By Mark Scott
Buffalo, NY – The Buffalo Olmsted Parks Conservancy is gearing up for the upcoming parks season in Buffalo. Activities are planned at all Olmsted parks this spring and summer, starting this weekend.
Various officials and friends of Buffalo's historic Olmsted parks gathered in sun-drenched Delaware Park Thursday. As the birds were singing above, the conservancy was announcing plans for the upcoming season.
Because of a budget crunch that could affect city spending on its parks, David Colligan of the Buffalo Green Fund said volunteers will be playing a key role this summer.
"I think the key to our city's success in the future is going to be leveraging all our assets," Colligan said. "Our volunteer support for our parks is an asset that we can leverage. Using that, we can have the most beautiful park system in America, even under dire financial circumstances."
Among the popular attractions returning this summer is Shakespeare in Delaware Park. Despite a financial crisis of its own during the off-season, Neil Garvey says plans are moving forward for this summer's productions of "Macbeth" and "The Comedy of Errors."
"We have auditions this weekend. We've had our production meetings. We're raising our money. We're full steam ahead," Garvey asserted.
Feature films will be screened for a second year after nightfall at Delaware Park, starting in July. The conservancy says the free movies will also be offered for the first time at Martin Luther King, Jr. Park.
Activities begin this weekend with a spring sprucing up in the parks. More than 50 members of the State Arborists Association will plant new trees and prune existing ones in the Rumsey Woods section of Delaware Park.