Visitor's center is just what we need

It appears there is big news on the horizon for the Goose Pond Fish and Wildlife Area.

A visitor's center has long been talked about to provide a recognizable location to draw tourists to the 8,000-acre wetland and outdoor recreational area.

Many have dreamed about a visitor's center someday becoming a reality, but money has always been the stumbling block.

However, that hurdle now seems attainable.

Over the weekend I was told by State Rep. Matt Ubelbor (R-Bloomfield) that it now looks like Gov. Mitch Daniels is poised and ready to make an announcement about the visitor's center within a few weeks.

That's welcomed news for the many patrons of Goose Pond who love to go there to relax, take photos, bird watch, hike, fish, hunt and just enjoy nature at its best.

It also opens the door for the folks in charge of the fish and wildlife area to more readily market the location outside of Greene and surrounding counties.

When the visitor's center is built, it will be a place for education, information and Hoosier hospitality.

Many of the naysayers will continue to content that Goose Pond is nothing more than a big mosquito pit that has taken farmland out of production and hurt the tax base.

But with the erection of a visitor's center, Goose Pond will take on a new identity -- an identity that will bring new tourists to our area, who will spend money locally when they arrive.

Salute to Gov. Daniels, who has been a faithful supporter of the Goose Pond project throughout his two terms in the governor's mansion.

Salute to Rep. Ubelbor, State Sen. John Waterman (R-Shelburn), and Rep. Bruce Borders (R-Jasonville) for all they've done to get the Goose Pond FWA where it is today -- a valued wildlife treasure and a sanctuary for migrating birds.

If you want to find out more about Goose Pond, there are three excellent opportunities this week.

A documentary film featuring Goose Pond Fish and Wildlife Area, produced by Linton native Bill Barnes of Charlotte, N.C., will air three times this week on a Bloomington-based Public Television Network station.

"Goose Pond: The Story of a Wetland & Its Neighbors" will be aired by WTIU on Wednesday at 8 p.m.; Friday at 10:30 p.m. and Saturday at 10:30 p.m.

The film is the 2012 winner of two Bronze Telly Awards in the categories of "TV programs/segments" and "nature/wildlife."

The documentary film traces the history of the Goose Pond Fish and Wildlife Area from its pre-historic beginnings as a glacier basin 125,000 years ago to its current day restoration as one of the Midwest's largest wetland areas. It also talks about the tremendous tourism and education potential that the 8,000-plus acre fish and wildlife area possesses.

The film producer began work on the Goose Pond film in 2005, when he was still working on the "You'll Like Linton" documentary -- also a Telly Award winning production.

You can see a trailer about the film on the newspaper's website at www.gcdailyworld.com .

Enjoy and come out and see first-hand this valued part of the Greene County tourist attractions and a growing contributor to our local economy.

Nick is assistant editor for the Greene County Daily World. He can be reached by telephone at 847-4487 or 1-800-947-4487 or by e-mail at schneider.nick@gmail.com .