Residents and friends urge board to pursue Oakland County Parks partnership to sustain Bowers Farm and Johnson Nature Center

Several community members addressed the board during public comment to urge further consideration of a partnership with Oakland County Parks for two district-owned outdoor assets: Bowers Farm and the Johnson Nature Center.

Amy Carden, a Bowers Farm staff member, reported the recent resignation of six employees including the farm manager and several education specialists and said the farm is operating with three part-time guides during a busy fall field-trip season. She asked the district to provide a clear timeline and to include community input before decisions are made on any partnership.

Michael Soka, president of the Friends of the Johnson Nature Center, and Margaret Baxter of Friends of Bowers Farm both said a county-park partnership could secure long-term maintenance and capital investment while allowing the district to continue providing educational programming. "The Johnson Nature Center is a 40-acre natural gem," Soka said, urging the board to preserve educational access for students and families.

District response: Superintendent Rick West said staff have been engaged with county parks staff and with the Friends groups and that the district will launch a landing page, a survey and two in-person community sessions (Oct. 18 and Oct. 20) to collect feedback. Findings from those engagements will be shared with the strategic-planning committee and a November discussion was promised to determine next steps.

Next steps: The board directed staff to conduct the scheduled community engagement, gather survey results and return findings in November for further board consideration.