announced this week that Wythogan and Sandy Acres parks have opened. The swings will be up by next week and the water will be turned on in the next few days. Byer said everything will be ready for the children during spring break.

WKVI Radio has learned that a former resident of Knox, Helen Sands, has passed away in San Antonio, Texas. She had resided near her son Larry for a number of years. Helen Sands, in the early days of WKVI Radio, was a frequent guest on the night-time music shows and she shared her record collection. She was at one time an employee of the Starke County Highway Department. A memorial service is planned for Mrs. Sands next week in Knox.

Debris Removal, Sediment Control Planned for Yellow River in Knox

Posted on Author WKVI

Along with debris clean up along the Yellow River in Knox up to the Marshall County line, Starke County Surveyor Dennis Estok said that more work is planned for the Yellow River.

The projects on the drawing board include sediment control along the Yellow River and work on the Yellow River at Wythogan Park. Last summer, a drowning occurred at the U.S. 35 bridge on the Yellow River, and Estok said that area is really dangerous.

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Wythogan Park to Stay Open until Winter Weather Arrives

Posted on Author WKVI
Wythogan Park

With cooler weather in the air, many people have wondered when Wythogan Park in Knox would be closed.

WKVI News posed that question to George Byer, the Park Superintendent, last week.

“The way things have been going and the way the weather is, we usually do it on a year-to-year basis,” said Byer. “The way it looks, with the Indian Summer that we’ve had here the past week, we’re going to keep the park open until we’re forced to by Mother Nature and the snow. It’ll be open until it gets cold enough to where the water lines may freeze.”

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Knox City Park Crews Stay Busy in October

Posted on Author WKVI
Clarence Marshall and George Byer

Just because it’s October doesn’t mean the Knox City Park crew is idle. Park Superintendent, George Byer, and his assistant, Clarence Marshall, have been working on playground equipment. Maybe your children would enjoy the refurbished spring loaded animal ride on the east side of the park. It’s been refurbished to make it ADA acceptable. One piece of equipment, the handle bars, had to be custom made.

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Bella Vita Pledge Walk Gathers $6,300

Posted on Author WKVI
Bella Vita

The recent Bella Vita pledge walk at Wythogan Park in Knox helped raise $6,385 for the new pregnancy resource center located on Heaton Street.

Rhonda Adcock, President of the organization talked to us about the day.

“We had a really good cross section of our community there,” said Adcock. “We were able to get 88 walkers and we had about 120 people in attendance with all of our helpers and our board members and everyone that was there. We had a great financial turnout and we were able to have the Mayor come and be our Marshall for the walk.”

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Economy Auto Holds Customer Appreciation Day

Posted on Author WKVI
George and Della Mammarella

The annual Economy Auto Sales Customer Appreciation Party was held at Wythogan Park yesterday. In one hour, over 400 hotdogs and 550 hamburgers were served.

There was fun for the kids and giveaways.

“The rain in the morning stopped long enough to have the picnic and it started sprinkling at the end,” said George Mammarella. “I don’t have a final count, but I think we had about 400 people.”

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S.T.E.P.S. for Life Walk this Saturday

Posted on Author WKVI
A ribbon cutting ceremony was recently held at the newly opened Bella Vita

The first annual S.T.E.P.S For Life Walk will be held this Saturday at Wythogan Park in Knox to draw attention to and raise money for the Bella Vita Pregnancy Resource Center. Knox Mayor Rick Chambers will be the Grand Marshal of the walk.

The staff at Bella Vita is attempting to raise funds to keep the Resource Center open more hours per week. Right now they have funding for 18 hours per week until the end of the year. Because of the increased use of the Center, the organizers feel it should be open 40 hours.

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Improvements Continue at Wythogan Park in Knox

Posted on Author WKVI
A crew works on the skate park at Wythogan Park in Knox

“There’s more to come.” That was the word from Knox Park Board member, Rodger Weigel, who was at Wythogan Park when Ted Hayes took a tour last week. New dugouts were recently constructed, and a new curly slide was installed at the park. Improvements are now being made at the skate park.

Weigel said that more improvements are coming.

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New Curly Slide Erected in Wythogan Park

Posted on Author WKVI
New curly slide at Wythogan Park

A generation of kids went down the curly slide in Wythogan Park. Now, the old curly slide has gone the way of many rides that have seen “better days.”

A new slide has been erected.

“We bought a brand new swirl slide that will replace the old one that he had installed on August 2nd, 1977,” said Park Superintendent, George Byer. “This one will be a blessing for us. We wanted new playground equipment so this is going to fall right in place.”

Baugh Construction Erects New Dugouts at Wythogan Park

Posted on Author WKVI
Park Superintendent George Byer, Rodger Weigel, and Jed Baugh

The Knox community is encouraged to give Baugh Construction a big thank you as the owner brought a crew down to Wythogan Park and erected two new dugouts on field number two, at no cost to the Park Board or the City.

Ted Hayes was there Friday afternoon to talk with the owner, Jed Baugh.

“Our kids are in baseball and my oldest boy was probably in it for seven years and somebody said they needed dugouts so we figured we would do them,” said Baugh. “The dugouts are cement block dugouts. We poured a concrete pad to set them on and we’re building benches on the inside. The roof will be trimmed out with cedar trim with a steel pole barn metal on top.”

Baugh Construction’s main focus in the past few years has been siding and exterior work, but as Jed told Ted his crew will tackle just about everything in the construction line.  Jeff Sample donated the metal for the roof.

If you’d like to thank Jed and the crew you can call them at 772-6808.

Another Flooding Incident at the Knox Wastewater Treatment Plant is Not Likely

Posted on Author WKVI
Kelly Clemons

Flood watches remain for several area rivers, including the Yellow River in Knox that flows through Wythogan Park and by the Wastewater Treatment Plant. When the river reached a flood stage of 12 feet one year, the Treatment Plant had flooding issues. Wastewater Superintendent, Kelly Clemons, explained the situation that occurred at the plant at that time:

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