Do you believe you have the best Christmas light display in Shelby Township? You can show it off by entering the township’s festive competition.

If a firework causes a fire resulting in damage, those responsible may face civil or criminal liability, officials said.

The alternative schedule will help staff observe how different pollinator-friendly plants bloom, how grasses grow, if equipment fuel emissions are reduced and if stormwater infiltration improves.

Signage and city staff are posted at all controlled burn sites.

The City of Ann Arbor Parks and Recreation department is looking to fill several part-time and full-time positions for summer camps, city pools, golf courses, canoe liveries, parks and the water treatment plant.

Ann Arbor Parks & Recreation (Parks & Rec) is asking locals to help pick out the location of a new pavilion through an online community survey.

Financial website WalletHub recently released its annual Best College Towns & Cities in America list, and as per usual, Ann Arbor sits at the top for the 2023 rankings.

You can purchase your 2023 Huron-Clinton Metroparks annual park pass right now.

People living in a neighborhood on Detroit’s west side wanted a park. So they decided to do something about it.

Help cut back invasive plants during two workdays in November.

Enter for a chance to will an annual pass to all Huron-Clinton Metro Parks!

Official Contest Rules

Attend a public session to provide feedback input on how to enhance accessibility in the city’s parks and programs.

As residents voice concerns over the redevelopment proposal, it has been a years-long debate about what to do with the Northville Downs site.

Tree Town is the second-best midwestern city for remote workers who enjoy nature, and the 16th best in the US.

Official Contest Rules

Share your input on how Ann Arbor's parks can be made more accessible at two upcoming public meetings.

Here's how you can safely celebrate July 4 with fireworks in Ann Arbor, according to officials.

Westland is getting its first off-leash dog park this year.

There’s a park located in St. Clair Shores that only Grosse Pointe Woods residents can access.

Do you go camping in Michigan? If so, where’s your favorite campsite?

Elected leaders in Kansas convened community groups and held town hall conversations after demonstrators protested George Floyd’s death statewide.

Ann Arbor Parks and Recreation is hiring for multiple positions this summer.

Ann Arbor community members can now fill out an online survey to provide feedback on the local park system.

Here's a roundup of our favorite places to go for a stroll in Tree Town.

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is signing off on a plan to spend $4.8 billion on the state’s infrastructure, including roads and water pipes.

Enter for a chance to win an annual pass to all 13 Huron-Clinton Metroparks!

A new sculpture is greeting visitors to the Belle Isle Park in Detroit this year.

Ann Arbor has ranked high as one of the country's top college towns -- again.

Three places in Ferndale you and your dog can go to enjoy a nice day out

Soulful British singer-songwriter Arlo Parks has won the prestigious Mercury Prize for her debut album “Collapsed in Sunbeams.”.

Here's a list of activities to enjoy in nature in the Ann Arbor area.

Here's a list of activities to enjoy in nature in the Ann Arbor area.

The inaugural car crawl brings the latest in auto technology and style to Downtown Detroit's six parks.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has called for allotting $150 million in federal coronavirus rescue funds for local parks and trails, the second time she has proposed major recreation spending in less than a month.

Several public playgrounds in Ann Arbor will be closed for resurfacing during the week of May 31.

Washtenaw County Parks' summer attractions will open in late June.

A group of U-M students is looking for feedback on Ann Arbor parks from residents and visitors.

Celebrate Huron River Day throughout the month of May.

Submit your ideas on how to improve access to Ann Arbor parks.

Parks and public spaces in Downtown Detroit will soon have access to free high-speed internet.

ANN ARBOR, Mich. – Looking to get out of the house but don’t quite know what to do? Every Saturday in March., the organization is hosting organized walks at parks and nature areas around Tree Town. Throughout March, featured walks will be held on:Participants can win Visit Every Park prizes from Parks & Rec, including frisbees, a walking club patch and a T-shirt, for walking at different numbers of parks. Masks should be worn and community members are encouraged to stay six feet away from those not in their own household. After completing their walk, community members can take this survey and give feedback about the program.

ANN ARBOR – Want to get outside and try something different this spring? The city of Ann Arbor’s Natural Area Preservation is searching for volunteers to help monitor frog, toad and salamander populations in the city’s parks and nature areas. Salamander Survey Kickoff and TrainingLearn to monitor Ann Arbor’s five species of salamanders. AdThe Saturday Zoom session will run from noon to 2 p.m.Frog & Toad Survey Kickoff and TrainingLearn to identify frogs and toads by eye and ear, and select which route you’d like to survey. The Saturday Zoom session will run from 2:30-4:30 p.m.

