Brunswick's North Park reopens to the public after 15 months

BRUNSWICK — The Brunswick Parks and Recreation Department announced North Park is open again to the public after a 15-month long closure for lake dredging. Dredging is finished, but there will be other projects going on. For instance, Fabrizi Trucking and Paving will make repairs to the driveway and parking lots once the asphalt plants reopen. Parks and Recreation Director Taylor Petkovsek said the repairs were part of the agreement with Fabrizi for the dredging project. North Park lake's southern bank is experiencing erosion. As a result, the parks department stated it will work with the city's Service Department to help control erosion, which will likely comprise putting in big, coarse rocks or concrete along the lake's shoreline. Brunswick intends to manage the cattails along the lake as well. There is a meeting planned for next week to talk about management options. "These include disrupting the root system and applying vegetation-specific sprays, which require favorable ground temperatures and active cattail growth," the parks department stated. The lake will also be restocked with fish. The parks department is planning on working with an aquatic biologist from the Cleveland Metroparks for restocking. Fish may be delivered to the park sometime in the spring. "This is projected to be a multi-year process with initial plans to stock approximately 100 largemouth bass per acre and 400 bluegill per acre in spring 2025," the parks department stated. "Additional stocking will be planned for future winter and additional spring seasons." The approximately four-acre lake was dredged for the following purposes: Restoring the lake to its original detention capacity. Reducing the amount of discharge after a storm. Reducing the peak flows and downstream flooding of nearby Healey Creek. Improving water quality of downstream Healey Creek. North Park's closure began in January 2024, and Brunswick City Council awarded the dredging contract to Fabrizi for an amount not to exceed $809,000 in November. The project was partially funded by a $1.5 million U.S. Environmental Protection Agency grant.