Solon residents may have noticed that the pavilion in the middle of the park has been removed, followed by the playground and other structures in the Solon Community Park in the past few weeks. These changes follow a plan called Project 7, which was approved by the City of Solon in 2024 to update the park to a more modern standard. This plan includes building new baseball fields, football fields, a new playground, more playspace for children and pickleball courts. Some residents oppose this plan due to the construction clearing a patch of old-growth forest in favor of twelve pickleball courts.

An online petition started by Solon resident Gustavo Narvaez is calling for the preservation of this patch of forest. It has been circulating through the Solon online community through Facebook and Instagram and has garnered almost a thousand signatures from concerned residents and community members who hope to prevent the destruction of this forest.

“So, we are in a situation where, in a few decades, we will possibly not have too many places that will be livable,” Narvaez said. “If we continue with this behavior and say ‘Ok, there are some trees there. Let’s cut them.’ That is not the way we will create a sustainable environment.”

Narvaez said that his opposition to this plan arose from multiple factors motivating him to take a stand for a small piece of the environment in his community.

“I don’t think there is a good amount of responsibility when it comes to how we develop things,” Narvaez said. “I think this is a tiny illustration of what happens microscopically in other places. Is this project making development in a way that allows us to live our best lives today and future generations to fulfill their own needs? ”

Narvaez said there were multiple different reasons behind his petition other than hoping to save this patch of land and protect local ecosystems, including the recent opening of pickleball courts in a new facility in Solon just miles down the road. Narvaez also got input from arborists and environmentalists about his cause, and said the expert he met with gave him multiple reasons to proving that the forest preservation is important.

“Number one, heat regulation,” Narvaez said. “This area serves as a heat sink that will absorb heat when it is really bright outside. The other thing is that each one of these trees sequesters about 48 pounds of carbon… The other benefit is stress reduction, as there is a great correlation between being able to walk in green spaces and your heart rate and blood pressure..so it improves your health from just being around trees.”

Solon Mayor Ed Kraus and the city council have moved forward with Project 7 despite community concerns. Furthermore, Kraus is confident that there can be a compromise found between the preservation of the trees and the park’s renovations. Kraus plans to reduce the number of pickleball courts built from 12 to 10 to preserve some of the trees that would have been lost. This would save about 2,000 square feet of forest space.

“We had a lot of citizen input,” Kraus said. “Years ago, we had thousands of people that gave us input about the pickleball courts, and this is probably a good compromise, reducing it to ten so we do have enough courts.”

Pickleball is the fastest growing sport in the United States, as there were 36.5 million pickleball players in the United States last year, up 20% from 2022. This rise in popularity led to a temporary conversion of two of the tennis courts into pickleball courts.

Kraus also said that construction for the plan will begin by 2025, and said that the renovations will take place across a multi year period.

“I like that there is a compromise between both sides,” said Solon Student Kwame Asiedu. “I know that [pickleball] is important for older players, and I’m also tired of pickleball occupying our basketball courts, so I’m happy a compromise was made.”

Narvaez is disappointed about the outcome, and said he thinks he could have fought harder for this piece of forest.

“My frustration is that I wish I could have done more,” Narvaez said. “[However] my suggestion to anyone who feels helpless about [the climate] is to pick up a cause you value, that triggers your passion..and find the right forum to speak up.”