By Krystal Smalley
ksmalley@wbcowqel.com
If it seemed like Bucyrus Mayor Jeff Reser was full of laughter and jokes Wednesday morning, he had a good reason for it. After a long campaign to raise enough funds for the Schines Art Park, Reser finally met his goal thanks in huge part to the Timken Foundation.
Between jokes of neighbors being able to watch the presentation from “box seats,” a passing Brinks truck having nothing on what he was about to present, and asking if the check bounced after the wind blew it off its easel, Reser’s mood never seemed to deflate.
“I’m actually so thrilled to be amongst you for the second time to make such an announcement,” Reser said.
He was referring to the $50,000 donation made by Ohio Mutual Insurance Group in 2015 to help tear down the former Schines Theatre. The local business community added another $38,000.
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“The first one got us to where we are today,” Reser said, “but we found out that even though it was substantial and we’ve been raising some money along the way, we were still well short of our funding to make this a first class park.”
The original funds helped raze the theater, but the city faced a setback when it realized that over the years the old theater caused damage to the adjacent Midwest Furniture with subsequent damage coming to the building as the theater was torn down. Reser, one of the driving forces behind securing the local donations, set off once again to raise funds that would erect a wall to support the damaged Midwest Furniture one.
“Here we are today to announce that we have received a most generous grant that will allow us to put the finishing touches on this soon-to-be jewel for downtown Bucyrus,” Reser said.
He turned the spotlight over to Bob Hiltbrand, Bucyrus Timken plant manager and a representative for the Timken Foundation.
“I’d like to start by saying thank you for allowing me the opportunity to be a part of this milestone occasion in the history of Crawford County,” Hiltbrand said.
Hiltbrand – and by extension, Timken – was one person Reser approached in his efforts to raise funds for the Art Park.
“From that discussion I saw an opportunity that fit the mission of the Timken Foundation: provide a grant to help complete this project,” Hiltbrand stated. “Along with grants from the State of Ohio, the City of Bucyrus, and private donations, this project is becoming a reality.”
Timken has been a part of Crawford County since 1951 and the Timken Foundation of Canton has provided nearly $8 million in grants in the county since 1956.
“I believe I speak for all the businesses and citizens in Crawford County when I say the establishment of an art park right here in Crawford County will provide the opportunity for a gathering space and a place to showcase Bucyrus as a community that cares about the arts,” Hiltbrand concluded.
Together, Reser and Hiltbrand unveiled an $110,000 grant from the Timken Foundation of Canton to the City of Bucyrus for the Schines Art Park.
Reser gave a lot of credit to former Mayor Roger Moore, who passed away while in office in 2014. Moore worked with Senator Dave Burke to obtain a state grant worth $357,000.
“Roger dreamed big,” Reser said. “I’m happy to be a very small part of Roger’s dream. We do owe so much to Roger, who through his untimely passing I get the benefit of standing in his shoes here. We certainly want to thank him.”
Though the wall looks complete, it’s not quite there. Reser said it will have a stucco finish and artist Eric Grohe, who painted the “Bucyrus, Great American Crossroad” and “Liberty Remembers,” has assisted with some technical details of the wall, though he will not be adding a third mural for the city. Those details will help to add a design at a later date, though Reser assured the crowd in attendance that it definitely won’t be another mural.
“We hope to have him here next summer,” Reser said, “to do some artistic touches. After all, it is an art park, right?”
Grohe won’t be the only artist to have his hand in the final design. Local Rick Burgin will be designing a metal archway that will face out on Sandusky Avenue while Scott Mental, a local art teacher, will be completing some metal sculptures for the park.
“The theme of the art park that we had is going to be more fulfilled and embellished by what we’re going be able to do,” Reser said.
As for how the city could return the favor to Timken, Reser jokingly told Hiltbrand to just let them know how they could help the company sell more ball bearings.
The timeline has been extended to Aug. 30, 2017.
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