This image released by Smithsonian Channel shows, from left, Rhiannon Giddens, Allison Russell, Leyla McCalla and Amythyst Kiah, of Our Native Daughters, near Parks, La., on Jan. 29, 2018. The group will appear in the documentary "Reclaiming History: Our Native Daughters" premiering Monday on Smithsonian Channel. (Terri Fensel/Smithsonian Channel via AP)NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Playing a banjo as a Black female artist is a form of activism for the four members of Our Native Daughters. Why does someone assume if you’re Black, you must be doing urban music, whatever that means?” said Russell. “Songs of Our Native Daughters” which came out on the Smithsonian Folkways record label in 2019, focused on the stories of women during the transatlantic slave trade, but also the triumphs of Black women.

ANN ARBOR – It’s nearing the end of February, and you know what that means in Ann Arbor: controlled burn spring season. The volunteer program with the city’s Natural Area Preservation will kick off virtual training on Thursday, Feb. 18 from noon to 5 p.m. The Spring 2021 Controlled Ecological Burn season begins on Friday, Feb. 19 and ends on Friday, May 29. During the Spring 2021 Controlled Burn Season, NAP has permits to conduct burns in the following locations: Arbor Hills Nature Area, Argo Nature Area, Berkshire Creek Nature Area, Bird Hills Nature Area, Black Pond Woods Nature Area, Botsford Nature Area, Buhr Park, Buttonbush Nature Area, Cedar Bend Nature Area, Earhart Nature Area, Gallup Park, Huron Parkway Nature Area, Kuebler Langford Nature Area, Leslie Woods Nature Area, Marshall Nature Area, Maryfield Wildwood Park, Miller Nature Area, Scarlett Mitchell Nature Area, Stapp Nature Area, Sunset Brooks Nature Area, Swift Run Park, and the NAP office at 3875 E. Huron River Drive. The local fire department is notified before each burn, and cell phones and two-way radios are carried by staff conducting a burn.

Go on a socially distanced walk with Ann Arbor Parks & Rec. Happening weekly, the A2ParkWalks will happen at different parks and nature areas around Tree Town. Natural areas and paths are not cleared or salted so participants should consider carrying walking sticks/or poles, according to the A2ParkWalks website. Masks should be worn and community members are encouraged to stay six feet away from those not their own household. AdWalkers are encouraged to take this survey after each walk and tag #a2parkwalks on their social media posts.

ANN ARBOR, Mich. – It’s a new year and Ann Arbor has received a new accolade as the fourth-best city for working from home. Money, a personal finance publication, looked at data from 1,720 cities and towns to find the top places for its Best Places to Work From Home list. Landing at fourth place, Ann Arbor was one of two Midwestern cities to make the cut. While only 44% of residents own their own homes, Tree Town had the second-lowest median home prices at $293,000. Money noted that prior to the pandemic, only 7% of the population worked from home.

ANN ARBOR – Having just completed the Allen Creek Railroad Berm Project, the city of Ann Arbor is now setting its sights on the creation of a new pedestrian tunnel beneath the railroad near Bandemer Park. City officials and Washtenaw County Parks and Recreation Commission staff will hold a public online meeting Wednesday, Dec. 2 to share project goals, refined design based on feedback from residents and the feasibility study recommendations. They will also open up the meeting for public comment after their presentation. City and county officials will also share a proposal to extend the Border-to-Border Trail through Barton Nature Area. For more information about the project, click here.

LANSING, Mich. – Nearly $2 million in recreation grants will go to local park and trail improvements and developments. The DNR’s recreation passport program has awarded about $12.7 million in grants since being introduced in 2010. The program is tied to license plate registration renewals and more than a third of Michigan registered vehicles now have the recreation passport on their license plate tabs. Ten percent of every recreation passport sale goes to the grant program. “Those visitors represent a direct investment in state parks and local parks, because about $1 from every Recreation Passport purchased funds those local park and recreation grants.”

COMMERCE TOWNSHIP, Mich. – Volunteers from thirty companies worked together Saturday at a Metro Detroit park. Scarlet’s Playground opened in Commerce Township in June. The Michigan Green Industry Association Day of Service donated and installed nearly $80,000 dollars worth of landscaping, flowers and plants. They compete in their field, bidding on jobs, but today they’re all as one,” said Diane Banks with Michigan Green Industry Association. The 18,000 square foot play space has rubberized surfaces and the equipment has double wide ramps to accommodate wheelchairs.

DETROIT – The Detroit Riverfront Conservancy is hosting a new physically-distant but socially-connected fundraiser, #BeingApartTogether, on Friday (Oct. 16). The fundraiser is a celebration of the role Detroit Riverfront parks play in the community. As part of the fundraiser, there will be a free virtual broadcast of musical performances by local artists along the riverfront. It will be available for the community to enjoy on the Detroit Riverfront Conservancy’s Facebook page. Supporters of the fundraiser will receive a package curated in partnership with Detroit’s own City Bird, which is filled with limited-edition riverfront items, locally-sourced gifts and unique activities.

