State, local officials celebrate refurbished East Harbor State Park nature center

MARBLEHEAD — East Harbor State Park's Nature Center has been a mainstay at the Ottawa County state park for more than 40 years, with visitors coming in to learn more about the region's natural wonders and abundant wildlife.

The facility has undergone a dramatic makeover and Ohio Department of Natural Resources officials showed up Friday to celebrate the opening of the newly renovated nature center

ODNR Director Mary Mertz said East Harbor's renovations are part of her agency's statewide effort to improve its park nature centers.

Mertz said the nature center is now designed to remain open even when it is not staffed.

"This is going to be a whole new era of interaction at East Harbor," Mertz said.

In 2020, ODNR launched an initiative for improving and updating more than two dozen state park nature centers to provide visitors with the best nature-based educational experiences possible, according to the state agency.

This year, ODNR will celebrate 12 nature center improvement projects.

The East Harbor nature center's new interior includes exhibits that give visitors a fresh introduction to the region's fish and snakes, as well as bald eagles.

Also included in the renovations are exhibits detailing the natural wonders of Kelleys Island's Glacial Grooves and tips for boating safety on Lake Erie.

Mike Monnett, East Harbor's park manager, said 25,000 visitors come into the park's nature center annually.

He said the nature center hadn't changed much prior to the recent top-to-bottom renovations, which also included a the installation of a new HVAC system, flooring work and painting.

"We really needed an upgrade," Monnett said.

Renovations at the center, which cost about $120,000, took about a year.

Monnett noted the new eagle display inside the nature center.

He said there are two bald eagle nests located inside the East Harbor park.

dacarson@gannett.com

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Twitter: @DanielCarson7