Editor’s Note: This submission originally ran in the Lancaster Eagle-Gazette in April 2009. The author, Bob Muckensturm, requested we re-run it in place of his normal monthly letter to the editor, as he believes the words still hold true today.
RECENTLY, a cousin of mine asked me about writing a column on a topic dear to his heart. He was, as was his father was, a hard-working retired glassworker at Anchor Hocking Glass Co. He said that the empty lot of the once proud, Lancaster Glass Co. would be best utilized as a public park, with adjacent parking availability, for the downtown area.
I’d like to expand on his great suggestion. There are a number of ideas being discussed for the future of this property. I believe that the very essence of Lancaster should be preserved and celebrated, as other cities have done, with their historic downtown areas – especially one that housed Lancaster Glass Co.
One example of such revitalization is the downtown district of Monterrey Mexico, which I visited this past year at the Glassman America 2008 Exhibition. This year it will take place in Lyon, France. Visit glassmaneurope.com.
Anyway, Monterrey had a dilemma: What was to happen with their Eastern downtown area, after the collapse of the steel industry? This industry had defined the very existence of Eastern Monterrey. Instead of wiping all traces of the industry from the face of their city, residents celebrated it, by creating a public park – second to none – on the very ground that once housed the great steel mill.
The park, named Fundidora Park, is a public park inside of the former Monterrey Foundry property. Fundidora Park ingeniously exhibits steel implements and sculptured artifacts used in the making of steel, as well as outdoor educational displays along a walkway.
Throughout this beautiful landscape, are outdoor playgrounds – downtown Lancaster has no specific public picnic areas or picnic tables. There is no space available in downtown Lancaster for families to throw a Frisbee, pass a football, swing on swings, or kick around a soccer ball.
One really must see the vitality of this environment in Fundidora Park to appreciate the imagination and creativity of the citizens who, forever, have preserved the life’s blood of Monterrey-steel. The park has become, in itself, a magnet for locals and draws hundreds of tourists per year who spend time and money in area hotels and restaurants. In fact, hotels have sprung up around the park and convention center, built next to Fundidora. Build it and they will come.
What would this site look like transformed into The Ohio Glass Museum Park?
How much does our community want to preserve our heritage and enhance our unique glass industry for our children and grandchildren to experience?
This article originally appeared on Lancaster Eagle-Gazette: Opinion: Could a public park preserve Lancaster glass history?
Reporting by Provided by Bob Muckensturm / Lancaster Eagle-Gazette
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