The advertiser paid a fee to promote this sponsored article and may have influenced or authored the content. It’s National Walk your dog week and Michigan Humane wants to make sure your pet is safe. When taking your dog for a walk, the right equipment is very important. Anna Chrisman from Michigan Humane also introduced an adorable dog named Bessie. If you would like to adopt this cute puppy the Mike Morse Law Firm will cover the standard adoption fees.

Wildlife vets take samples from dead elephants found in Hwange National park, Zimbabwe, Saturday, Aug. 29, 2020. (AP Photo)HARARE – Parks authorities in Zimbabwe said Monday that the recent deaths of elephants have been caused by a bacterial disease that has previously affected elephants in Asia and other animals in southern Africa, although more tests will still be carried out. In recent years poachers in Zimbabwe have poisoned dozens of elephants with cyanide and then have taken their ivory tusks to sell them to illegal traders. Not enough information is known about the disease’s effect on local elephants to predict a long-term outcome, he said. “Yes they die, but honestly this is just nothing, a drop in the ocean because we have over 84,000 elephants in Zimbabwe, which is overpopulation already,” he said.

DETROIT The City of Detroit and the Detroit Pistons announced the launch of an enhanced eight-week Pistons Neighbors Program beginning July 29 that will provide free programming for children and families at Adams Butzel Recreation Complex, Clark Park, Palmer Park, Pingree Park and Jayne Field/Lasky Recreation Center in Detroit. The five city parks will host safe and socially distanced programming for all ages. Funding for the programming is being provided by the William Davidson Foundation, Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. Foundation, and the Detroit Pistons. The Pistons Neighbors Program builds on the six-week program at Bennett and Rouge parks in the summer of 2019 and reaffirms the Detroit Pistons commitments to Detroits parks. Renovating courts is not where our commitment ends, its just the beginning, said Detroit Pistons Vice Chairman Arn Tellem.

ANN ARBOR The city of Ann Arbor Natural Area Preservation will be resuming in-person volunteer opportunities this month with new safety protocols. Maintain a 6-foot distance from others at all times during the events. Participants must wear a mask and maintain a 6-foot distance from others at all times. Stewardship Workday: Sugarbush Nature AreaSaturday, June 13, 14 p.m.Join NAP in this scenic part of Ann Arbor to pull invasive species. Participants must wear a mask and maintain a 6-foot distance from others at all times.

COMMERCE CHARTER TOWNSHIP, Mich. For months, outdoor playground equipment has been closed due to coronavirus, but for some children, playgrounds have always been inaccessible. RELATED: Livonia reopens school playgrounds, Dog Park after Michigan stay home order liftedAn inclusive playground in Commerce Township is a project Detroit News personality Stephen Clark has spent years raising money to build. Clarks granddaughter uses a wheelchair and the new park is the largest ramped playground in the Midwest. Named after Clarks granddaughter, Scarlets Playground is groundbreaking for children with special needs. More information on Scarlets Playground can be found on its official website here.

ANN ARBOR The city of Ann Arbors Natural Area Preservation is calling on local volunteers to help pull invasive spring plant species as part of a virtual event. Volunteers are encouraged to remove spring invasive species from their yards and gardens as well as city-owned nature areas. Each season, aggressive non-native plants spread and outcompete native species, reducing the diversity of native wildlife, including butterflies and small mammals. Residents are asked to pull plants on their own or with members from their household. After youve pulled the plants, report your efforts to the Stewardship Network Spring Invasive Species Challenge.

DETROIT – Residents tired of being stuck at home got outside for Memorial Day celebrations, heading to parks and other areas around Metro Detroit. Local 4 cut a wide swath across Metro Detroit to see if people were following social distancing and safe coronavirus (COVID-19) guidelines. A sunny Memorial Day with temperatures in the 80s led to increased traffic at Stony Creek Metropark in Shelby Township. Though it wasn’t quite as crowded, social distancing wasn’t much at play. Local 4 also visited other parks around Metro Detroit, including on Belle Isle.

GRAND HAVEN, Mich. The Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR) announced Friday that Grand Haven State Parks Channel parking lot will reopen to the public on May 22. The parking lot -- also known as Fishermans parking lot -- was closed to traffic earlier this month due to public health concerns, after large groups congregated and failed to practice social distancing. Grand Haven State Park is one of Michigans most popular outdoor destinations, and we know many people love to return here year after year. Grand Haven State Park has remained open to the public amid the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. You can learn more about Grand Haven State Park here.

READ: Family says they’re out on the street after struggling to pay rent amid COVID-19 outbreak“Yesterday, there was really no light” Parks said. Parks and his wife said they were forced to leave their home after not being able to pay in the middle of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. They just been reaching out, trying to help,” Parks said. RELATED: AG sends cease and desist letter to Detroit apartment trying to illegally evict seniors during COVID-19 pandemicParks is looking into taking legal action. We need to help each other as much as possible, especially in this coronavirus epidemic,” Parks said.