Staff photo / Brandon Cantwell Tina Milner, Warren councilwoman-elect for the 2nd Ward, recalls some of the efforts the Roosevelt Area Neighborhood Watch and Andrew Herman, D-2nd Ward, underwent to obtain ARP funds and make the pocket park possible at Friday afternoon’s dedication ceremony.

WARREN — The culmination of nearly a decade of effort was recognized, as city and county officials recognized a pocket park in the city’s second ward.

On Friday, the Roosevelt Area Neighborhood Watch, together with Andrew Herman, D-2nd Ward and Tina Milner, Warren Councilwoman-elect for the 2nd Ward, hosted a dedication ceremony for the North End Memorial Rose Garden at the corner of Roosevelt Street Vernon Avenue NW.

The park was eight years in the making, becoming a reality with the help of American Rescue Plan funds and the Trumbull County Land Bank.

Leanne Rimar, co-coordinator of the Roosevelt Area Neighborhood Watch, said the pocket park is an example of how the group has cared for the community over the years, noting it was once a lot that sat empty after a condemned house was demolished by the county’s land bank.

“Once the house was taken down in 2017, neighbors assisted in maintaining this lot so it did not become an eyesore,” Rimar said. “We volunteered our time or paid lawn care services to make sure that it was kept up.”

Rimar said a proposal to the land bank was submitted that year to turn it into a pocket park, which would beautify the space and make it usable for residents in the area, but it was delayed.

The lot was eventually leased to the neighborhood watch, and through the efforts of Herman, they were able to obtain ARP funds to complete the project, Rimar added.

As for the amount, Milner said they were granted $21,000 — approximately $30,000 less than the amount granted for a similar project on Burton Street.

“I appreciate my councilman; I appreciate the efforts, I appreciate the laborers, I appreciate the cooperation,” Milner said. “It took all of us working together to get it to where it is.”

Herman acknowledged some of the challenges they faced in making the pocket park happen, admitting he thought there were moments where it wasn’t going to be possible.

“It’s nice to see at least this neighborhood in Warren taking a step forward and not a step backward — one neighborhood at a time,” Herman said. “And Tina’s going to be awesome — she’s taking my place now as the councilwoman for the 2nd Ward.”

“I’m very delighted and confident to pass the baton to Tina Milner, and she’s going to do a great job,” he added.

State Sen. Sandra O’Brien, R-Lenox, whose district includes all of Trumbull and Ashtabula counties and a portion of Geauga County, was in attendance and presented Milner and the neighborhood watch with a proclamation from the Ohio Senate, recognizing the project and expressing pride in the work the city did in making it possible.

“The Roosevelt Neighborhood Group, they’ve worked real hard to have this park in their neighborhood; it’s a perfect example of people working for something good and accomplishing it,” O’Brien said. “A lot of what you see here, some of it was at a reduced rate they had to pay, or it was donated, and it’s going to be a great addition to the community.”

Rimar said the neighborhood watch’s goal is to make the pocket park sustainable, as she noted that there have been many beautification projects in the city that were started, but not successfully maintained.

To help with maintenance costs, Rimar said the watch plans to sell memorial engraved bricks recognizing individuals or groups that utilized the city’s second ward as their home as a fundraiser.

Once enough bricks have been purchased, Rimar said they will be used as a retaining wall in front of the pocket park’s fence area.