The master plan for the 213-acre former Don Guanella School property in Marple creates a Delaware County park “second to none”, writes Kenny Cooper for WHYY.

It leaves the forest alone and will include ideas from residents on how to use the remaining 47 acres that already have buildings on it.

One of the first actions is creating a “name the park” contest.

The county is hosting two public meetings, forming six focus groups and issuing a series of surveys to get input on uses for the parkland.

“There’s a whole lot of possibilities out there, and we want the community to weigh in on what they want to see happen there,” Delaware County Council member Elaine Schaefer said Friday. “This will be the largest park in our county system, and it will service all of our residents from all over the county.

The community brainstorming sessions are expected to finish by December 2022.

The county is waiting to see if its $21 million eminent domain offer for the property has been accepted by the Archdiocese of Philadelphia and Maple Glen Development LLC as “just compensation.”

Read more at WHYY about the request for community involvement in Delaware County’s new park.