From Schoolyard Memories to New Adventures: Ashland Celebrates Lincoln Park Opening
ASHLAND — Children were already putting the playground to good use Tuesday evening as Ashland gathered to celebrate a new beginning for a place filled with old memories.
With a countdown and a ribbon cutting, city leaders, Rotary Club members, donors and neighbors welcomed Lincoln Park at the corner of West 11th Street and Troy Road on Oct. 20.
For former Lincoln Elementary School students and teachers, the celebration was also a homecoming. The grounds that once brought children together for school will now bring another generation together to play.
Speakers included Dr. Stephen Yoder, president of the Rotary Club of Ashland; Katherine Eboch, Rotary district governor; Abby Conner of The Norma Foundation; and Ralph and Betty Jo Tomassi. They joined Mayor Matt Miller in celebrating the community effort that brought Lincoln Park to life.
“Good evening and welcome to our brand new Lincoln Park,” Mayor Matt Miller told the crowd.
The park features a playground, basketball court, pavilion and space for neighbors to gather. A dog park is also part of the project, although Miller emphasized that it was not yet open.
That detail apparently had not reached some eager visitors.
By about 4:30 p.m., Miller said, several dogs and their owners had already arrived, ready to check it out.
“They did not get the memo that the dog park is not open just yet,” he joked.
Their early arrival offered one more sign of the neighborhood’s excitement.
The project began with a simple request from people who remembered what the property used to mean.
Miller said former Lincoln Elementary teachers approached him roughly seven years ago about creating a park where the school once stood. Before its demolition in 2015, the school’s playground served neighborhood families even when classes were out.
When the school disappeared, so did that gathering place.
The idea of restoring recreation to the property had support, Miller said, but the city did not have money set aside to build another park.
In 2025, the effort gained momentum. Ashland City Schools agreed to sell the property to the city for $1,000, with school officials supporting its future as a park.
“We think we got a deal,” Miller said.
Then a conversation with Rotarian Maryanne Wise helped turn the idea into a community project. When Wise approached Miller about possible Rotary service opportunities, he took her to see the property.
Soon, Rotary members were discussing what could fill the vacant space. The Rotary Club of Ashland went on to spearhead fundraising.
Club President Dr. Steve Yoder said the effort raised $88,900 in contributions toward the park. He thanked donors, fellow Rotarians, the city and contractors who helped stretch project dollars through discounted work and other contributions.
For Yoder, watching the park come together became personal. He joked about worrying over visitors stepping on the newly sprouted grass.
“It’s like my baby, sort of,” he said.
The Norma Foundation helped expand the possibilities for the property. Foundation representative Abby Connor said her team initially visited to discuss supporting the dog park, then noticed room for more.
“We love the dog park idea, but there’s a ton of green space left over. Is there anything else we could do?” Connor recalled.
That question led to additional foundation funding for a basketball court. Yoder also credited the foundation with support for the pavilion.
Ralph and Betty Jo Tomassi were recognized for their generous support of the dog park, while the Ashland County Community Foundation and numerous other donors helped make the broader project possible.
Miller estimated the city’s share at approximately $160,000, with about $130,000 covered by a Community Development Block Grant.
State Rep. Melanie Miller presented a proclamation from the Ohio House of Representatives and spoke about what the park would mean for families.
Standing nearby, she said, she could hear children playing and making memories.
The celebration carried that same meaning for former students who returned to see their old school grounds take on a new purpose.
Rhonda Hoover Hill remembered the school’s merry-go-round as a favorite part of her childhood.
For Scott Burns, who said he attended Lincoln from kindergarten in 1976 through sixth grade in 1983, the strongest memories were the friendships.
“We was all just like one big happy family,” Burns said.
Seeing former classmates again brought happiness and a tear to his eye, he said. Seeing the property become a park gave him another reason to smile.
“This park is amazing,” Burns said, pointing to the basketball court, future dog park and playground.
“I think the neighborhood and the community just really needed it.”
More finishing touches are planned. Miller said an eight-foot fence will be installed around the basketball court to help keep balls from reaching nearby streets.
The city also hopes to incorporate the original engraved Lincoln School cornerstone into a permanent park sign. The school district preserved the stone and is transferring it to the city.
A flagpole near the proposed sign is another addition for which community support is welcome.
As the ceremony reached its ribbon-cutting moment, participants gathered with American flags to mark the park’s dedication during the nation’s 250th anniversary year.
Then came the countdown.
“Five, four, three, two, one!”
With the ribbon cut, Lincoln Park began its next chapter. For those who grew up there, the schoolyard memories remain. For the children already climbing and playing nearby, new ones were underway.
