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An artist’s rendering of the future Glass City Metropark includes the planned riverwalk.
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Owens Corning contributes $1 million toward Glass City Riverwalk

Jill_M

Owens Corning contributes $1 million toward Glass City Riverwalk

The Owens Corning Foundation has donated $1 million to help Metroparks Toledo afford its plan for the future Glass City Riverwalk, a continuous five-mile greenway envisioned for both sides of the Maumee River in downtown and East Toledo.

The gift, announced by the park district Tuesday, will help lessen the project’s burden on taxpayers.

Half of the riverwalk’s funding is coming from a $23.6 million grant that Metroparks Toledo, the Toledo Metropolitan Area Council of Governments, and others obtained last year from the U.S. Department of Transportation.

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The other half is coming from revenue generated by a 2-mill, 10-year levy Lucas County voters approved Nov. 3 for Metroparks Toledo.

The International Park in East Toledo, Ohio on April 10, 2020.
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Whatever money can be raised privately allows more of that new tax’s revenue to be used for other parks district efforts.

The Glass City Riverwalk will connect six neighborhoods, and help promote East Toledo-Downtown Toledo as a destination, said Scott Carpenter, the Metroparks district’s spokesman.

“Like the Cannaley Treehouse Village, Riverwalk will be the result of the community coming together around a shared vision,” said Joe Napoli, the Metroparks Toledo Foundation’s chairman.

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The foundation, rejuvenated in response to the Glass City Metropark and related projects, focuses on raising private support, especially large potential donors such as Owens Corning.

Brian Chambers, Owens Corning’s chairman and chief executive officer, said the manufacturer is “pleased to support the revival of Toledo’s riverfront and continue the positive momentum underway downtown.

“This is truly a once-in-a-generation opportunity to transform our community by preserving and providing more equitable access to greenspace for all Toledo residents,” he said.

The riverwalk will connect Middlegrounds Metropark with Glass City Metropark along with other parks, businesses, neighborhoods, and corporate campuses — including the Owens Corning world headquarters — between the Anthony Wayne Bridge and Veterans’ Glass City Skyway.

An artist’s rendering of the future Glass City Metropark includes the planned riverwalk.
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Glass City Metropark Phase 1 opened in December between Front Street and the river. A new bike/pedestrian bridge over Main Street will be under construction soon, connecting the new park with International Park on Main’s opposite side.

The Metroparks district expects to break ground this summer on Phase 2 of Glass City, which will include an ice skating ribbon, adventure play area, and other amenities. A campground and picnic areas will be added in the next few years. Other future developments that will be part of Riverwalk include the renovation of International Park, a Toledo city park that will become a Metropark.

“A big thanks to the voters who passed Issue 17 and to the members of our business community who embraced the idea that Toledo’s waterfront could be both a lasting resource for our region and an important piece in the conservation/preservation puzzle,” said Scott J. Savage, the Metroparks Toledo Board of Park Commissioners’ president.

“It is encouraging to see developers already investing in the area’s economic growth and people excited about all that’s planned,” Mr. Savage said. “Riverfront development has been talked about many times before, but it took this community of people at this time to recognize the potential and commit to making it happen. I’m certain we will all be grateful to the people, the businesses and the leaders of Lucas County for generations to come.”

First Published April 27, 2021, 2:28 p.m.

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Plans call for the future, seven-mile Glass City Riverwalk to be connected to the newly opened Glass City Metropark and other parks in downtown and East Toledo. It is to be located on both sides of the Maumee River. Here's an artist rendering of what the Glass City Metropark is expected to look like a couple of years from now, after the weather has warmed and more trees, shrubs, grass and other plants have grown in.
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An artist’s rendering of the future Glass City Metropark includes the planned riverwalk.  (Jill_M)
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