Celery Flats Flattened: restoration of park in Portage will take decades

A historic park in Portage is history as it was once known.

There are plans to rebuild Celery Flats, but it will take a while to get to them. Right now the City of Portage is focused on the other areas of town, according to Parks and Recreation Director Kathleen Hoyle.

The biggest loss is people who lost their homes. At last check, 28 people are still staying at an area shelter.

Still, the entire community lost Celery Flats. On Tuesday, numerous people stopped and stared at the twisted off trees.

Celery Flats, considered a 'gem' and the 'center of the city,' in many ways, is flattened.

It's a place where even adults come to play.

“I long board here frequently,” Shaun Smith said.

People like Shaun Smith have been coming to the park forever.

“My whole life. Literally, my whole life,” Smith said.

Now, the park looks nothing like what it once did in a past life.

“Celery Flats is really the gem of our community,” Kathleen Hoyle, director of parks and recreation said.

“The tornado came through here, and basically—we’re actually pretty lucky. Our historic buildings are still intact. Except for the Hayloft Theater,”

This is the Hayloft Theater before the tornado.

This is the Hayloft Theater now.

“We’ve lost hundreds of trees throughout here,” Hoyle said.

There is a plan to replace the trees and restore the park. Once the more pressing and essential restorations in the City are complete.

“It’s going to take decades to get these trees back in. But we can start the planting, now,” Hoyle said.

Still, this focal point of the community is a loss felt by many. The trails are currently closed. Trees are snapped in half.

“When I first came in I had to remind myself, that this was the Celery Flats. Most of the trees are gone,” Hoyle said.

“It’s kind of insane. I didn’t realize how much like, trees really make up the demographic of the area. It was completely unrecognizable and really depressing,” Smith said.

The replanting of trees will likely take place in the fall.

Help people affected by the tornado here.

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