With no feedback from residents, Lake Orion Village Council members on May 10 decided to keep Green’s Park hours the same as they were last year.
Stan Ford, swim program coordinator, two weeks ago urged the council not to change the hours. He stressed there could be safety issues if the park was kept open longer hours.
Not one village resident showed up at a recent public hearing to show any support for extending the dates and time.
Suggested changes included opening the park after Mother’s Day in May and closing it after Columbus Day in October . Hours would have been 10 a.m.-sunset rather than 10 a.m.-8 p.m. in the summer.
Council member Tom Albert was a big supporter of keeping the park open longer. He said residents weren’t happy with the park on M-24 only staying open for three months (Memorial Day -Labor Day).
Rosemary Ford, a member of the village’s parks and recreation committee, told council members she felt it was too late to change hours because the opening of the season was too close and staff was already being hired.
Originally, the committee had recommended keeping the park open year round. But Rosemary said the members have had second thoughts about doing that. They were worried about safety issues, such as the park was on such a large body of water, it was close to the dam and the near-by marina has a bubbler (keeps water open in the winter).