Staff photo / J.T. Whitehouse Poland Historical Society Vice President Larry Bartos presented Poland Village council members on Tuesday with the official document naming Poland as an America 250 community. He also presented trustees with the official America 250 flag.

POLAND — Poland Municipal Forest board member Mark Thompson gave a lengthy report on the erosion along Bluebell Trail at Tuesday’s Poland Village Council meeting.

He also discussed a couple of options to deal with the problem.

“At one time the trail could support vehicle traffic,” he told council. “We used to allow vehicles to drive on the trails during the bluebell blooming and even had the Mill Creek MetroParks trolley bus giving tours.”

However, he said those days are gone. The trail was closed to vehicles several years ago because erosion was making it impossible to navigate. In a slide presentation, he showed four points of serious erosion.

“We used to use asphalt grindings,” Thompson said. “Now we are using a compacted aggregate.”

He said the gravel put down is being washed into the forest floor and down the creek. He pointed to several areas in the forest where the gravel has made a hard surface on the forest floor with vegetation growing up through it. He pointed out one area of Bluebell Trail where the gravel had been washed into the forest and actually set up a section that was as hard as the trail itself.

As for the trail, the erosion washed out several areas to where it is not accessible by vehicle anymore and is dangerous for walkers.

The problem, Thompson said, is coming from South Avenue. With development and construction going on, the stormwater from large rain events all head to Drake’s Run and into Yellow Creek. The flood waters roll over the trails and wash out the trail surfaces, eroding the soil as well.

The erosion not only affected Bluebell Trail, but Butler Trail as well.

“Butler used to be a drivable trail,” Thompson said.

He pointed out four locations that have experienced a lot of erosion and trail surface washout. He then presented a few different ideas to solve the problem.

“Solutions include walking away and letting the trails go back to nature, continuing to replace washed out aggregate, or consider an asphalt or concrete surface,” Thompson said.

He said the park board ruled out concrete as too expensive, so then he presented a product called Geo Grid.

“It is made from an oil-based plastic and sits on a fiber base,” he said.

The grid is a series of openings that hold aggregate or gravel and is supposed to prevent washouts.

“It is used in state and national parks,” Thompson said.

He closed the presentation by stating the forest board has decided to recommend an asphalt surface in the washout areas.

Council President Mike Thompson said he was familiar with the Geo Grid from walks he has taken in various parks. He said the sides of the trails are where failure occurs and he has seen the grid forms emerge from the ground.

City Solicitor Jay Macejko said with all the discussion the forest board was having, no one has sought a legal opinion.

“I would ask for it before any decision was made,” he said.

No decision was made at Tuesday’s meeting and the discussion will likely be continued as council decides what direction to go in restoring and repairing the trails.

Also Tuesday, Poland Historical Society Vice President Larry Bartos read a document that declared Poland as an official Ohio 250 community in time for America’s 250th birthday celebration in 2026. Along with the document, Bartos presented the village with an official 250th flag.

During the police report segment of the meeting, Poland Village police Chief Don Lambert gave a warning to village residents to lock their vehicles. He said a recent stolen car was recovered in Youngstown, before it was shipped off to a chop shop. He said when keys are left in a vehicle or the doors are left unlocked, it is easy for thieves to take it.

In other business, council:

• Held first reading of a village ordinance requiring helmets for all e-bikes and e-scooters and prohibiting the electric vehicles from Poland Municipal Forest.

• Approved changing vendors from Verizon Wireless to Access Wireless Data Solutions for new police vehicle cell batteries at a cost not to exceed $2,900.

• Approved Wichert Insurance for coverage of the village’s new tractor at a cost not to exceed $140.