Beechwood Farms in Fox Chapel to get $2M upgrade

Beechwood Farms Nature Reserve in Fox Chapel will get more than $2 million in upgrades as part of the Audubon Society of Western Pennsylvania's centennial celebration.

The group marks its 100th anniversary on March 24.

Leaders said the work, including a handicapped accessible trail and artificial nesting chimneys, will prepare Beechwood for the next 100 years of connecting people with birds and nature.

“I'm excited about (the quarter-mile trail) that will allow people with physical disabilities to experience Beechwood in a way they haven't been able to before,” said Gabi Hughes, environmental educator. “Our goal is to connect people to nature, and removing any barrier to their ability to experience the outdoors is helpful to us.”

In total, the Audubon Society of Western Pennsylvania campaign will bring $7 million in work to its three facilities.

The society also operates Succop Nature Park in Butler and Todd Nature Reserve in Sarver.

A donation from the Richard King Mellon Foundation, along with others, has put fundraising at about $4.5 million, or 65 percent of the goal, said Jim Bonner, the local society's executive director.

The public phase of the campaign kicks off this week with a free viewing of “The Messenger,” a documentary about the mass depletion of songbirds on different continents.

The film will begin at 7 p.m. March 24, at Beechwood, 614 Dorseyville Road.

Bonner said the theme of the project at Beechwood is accessibility.

“We're trying to make parts of the building and property easier to maneuver. We want to improve the visitor experience,” he said.

Plans are in the works to redesign the entry and parking lot that face Dorseyville Road, and to add two trails that are expected to be easier for people with physical disabilities to maneuver.

“Coming here in winter is a bit of a challenge,” Bonner said. “You can skate across the parking lot and the traffic flow of the lot doesn't work well for school buses. Students can't exit the buses without crossing in front of the vehicle.”

There also are plans to pave a gravel service road that leads to the plant center and add restrooms that are available after the buildings close at 7 p.m.

Currently in the permitting process, work is expected to begin this summer and be complete by 2017.

Bonner said the trails to be built this summer will enable people with strollers or people in wheelchairs to access farther sections of the campus more easily.

An 8-foot path with a shallow slope will wind from the main building to the pond, a favorite spot among visitors. It will replace the steep path that Bonner said is well manicured but can be challenging.

“It will be a much gentler course to the pond, which is one of our premier features,” Bonner said.

In addition to work at the three facilities, the Audubon Society of Western Pennsylvania will spend $1 million on regional conservation projects.

The goal is to bring hands-on educational programs into homes, schools, parks and communities.

A highlight of the plan is the $90,000 Chimney Swift Program to help birds that only perch on vertical surfaces.

Chimney swifts have declined in population, and the society is working to build 100 artificial chimneys for nesting.

There are two towers at Beechwood already, near the parking lot.

“They provide shelter for a bird that's losing its traditional nesting spots,” Hughes said. “As people cap their home chimneys, chimney swifts have fewer and fewer places to roost for the night and raise young.”

For more information about the work, visit aswp.org.

Tawnya Panizzi is a staff writer for the Tribune-Review. Reach her at 412-782-2121, ext. 2 or at tpanizzi@tribweb.com.