Step into winter fitness at Ottawa County parks

Step into winter fitness at Ottawa County parks

By PETER DAINING
The Holland Sentinel
Posted Dec 26, 2009 @ 11:13 PM
Last update Dec 26, 2009 @ 11:16 PM

Holland, MI — If the trip up the Mt. Pisgah stairs doesn’t take your breath away, the view from the top sure will.

For me, it was both.

I took a trip up the 239 stairs with Ottawa County Parks Commission President Ted Bosgraaf, one of the many locals who takes advantage of Mt. Pisgah for both exercise and scenery.

Like many area parks, Mt. Pisgah is a great place to enjoy a healthy workout — even in the dead of winter.

“It’s absolutely amazing to watch these hills change through the seasons,” Ted said.

Mountain climbers, marathoners and all athletes in between use the stairs for conditioning. Ted said high school teams often make the trip, and a big group gathers every Friday morning to climb.

At 74, Bosgraaf still climbs the Park Township dunes 3-5 times per workout, several times a week. He lives near the path leading to the stairs, which is right next to Pronto Pups on Ottawa Beach Road.

With hard-packed snow covering the steps, he attaches spikes to his hiking boots for much-needed traction. As for me, I just had my old running shoes with about as much tread as a pair of penny loafers.

We first climbed the stairs at a slow pace, stopping on each landing to look around at the trees, and to see how close we were to being above the tree line.

By the time we reached the summit, I was making a bad attempt at covering up my labored breath. After all, I’m 48 years younger than Bosgraaf.

Back at the bottom, things got a little more serious. Ted took out his cell phone, ready to time me.

He’s reminded me several times about his 69-year-old friend, John Spoelhof, former Prince Corp. president, who can climb the stairs five times in 26 minutes.

Well, now my adrenaline was really pumping. By the time I tripped up the last stair, I couldn’t tell which was burning more — my legs or lungs.

I grasped the railing with a tight fist on the way down, slipping and sliding the whole way.

By the time I made it back to solid ground, I was red-faced and sweating under my fleece.

“Well, that warmed me up in a hurry,” I told Ted.

I’m proud to say I finished in 3 minutes, 16 seconds. But Ted didn’t let me gloat for long.

“You’ve got to do it five times, or it doesn’t count,” he said, laughing.

But later, when we met up with Spoelhof, Bosgraaf was talking me up.

“Ted’s brought in a ringer,” Spoelhof said. After some thought, Spoelhof was still up to challenging me in a Mt. Pisgah race next spring. Although with one condition — I have to wear a 30-pound backpack.

It looks like I’ve got some training to do.

Copyright 2009 The Holland Sentinel. Some rights reserved

Holland Country Club may have new owner

Holland Country Club acreage may have Ottawa County as its new owner

By Greg Chandler | The Grand Rapids Press

December 09, 2009, 1:17AM

HOLLAND -- The Ottawa County Commission on Tuesday took a step toward acquiring most of the former Holland Country Club property, approving spending $75,000 for an option on 122 acres of the 145-acre property along the Macatawa River.

"This is one of the last large and significant blocks of land along the (Macatawa) Greenway corridor," County Parks Director John Scholtz said.

Commissioners voted 9-1 to take out an option, which gives the county until March 1 to close on the property.

The county would buy the property from Macatawa Bank Corp. for $450,000, with $100,000 to be raised by the Fillmore Township-based Outdoor Discovery Center-Macatawa Greenway Partnership and the remainder from the county parks levy, Scholtz said.

Parks officials had been looking at the site since Grandville-based Zylstra Land Co., which had considered redeveloping the site into an assisted living center, withdrew its offer.

"This Macatawa River property has served generations of golfers and other community members," Parks Commission President Ted Bosgraaf said.

He said acquiring the property would "enable the general public to enjoy and benefit from this significant property for future generations."

Possible uses include a greenway trail linking parks and preserves along the river; habitat restoration and water quality improvement, along the corridor through a partnership with the Macatawa Watershed Project.

The Parks Commission will likely do a master plan, seeking public input on what they would like to see done with the property.

Commissioner Bob Karsten, R-Zeeland, voted against taking out the option, thinking the county could ask for a lower price for acquiring the land.

"I just don't see who's going to buy it," he said. "It's one big lake in the spring. You can't develop it."

