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63 °F Forecast | Road Cams Sunday, March 13, 2005 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Menu Guide How To Guide Health Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Real Estate Guide Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Passport to the Rogue Valley SHOP OUR VALLEY AutoFinder HomeFinder JobFinder Classified Place an ad TOP JOBS EXTRA NIE Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People Volunteer Moving here? eSouthernOregon CUSTOMER SERVICE FAQ's Advertise with us Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend September 30, 2004 A private group has been given a tentative OK to build a public labyrinth, or spiritual walking/meditation path, in the grassy area between Bear Creek Park�s fenced-in skateboard area and tennis courts to the west. The City Council must give the final OK Mail Tribune / Bob Pennell Memorial labyrinth OK’d By MEG LANDERS Mail Tribune After a year of discussion with city staff and officials, a local group got the OK Tuesday to build a memorial labyrinth in Bear Creek Park. Kris Earl, case manager for Rogue Valley Medical Center hospice services and coordinator of the labyrinth project, made her third appeal to the Medford Parks and Recreation Commission Tuesday, asking for a 50-foot-diameter space to build the memorial. Earl was not asking for funding from the city, only land. Commission Chairman Jerry MacLeod said the commission was familiar with the request and only had one concern. "The only question is where," he said. Earl suggested four sites at Bear Creek Park, but the one site recommended by staff was between the skate park and the tennis courts. Advertisement A labyrinth is a series of concentric circles, threaded with serpentine pathways forming the longest possible distance between two points: the entrance and the center. Labyrinths have been used in many traditions as a spiritual walking path. Both parks superintendents Brian Sjothun and Bruce Galloway supported the labyrinth project. "It seems like they want to do a quality job," said Galloway. Earl said the idea came about after a group of 16- to 23-year-olds had lost four of their friends in a 10-month period. They put together the idea for a 50-foot-diameter concrete and tile meditation path in Alba Park, but the Medford City Council did not approve the plan. Part of the proposal includes having tiles for teens and young adults to personalize to honor lost loved ones. The project is named for Jacob Lowell of Medford who ended his own life in September 2003 at the age of 21. The proposal is designed by Virginia Allen of Ashland. Earl said fund raising is next. She estimated the project will cost $50,000 and hopes to begin working on the labyrinth in the spring and finish it the following fall. Matt Houx, a friend of Jacob Lowell, said he was glad to hear the commission’s decision. "I think it’s going to help a lot of kids," he said. Galloway said the labyrinth may require council approval. If approved, he said staff would work closely with those involved in the project. City Manager Mike Dyal said in a telephone interview that the project would need council approval before proceeding. "The council has to say ‘yes’ to public improvements on public land," he said. Two things the project has in its favor are that the group is not asking the city for money, and parks department staff recommended the location, he said. Dyal said the item will be discussed either through a study session or as a council agenda item. For information or to make donations, contact Kris Earl at 601-6178. Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback Student Loan Consolidation Conference Calls - $50/Month Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker, Trunk, Footlockers home equity loans helzberg Slippers Student Loans afsa teleconferencing Memory Foam Mattress Advertisement s