NEWS RELEASE

June 30, 2000 Release #5

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CASCADE LOCKS PARK AND MUSTILL HOUSE & STORE, CLEVELAND BASED MASTER PLANNERS/ARCHITECTS CELEBRATE BUILDING DEDICATION

On Sunday, July 2, 2000, 2:00 p.m., the Cascade Locks Park Association will reopen the doors to the jewel of the Ohio & Erie Canal, the Mustill Complex, 234 Ferndale Road, Akron, Ohio. The Mustill Store and House by Lock 15 are the most significant existing historical features of the park, providing a "living diorama" of life and commerce in the canal era. The Complex is historically significant in that it is an intact geographic unit of residence, store and canal.

The Frederick Mustill House is a 1 1/2 story Greek Revival, gable-fronted edifice, with a later Italianate bay window. The Mustill Store is located immediately northeast of the house along Ferndale Street. The rectangular-plan commercial building has virtually no setback for the path that ran between it and the canal. A one-story addition to the north elevation ran parallel with the eave; the façade was completed by a one-story porch with shed roof, supported by squared Doric columns. Historic photographs and primary sources show the store to have been a landmark stopping-place and watering hole for canallers.

The renovated house will be used as a residence for the store operator; the store will serve as a canal interpretive station and concessions for park and corridor users. The Complex will serve the same landmark purpose for the Park as it did for its canal era visitor's over 125 years ago.

As the lead consultant for master planning and consultants for architecture and landscape architecture throughout implementation of the design phase, Schmidt Copeland Parker Stevens worked with biological and ecological consultants, an historian/industrial archaeologist, urban archaeologist and a collaborative public art team to develop an overall Cascade Locks Park Master Plan and conceptual designs for the Mustill House and Store Complex.

"We are excited to see seven years of hard work come to fruition," said Patty Stevens, ASLA, Schmidt Copeland Parker Stevens, Principal of Environmental Design. "For the past 26 years, our firm has been involved in the design of recreation and education facilities for private and public organizations throughout the United States. The opportunity to bring our knowledge and experience home is a real joy for us."

This team melded local and national expertise in park planning, public participation, interpretive strategies, environmental analysis, marketing and economic planning with specific project experience in heritage areas, industrial interpretation, and ecological restoration.

"As I move through the park and stand in front of the completed complex, I think back to where we were in 1993, when our involvement in the planning process was just beginning, it is remarkable to see what a positive effect this reservation is going to have on the community, environment, and people that will use and enjoy this facility," said Stevens. "From small children to the elderly, this facility really has something for everyone."

BACKGROUND

Driven by their mission to design places of recreation and education that build community, respect the environment and enrich the individual, Schmidt Copeland Parker Stevens is a national firm composed of architects, landscape architects and planners. Based in Cleveland Ohio, the majority of the firm's projects are in the areas of large scale recreation planning and design. Although 75 percent of the firm's clients are based outside of Ohio, Schmidt Copeland Parker Stevens is dedicated to the preservation and development of projects throughout Northeastern Ohio. Additional local park and recreation projects completed by the firm include: Cleveland Metroparks Ohio & Erie Canal Reservation Towpath and CanalWay Center, Cuyahoga Valley Association November Lodge, Cascade Locks Park Association and Mustill House and Store Renovation in Akron, Shaker Lakes Nature Center, Lake County School House and Nature Park, Case Barlow Farm Park in Hudson, and several projects in association with Environmental Design Group (EDG) of Akron, Ohio. County wide Trail and Greenway Plans for Summit and Stark counties, Valleyview Bicycle & Pedestrian Trail, Barberton Canal Corridor Master Plan, and Stark County Canal Corridor Master Plan.

For more information please contact:
Environmental Design Group, Inc. Dennis Mersky First Vice President, Director of Landscape Architecture 330-375-1390 330-375-1590 (fax)	Schmidt Copeland Parker Stevens Allison Copeland Marketing Coordinator 216-696-6767 216-696-4767 (fax)