Read more about your neighbors featured in the latest issue of the Minerva Park Community Association Newsletter Meet Cynthia Stockman. Cynthia lives on Woodley Road with her partner, Aaron, and their kids: Ava (13), Roman (4), and Camila (3) and their two dogs, Ace and Lola. Cynthia was born and raised in Miami, Florida where she also attended the Miami Art Institute studying Graphic Design. After college, she moved to Atlanta and lived there for about a decade. Cynthia want

Typically, I’m writing about invasive plant alternatives, but we had a resident request info on living with Odocoileus virginianus, better known as White-Tailed Deer. Though we may love (or not) seeing the sweet, doe-eyed mammals, many of us would like to discourage them from eating at the smorgasbord that is our yard. Apparently the most effective ways to deter are an 8-foot fence, a dual-fence system (two parallel 4’ fences, four feet apart) or a slanted fence at a 45 degre

Register NOW for the Minerva Park Community Garage Sale! ➡️ Minerva Park’s Annual Community Garage Sale is almost here! 📅 9/18- 9/20 Last year, over 55 households participated — let’s make it even bigger this year! ✅ Residents: Register now to get your sale on the official garage sale map and join the fun. ✨ MPCA Member Perk: The first 5 MPCA members to register ONLINE will receive a "Minerva Park Community Garage Sale" sign to display in their front yards the week before th

Congratulations to our 2026 MPCA Scholarship winner - Shira Baumann! Shira graduated from Westerville North High School with a 4.7 GPA and will be attending Princeton in the fall to study comparative literature with minors in theatre and history. She was a leader in Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA), a Co-Captain in Tennis, participated in theatre, Warrior Athlete Leadership Team (WALT), Hope Squad, Link Crew, National Honor Society (NHS), Superintendent’s Advisory, was

In this current series of articles, we’re exploring the replacement of invasive non-native plants with plants that are native to our local ecosystem. This month, we will focus on the Daylily (Hemerocallis) aka Ditch lily, Tiger lily. Their rhizomes spread aggressively, forming dense, impenetrable mats that deter native flora. The plants themselves provide little or no value to pollinators. I will include Lily of the Valley (Convallaria majalis) in this category as well for t

REPLACING GARLIC MUSTARD (Alliara petiolata) WITH NATIVE PLANTS Native to Europe and Asia, garlic mustard is a biennial flowering plant in the mustard family. Their first year, clumps of round, scalloped leaves develop, which when crushed smell of garlic, as does the rest of the plant. In the second year, spike-like stems elongate to 12-18” and produce cross-shaped white flowers. In mid-summer, once flowering is complete, the plants produce upright fruit that releases seed. T

Did you know that MPCA offers a scholarship for graduating high school seniors? MPCA awards a $500 scholarship each year to one graduating high school senior that is a resident of Minerva Park. Application details are available online here. The scholarship can be used for any expenses related to enrollment at a 2 or 4-year degree program, a trade program, or a professional training/certification program (e.g., real estate license). We want to support your post-high school goa

Read more about your neighbors featured in the latest issue of the Minerva Park Community Association Newsletter Meet the Knotts! Jeff and Jennifer moved to their home on Jordan Rd. in July 2022, relocating from Toledo to be closer to family. Their son James, a former MP resident, encouraged them to consider the Village. After a challenging search, they had almost ended their house hunting when they found the home. While living near Cleveland Ave. has its drawbacks, they lov

Replacing Burning Bush (Euonymus alatus) with natives. Burning bush has been used and overused in garden landscaping for years. Minerva Park's newest plantings were placed by MI when building the new development, include a large number of Burning Bush, hopefully to be replaced in the near future. It is a highly invasive non-native that disrupts our local ecosystem by spreading rapidly into forests and fields (often via bird) forming thickets (that crowd out our native plant

