The public is invited to attend an open house Sunday, Nov. 18, to view ideas for potential new trails at Shale Hollow Park. The open house, hosted by Preservation Parks of Delaware County, will be held 1-3 p.m. at Shale Hollow, 6320 Artesian Run, Lewis Center.

The open house is an opportunity for the public to view possible routes for primitive hiking trails in the southern half of the park, along with concepts for creek bridges, hillside steps and other features. Attendees may drop in any time during the open house to view the proposal and to speak to staff members.

Shale Hollow Park opened in 2013, and currently only the northern half of the park includes trails and is open to the public. While there is no time frame set for the development of the proposed trails, the open house is designed to gauge interest within the Delaware County community. In a 2018 community survey commissioned by Preservation Parks, nature trails were ranked at the top of a list of desired recreational features, along with multi-use trails.

“With the passage of our 10-year levy in 2017, and with the information provided by the countywide survey, we see the open house as another way to get a sense of how we can best serve the community,” said Tom Curtin, Preservation Parks executive director.

The proposed trails also can be viewed at https://www.preservationparks.com/parks/shale-hollow/. For more information about the open house and to provide comments on the proposed trails, e-mail [email protected] or call Senior Park Planner Matt Simpson at 740-524-8600, ext. 2.