Ron Welch
Muskingum County Prosecutor
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, April 19, 2023
Prosecutor's Office beautifies former neighborhood nuisance property
Muskingum County Prosecutor Ron Welch, joined by his staff of attorneys, paralegals and professionals volunteered Wednesday to plant seeds for grass and wildflowers on a vacant lot at 753 Putnam Ave.
The lot was previously home to a bar that was at the center of numerous criminal problems.
The site, which was seized and demolished after a law enforcement raid, will now serve as a pollinator garden containing grass and wildflowers.
“We felt that this site could add some needed greenspace and a splash of color for the neighborhood. By choosing to seed the lot for pollinators, hopefully, we’ll see a beautiful field of flowers, bees and butterflies on a site that had turned into a nuisance,” Prosecutor Welch said.
The lot, located near Harrison Street, ties its green space in with the flowers of the Sunshine Shoppe, located on the corner of Harrison and Putnam, the planters which have been placed along Putnam Ave by the Friends of Putnam community group and can be a link to the riverside walking trail under development along the riverside by the Muskingum Valley Parks District.
Several years ago, Zanesville Steel launched beautification efforts along the riverside section by Harrison St. and Muskingum Avenue. This year the J.W. and M.H. Straker Foundation, the Parks District, and the City of Zanesville have stepped up to take that shoreline rejuvenation throughout Putnam.
This former nuisance lot is a small way that the Prosecutor’s Office and the county can add to the progress.
Last year, a strong message was delivered to drug dealers when the former illegal bar was seized and destroyed. This year, there is a demonstration that such properties can be transformed into something positive that beautifies the environment and enhances the ecosystem.
All of these things were achieved through donations of time, equipment, soil, seeds, and expertise by Muskingum County citizens, businesses, and law enforcement.
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