Vender & Musician registration is now open for Arts in the Park in the Village of Minerva Park! Now in its seventh year , Arts in the Park has grown into a beloved community event celebrating local creativity. What began as a small gathering has evolved into a wonderful opportunity for artists and musicians to showcase their talents while bringing neighbors and visitors together for an afternoon of art, music, and community. Arts in the Park proudly features “homegrown” arti

Will you be my Valentine? Would your child like to join a Secret Valentine Exchange with other neighborhood children? To participate, please sign up each child individually. Rest assured, your address and phone number will remain private. Only your child’s first name and your address will be shared with the assigned participant delivering their Valentine. Important Details: Sign-up Deadline: February 4, 2026 Delivery Window: February 7–14, 2026 Registered children will be

REPLACING INVASIVE PLANTS WITH NATIVE PLANTS - Honeysuckle Invasive plants are non-native species that outcompete our native plants for resources (light, water, nutrients) and alter the biodiversity found in our natural lands, often by taking over our native plants. By removing invasives and non-natives (at least a percentage of the latter) and replacing with native plants, our landscapes can better support these important efforts in our environment. This month, we will discu

Read more about your neighbors featured in the latest issue of the Minerva Park Community Association Newsletter Meet the Gilbert-Hammett family! Brandi, Carl, and their daughter Charli moved to Wolfbirch Drive in May 2020 after searching for a home on the northeast side of Columbus. Their realtor encouraged them to consider two new-build homes in Minerva Park that had just become available. While Brandi loved the idea of a new home, she wasn’t familiar with the area. During

Congratulations to 4873 Farview and 5336 Ponderosa for winning the 2025 Festival of Lights! 4873 Farview channeled Clark Griswold with white lights covering every surface of the front entry of the house as well as an awesome garage door light display and light up Santa with his elves. They also had an amazing display for Halloween - make sure to check them out! 5336 Ponderosa had displays capturing every aspect of the season - snowmen, Santa, a nativity display, and even a sk

For 2026 I will be presenting monthly articles delving in to which native plants can replace invasive plants in your yard and in our community. Invasive plants are non-native species that outcompete our native plants for resources (light, water, nutrients) and alter the biodiversity found in our natural lands, often by taking over our native plants. According to entomologist and author Doug Tallamy, our landscapes should be supporting food webs and pollinators, sequestering c

This month I will focus on the Sweetgum tree (Liquidambar styraciflua), a deciduous tree native to the southern portion of Ohio. It is often planted as a landscape tree in the rest of Ohio. Once you know this tree, you’ll likely remember it by its 5-7 point star-shaped leaves, its beautiful fall color and its spiky round fruits. In autumn, the leaves turn shades of color from yellow to orange to red to deep purple and mixtures of all of these, tending to turn and stay attache

Read more about your neighbors featured in the latest issue of the Minerva Park Community Association Newsletter Meet Santa & Mrs. Claus! Each December, Santa and Mrs. Claus make their annual journey around the world, but there’s one stop they both look forward to every year—Minerva Park! The Clauses have been visiting the village for as long as anyone can remember, and they say it’s one of their favorite places on the map. Santa loves how Minerva Park looks from the sky. “It

The Minerva Park Community Association awards three homes who bring the holiday cheer every winter - the annual Festival of Lights. We wanted to extend that celebration of our festive neighbors by adding a "Festival of Frights" to recognize the spookiest ghouls and goblins in the village. Without further ago, congratulations to our first annual Festival of Frights winners! 3086 Quiet Brook Vale 2669 Maplewood While we don't have pictures to share, they were amazing representa

Recently on the Minerva Park Facebook page, two of our trees were dubbed "the Kissing Trees" - apologies to the namer as I don’t remember who it was. This month, I thought it would be fun to do an article on these two trees. They seem to be much noticed by those who walk the Green Space path. The Kissing Trees are the 2 largest trees that grow in the circle of path just south of Quiet Brook Vale pond (the pond by the tunnel). They sit on either side of KiIbourne Run. To the

You can find the MPCA Costume Parade and MORE at Fall Festival 2025 on October 18th! Celebrate Fall with MPCA! This year we'll be...