MOUNT VERNON — Another step has been taken in the creation of Foundation Park.

Mount Vernon Mayor Richard Mavis reported that the Foundation Park Conservancy has received nonprofit status, opening up the doors to many more opportunities for the park. Volunteering will be easier, and the conservancy now has more authority to raise funds for the park.

“We’re looking for good things to happen at Foundation Park,” Mavis said. “There’s going to be a lot of activity at the park over the next few years.”

One project in the park is nearing completion. The restroom/shelter is almost ready, but will soon be shut down for the winter. Mavis said the city plans to open and dedicate the facility in the spring.

Mavis said there are other projects being discussed for the future of the park. A pedestrian bridge is being looked at for across the Kokosing River, while work continues on the walking paths and the bow string truss bridge. An engineering firm has been looking for a place to put the abutments for the bridge, which they are hoping to accomplish next spring.

Also on the radar screen is an amphitheater and a larger building for events such as receptions, as well as a regular fish stocking program for the lakes.

In other news:

•The city held its preconstruction meeting Friday for the McKenzie and McArthur street brick projects. The project will include curb work on McKenzie Street from High Street south to Gambier Street, and on McArthur Street from Chestnut Street south to Vine Street. Some of the larger trees in the treelawn will be affected by the project and will be removed beginning Wednesday. The project has a 60-day timetable to be completed, but city officials are hoping it is completed in about four weeks.

There will be some no parking signs erected on the streets that are being worked on, starting with the southern portion of McArthur Street. During the project, workers will also rebuild some of the drainage areas on those two streets at East Vine Street.

•The city’s leaf pickup program will begin Monday. Mavis reminded residents to check the schedule and not park their cars on streets that are being serviced that day.

•The city has been working on softening the curve around Sandusky Street and Ohio Avenue. Mavis said that when the new fire station was built, more of a rolling curve was envisioned than what was created. Mavis said City Engineer Cameron Keaton has designed a “softer” curve and the city worked on it Thursday and Friday in an effort to help the flow of traffic and larger vehicles to make the turn, especially northbound.

•Mavis said letters are in the mail to residents with properties adjacent to the Coshocton Avenue area that will be part of the widening and safety projects beginning in 2012. The safety project will affect Coshocton Avenue from Sychar Road to the traffic light at TSC; the widening project will impact the road from the Center Run bridge to Shalimar Drive. The first public meeting on the project will be Tuesday, Nov. 10, from 4 to 6 p.m. at the First Church of the Nazarene’s Family Life Center. Members from the Ohio Department of Transportation and city officials will be there to discuss the impact of the project on that area.

•There will be a public hearing regarding the application for Clean Ohio Assistance Funds on Thursday, Nov. 5, at 7 p.m. at City Hall. The meeting will be to compile information, questions and comments on the proposed assessment of the former American National Can property. That information will be sent, along with the application, to the state. Mavis said he hopes the city will find out sometime early next year whether it has been accepted.

•Mavis reported that Judy Smith, clerk of the municipal court, will retire after 37 years on the job. There will be a reception for her on Friday, Nov. 6.

•Trick-or-treat in the city will be Saturday, Oct. 31, from 5:30 to 7 p.m.