The initial steel underpinnings are in place for the new Deering Terrace at James M. McBride Arboretum on the campus of BGSU Firelands. The three-level terrace will include a pier extending over Parker Lake.

Firelands' new Deering Terrace enhances arboretum

Construction has begun on a terrace overlooking Parker Lake at BGSU Firelands that will enable Firelands and K-12 teachers to take education outside the classroom.

Funded by a $120,000 donation from Fred Deering, the 2,000-square-foot terrace will advance the aesthetic and educational goals of James M. McBride Arboretum. It will be open to the public as well as the college.

In addition to educational purposes, it can be used as a performance space and a site for weddings, receptions or other activities. The Erie MetroParks will manage the terrace, as it does the rest of the arboretum, and will handle scheduling of events there.

Deering, a longtime Erie County public servant whose service included years as a county commissioner and Ohio legislator, dedicated the terrace in memory of his late wife, Dorothy, to whom he was married for 53 years before her death in 1998. “I couldn’t have accomplished all I did without her help,” he said.

Two local firms, Poulos and Associates Architects Inc. of Sandusky and Daniel Frederick Architects of Milan designed the terrace at no charge.

The new terrace is the most recent effort by Deering on behalf of the arboretum. He was instrumental in its founding—not just in an administrative capacity but as a hands-on volunteer, planting the many flowering crabapples and other flora. He also collaborated with James McBride to have Parker Lake dug.

“I’ve watched it grow and develop since the very beginning. It was the work of a lot of different people. The spirit of cooperation, of work and of donations is so strong,” he said of the arboretum board, past and present. The board was very excited about having the terrace, he explained, so “I figured the least I could do was fund it.”

"This gift to the James H. McBride Arboretum is a wonderful testimonial to not only Dorothy but to Fred Deering as well. Fred, in every sense of the word, is a community leader. This gift is just another example of his leadership within and for our community," said Firelands Dean James Smith.

“The terrace will provide additional access to a beautiful facility that enhances our campus in so many ways. With students more often invited out to the arboretum, I feel certain that the arboretum board, especially Chair Tom Roberts, will be overjoyed by the increased traffic in an area that is splendidly gorgeous year-round,” he added.

The three-level terrace will include a narrow, 25-foot pier extending into Parker Lake. Nestled between the Peace and Tranquility Garden and the sumac planting bed, the multi-use terrace is designed to enhance the overall experience of the arboretum, the architects said.