Holland Country Club, which had been open since 1921, closed and filed for bankruptcy in March after falling behind on a $1.55 million mortgage held by Holland Township-based Macatawa Bank Corp.

The property the county has taken out the option on is largely north and east of the river, and includes three acres or upland on the northeast edge of the site with the former golf course maintenance buildings.

It does not include the upland area with the clubhouse and parking lot, Scholtz said.

Macatawa Bank officials could not be reached for comment Tuesday about the prospective sale.

E-mail the author of this story: localnews@grpress.com

Conserve First

I remember many random sayings of my high school physics teacher. One of them, “there is no such thing as cold, just absence of heat” was especially amusing to impart to his shivering (and whining) students mid-winter in the frigid classrooms of our high school. In classic Midwestern “stop yer whining” form, we were told “it’s good for you,it keeps you awake,” and “wear an extra sweatshirt.” Seriously, cover up my painstakingly selected outfit with an extra sweatshirt?

In complete contrast to my chilly high school, my college dorm mid-winter was saunaesque. Instead of sweats, every girl sported shiny soccer shorts, Birkenstocks, and a baggie t-shirt that matched her hair scrunchie (hello early 1990’s), and still we opened our windows to let in cold air. I presume today’s college students are much more enlightened on the silliness of cooling a dorm mid-winter in Michigan and would rise up and demand change.

Fast forward to this decade and the overwhelming interest in alternative energy sources, energy efficiency, technology and products to help us be “green.” Most green experts when asked the question, “what do I do to be more green?” offer the important reminder to “conserve first.”

Faced with today’s economic times, the City of Holland is taking this approach to “conserve first” in their energy usage. After all, is installing brand new energy efficient windows required at the Civic Center or are there other immediate solutions with little or no cost? An energy audit can help answer this, and other, questions. GMB, the local architecture and engineering firm recently performed energy audits on 14 City buildings this past year, providing very useful information and practical recommendations. For example, a thermal image and physical inspection revealed that exterior doors at the police station were not closing completely. Not rocket science, but probably quick-and-easy fixes that will save a few bucks. The entire audit, including cool thermal images of the buildings, can be found on the city’s website. Go to www.cityofholland.com, and type “energy audit” in the search field.

Energy audits are not only reserved for commercial uses, they are becoming increasingly popular for residential applications. One local Holland company, Dwelltech Solutions (www.dwelltechsolutions.com), offers analysis and repair. For all you techies, Dwelltech uses really cool tools for the audit -- specifically a thermal imaging camera and a blower door test. When attached to the entry door of your home, the blower door device creates a negative air pressure, making air leaks immediately apparent. Many (dare I say most) older homes in the central Holland leave a bit to be desired in tightness. As Brian Bosgraaf, owner of Dwelltech, said, “One house we tested was so loose, the blower door started sucking birds off the roof of the neighboring house.” Well, not really, but you get the idea. An energy audit from Dwelltech starts at $250 and includes advice on upgrades that offer the biggest payback, available tax credits or incentives, and other expert advice.

Consider all the alternative energy and energy reducing options available, but don’t forget to CONSERVE FIRST.

By AMY ALDERINK

This article originally appeared in the Oct/Nov 09 issue of Holland Urban St.

The Financial pages are full of positive-sounding trends for the housing and real estate industries…

The Mortgage Bankers Association, the National Association of Home Builders and the National Association of Realtors are lobbying Congress to extend the $8,000 First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit that is set to expire November 30^th.  These groups, battered after a year that saw the housing market in tatters, are eager to prolong the momentum begun this summer as hundreds of thousands of first-time buyers purchased new homes. With challenging new banking and financing regulations slated to take effect in the new year, housing industry officials hope that the positive buzz created by the tax credit will continue to stabilize the market.

 

Also of note… Rates on fixed-rate 30-year mortgages fell to 4.87%, the lowest since May.  15-year rates dropped to 4.33%, the lowest since 1991.  5-year Treasury-indexed ARM’s averaged 4.35%, compared to 5.9% one year ago.  Numbers like these are a benefit for consumers, translating to hundreds of dollars off monthly mortgage payments.  The low rates are spurring demand for mortgages, with applications increasing 16.4% for the week ending Oct. 2^nd. 

 

Wit lower mortgage rates and a possible extension of the homebuyer tax credit, the signs are good for potential homebuyers as 2009 winds down.