Tappan updates chamber

By Cornelia Grace Harrison News-Herald Reporter

CADIZ — The Harrison Regional Chamber of Commerce holds a monthly “Coffee and Connections” meeting wherein the community can learn more about individual projects and businesses in the area.

Each month, a speaker is chosen to share with the group at a local restaurant. This month the meeting was held at Ranch to Table restaurant in downtown Cadiz and the speaker was MWCD Engagement and Outreach Coordinator Ethan Zucal.

The MWCD, according to its website is, “a political subdivision of the State of Ohio organized in 1933 to develop and implement a plan to reduce the effects of flooding and conserve water for beneficial public uses.” Its mission is be “responsible stewards dedicated to providing the benefits of flood reduction, conservation and recreation in the Muskingum River Watershed.”

They are the largest conservancy district in the state and operate in 18 different counties, including Harrison.

The MWCD just celebrated its 90th anniversary and has added a historical display, which was part of a focused plan to share more with the public. “We just had a public open house at the Dennison Railroad Depot Museum,” he said. “We have a featured exhibit in that museum. … We’re really excited about that, it’ll be up for a year.”

Zucal explained the organization wants to be more vocal about its history. “We have a lot of visitors come to Tappan who are just there for the day so they don’t really get that history,” he said. “So we’re going to try to change that.”

Zucal spoke about the many exciting changes going on at the various MWCD parks, including Tappan Lake where, on the park side, the welcome center is being redone. “If you drive into Atwood, there’s a great presence when you first arrive to the park with this grand welcome center, which was completed in 2016. So at Tappan you have the old home there which currently serves as our welcome center. Then you had the activities center, concessions, and everything right there in that general area,” he said. “We will have a brand new welcome center.”

Zucal shared that the center will have a meeting space that will, at first, be predominantly for MWCD use but will eventually open up for public use as well.

“Functionality, look, all like Atwood’s welcome center,” Zucal said. “It’ll house our administration as well as our rangers. It will include a retail area for various camping items and souvenirs.”

Construction will continue throughout the year and the hope is that it will be complete in the summer of 2024.

There is also work being done on the concession building with new restrooms being added, new stone facade already completed, and, pending supply issues, should be finished well before next summer.

“Everything is for the public,” Zucal said. “How we can better serve our guests.”