The Roselawn Community Council Beautification Committee works to elevate the
aesthetic appearance of the neighborhood for the enjoyment of our residents and
visitors. Our efforts, which often incorporate a pro-active environmental
stance, are financed through NSP funds, donations, grant awards, and city
programs like Urban Forestry's Spring ReLeaf. We also interact with City
institutions like Urban Forestry, the Cincinnati Recreation Commission (CRC),
and Keep Cincinnati Beautiful (KCB) to utilize their Resources and contribute
to their effectiveness in our neighborhood.
There are three primary community gardening sites in Roselawn. Our goal at
these sites is to create "warm and welcoming spots" in the neighborhood.
-
Travelers on the Reading Road corridor, whether in vehicles or at the bus stop,
get a bit of visual respite from the garden at Reading and Summit.
Colorful perennials and annuals complement the laid stone wall and the anchor
plantings there.
-
Wisteria sinensis (Summer 2000) and Zephirine Drouhin (Spring 2003) climbing
roses complement the handsome gray stone structures at The Arches at
Reading and Rosecliff, the gateway to the Garden District.
Hundreds of daffodils and Spanish bluebells planted in 1999 create quite a stir
there each spring. The pale pink rambling rose on the north side, a Dr. W. van
Fleet, was donated by neighborhood rosarian, William Melvin. Squirrels and
birds feed at the Victorian gazebo birdfeeder (Fall 2000) throughout the fall
and winter months. A designer bench provides a nice spot to rest, or play "Wave
and Honk" with traffic on Reading Road.
-
The Eastlawn Garden represents a complete restyling of the
Eastlawn Drive entrance to Roselawn Park. In Summer 2001 a Neighbor Network
Merit Grant provided funds to purchase boxwoods and spring bulbs, and materials
to renovate three ipe wood benches. Paul Probst served as master craftsman for
the bench renovation. Additional work was done during the installation of the
1000 Hands Playground in May 2002. Enjoy a cup of coffee and the paper, or
conversation with a friend, year round, while taking in one of two views:
tree-lined Eastlawn Drive, or the Park ball fields and 1000 Hands Playground.
Tree investments are a focal interest of the Beautification Committee. Each
year the Cincinnati Park Board offers trees to residents and communities
through the Spring ReLeaf Program. Through this program, and our ongoing
relationship with Cincinnati Park Board, we have acquired many trees for
Roselawn Park: three (3) Kousa dogwood and twenty-one (21) flowering crabs in
Spring 2001, seven Hedge Maples and two (2) magnolias in Spring 2002, and eight
(8) Redbuds, representing an estimated value of $2500. In Fall 2001 we
inaugurated an annual Tree Recognition Program at the Park with the
installation of a Flowering Pear honoring Caryl Cooley Fullman, longtime
Roselawn resident and activist. Roselawn's "Bobby Stern tree" is also planted
in Roselawn Park.
Many of our grant-writing initiatives promote environmental awareness in the
neighborhood. We participate annually in a community competition sponsored by
KCB and United Dairy Farmers (UDF). Our winning entries have been:
Spring 2000: Compost Bins installed at
The Arches
Spring 2001: Purple Martin House at
Roselawn Park*
Spring 2002: Bluebird Trail at
Roselawn Park*
Spring 2003: Brass Placards for
Designer Park Benches
*Phases 1 and 2
of the Natural Insect Control Initiative at Roselawn Park
CRC staff installed eighteen trees representing four species (Bur oak, Winter
King hawthorn, Purple Autumn mountain ash, and Robinson crabapple) in the
islands of the new Seymour Avenue parking lot at Roselawn Park in December 2003
utilizing $1000 from the 2003 Neighbor Network Merit Grant, and $800 in
accumulated prize monies from Beautification grants. The species and layout
recommended by Kurt Kastner, Urban Forester, incorporate diversity into the
tree stock at Roselawn Park.
In Fall 2002 KCB allowed the RCC to participate in the Educator's Pool for a
$500 award to fund a juried Park Bench Design Competition. Our winning proposal
promotes public awareness of the Urban Forest (city trees), by mounting a
design competition that engaged a partnership between the RCC, KCB, Urban
Forestry, CRC, and students and faculty at UC's College of Design, Art,
Architecture and Planning. A donation of "urban timber" from Urban Forestry
enabled the students to execute their designs. One of the benches, a
traditional design by Ben Meyer, is installed at The Arches where Roselawn
residents enjoy it on a regular basis. The City of Cincinnati installed a
contemporary two-piece design by Nathan Sunderhaus at the southwest corner of
Reading and Section on December 23, 2003. Other designs are installed at
Roselawn Park, and at various sites within the City of Cincinnati. This project
was featured in the Tempo section of The Cincinnati Enquirer. (http://www.enquirer.com/editions/2003/10/25/tem_tempo2lede25.html)
To propose a candidate for recognition in the Tree Recognition Program, or for
additional information on Beautification efforts in our neighborhood, please
inquire through this website or by telephone to the Community Council office
answering machine, 513-821-8918.