Skip's Landing welcomes visitors to Coshocton

Leonard L. Hayhurst, Coshocton Tribune
·3 min read

COSHOCTON − A main entrance into the City of Coshocton has received recent upgrades with more to come.

The Family of Charles "Skip" Ferrell with a plaque dedicating Skip's Landing to his memory. The land was once Skip's Refuse and is now a public park with river access, picnic tables, bike rack and plans for more.
The Family of Charles "Skip" Ferrell with a plaque dedicating Skip's Landing to his memory. The land was once Skip's Refuse and is now a public park with river access, picnic tables, bike rack and plans for more.

Coshocton County Commissioners held a dedication ceremony recently for Skip's Landing on County Road 1A. The site was formerly home to Skip's Refuse. Development of the 3.5 acres near the city's corporation limit started in winter of 2020.

Delores Ferrell, widow of Charles "Skip" Ferrell, who died in March 2019, initially went to the city about the site being turned into green space. Safety Service Director Max Crown then approached the county and the two entities talked about the possibilities.

The opening ceremony was held on what would have been Skip's 84th birthday.

The $225,000 purchase price of the land was covered by $150,000 from the state capital improvement budget, $50,000 from the Robert Simpson Family and $25,000 from the Coshocton Foundation. An additional $143,060 for development came from the Clean Ohio Green Conservation Program.

Commissioner Dane Shryock listens to former Sen. Jay Hottinger speak at the dedication ceremony for Skip's Landing. Hottinger helped to secure funding for purchase of the land from the state capital improvement budget.
Commissioner Dane Shryock listens to former Sen. Jay Hottinger speak at the dedication ceremony for Skip's Landing. Hottinger helped to secure funding for purchase of the land from the state capital improvement budget.

Former Sen. Jay Hottinger was instrumental in acquiring state funding for the project.

"For me this was really an easy sell, because multiple times when I would be here in the community (Commissioners) Dane (Shryock) and Gary (Fischer) would bring me out here with their team and talk about their vision," Hottinger said. "People in this community, people in this part of the state, people across Ohio are yearning for outdoor activities and to be able to have this is a great community asset."

Work included environmental assessment, demolition of a building, removal of concrete, creation of a new parking lot, four-inches of top soil and grass seeding, picnic tables, bicycle rack and trash cans. Also recently added to the park were security cameras and Wi-Fi access.

Dane Shryock speaks at a dedication ceremony for Skip's Landing. The former Skip's Refuse site has been turned into a community park that will host the Coshocton Farmers Market and other activities.
Dane Shryock speaks at a dedication ceremony for Skip's Landing. The former Skip's Refuse site has been turned into a community park that will host the Coshocton Farmers Market and other activities.

Commissioner Dane Shryock said about 6,000 vehicles on average go past the property everyday as it sits at a main entrance to the City of Coshocton for anyone traveling west on U.S. 36. Having a nice looking park is putting Coshocton's best foot forward to visitors while offering recreational opportunities to residents.

The park has access to the river and will be the new home of the Coshocton Farmers Market, starting Saturday. Further development of the area includes a permanent pavilion for the farmers market, sheltered picnic tables and a possible dog park.

"It's a great venue for the community," Shryock said. "There's a lot of people who made this happen. I appreciate the fact the Ferrells gave this opportunity to the community, to use this property for what's going to be a long term affect on this community."

Jandi Smailes, daughter of Skip Ferrell, spoke on behalf of her family at a dedication ceremony for Skip's Landing where Skip's Refuse once stood.
Jandi Smailes, daughter of Skip Ferrell, spoke on behalf of her family at a dedication ceremony for Skip's Landing where Skip's Refuse once stood.

Delores said the ceremony was bittersweet as she knew Skip would love what has been done with the area. Delores' daughter, Jandi Smailes, spoke on behalf of the family.

"Dad loved his family and friends dearly, but he loved his community and a lot of the people in it just as much. His passion was to help people anyway he could. He never boasted about it in anyway. He was generous and never expected anything in return. That's just who he was," Smailes said. "He led by example. He was a role model to many and especially to me."

Skip's Landing
Skip's Landing

Leonard Hayhurst is a community content coordinator and general news reporter for the Coshocton Tribune with more than 15 years of local journalism experience and multiple awards from the Ohio Associated Press. He can be reached at 740-295-3417 or llhayhur@coshoctontribune.com. Follow him on Twitter at @llhayhurst.

This article originally appeared on Coshocton Tribune: Skip's Landing welcomes visitors to Coshocton