PARKS & RECREATION
DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES
NOLT has been serving the Parks Category for over 150-years. We are seeing a major paradigm shift is underway in Parks & Recreation Design, Maintenance & Material Specification.
Our AIA Course explains this in 30-minute course with Q & A.
- Day-Use-Areas
- Trails & Pathways
- Riverfront Marina Areas
- Lakefront Marina Areas
- Venue Rental Buildings
- Nature Centers/Visitor Center Facades
- Building & Operation Center Facades
- RV Campground Services Buildings
- Air B&B Style Cabins/Rental Units
- Wood Screening/Wood Fencing
NOLT Presented this AIA Course to Parks Officials, Architects, Engineers & City/County Planning Offices over 200 times during 2025:
AIA Accredited – 2026 ThermoWood Certified COURSE DESCRIPTION Length: 60 Min. (35-minute presentation + Q&A session) Learning Credit Units: 1 LU, HSW (Health, Safety, and Welfare)
Topic: Biophilic Design & The Impact of Thermally Modified (TM) Wood in
the US Parks & Recreation and Outdoor Spaces Categories
Date: Contact NOLT Scheduler, Makinsie Evans (makinsie.evans@noltco.com)
Presenter: Stuart Sheridan/Bryan Midlik, NORTHERN OHIO LUMBER & TIMBER
AIA Credit: 1 HSW LU
A paradigm shift is underway in Outdoor Design & Specification. Innovation is changing all exterior finish wood specified in outdoor applications, impacted by 20-year durable, and dimensionally stable, thermally modified wood in outdoor spaces. TM Natural wood – available in over ten-plus hardwood and softwood species – is authentic real wood, does not retain water so resists rot, warping and cupping lowering repair/replacement/maintenance budgets. Benefit is simple: elevate intimate user-experience opportunities with natural wood while reducing costs. This shift can replace pressure-treated wood in many spaces over time, displace plastic-faux-wood composite products, and increasingly rare exotic rainforest species (e.g., IPE) in all exterior applications:
- Decking, Pathways & Outdoor Space Surfaces including Bench Seating
- Natural Wood Exterior Siding/Cladding, especially Ceiling Applications
- Screening & Traditional Wood Fencing & Pergolas/Trellis
- 3D Fluted Architectural Facades & Retaining Wall Surfaces
This is not new technology, it is only new to the US. Leading this category are NA & US members of the ThermoWood Association with over 30-years of expertise in thermal modification manufacturing/scalable capacity of commonly available, renewable wood species. Commercial & Industrial Lumber company, NORTHERN OHIO LUMBER & TIMBER, founded 1864, is the leading Great Lakes Region US Distributor & Milling Partner in the Thermally Modified Wood category..
OUTCOME:
AIA Accredited Leadership from NORTHERN OHIO LUMBER & TIMBER will review the process of thermal modification, its national impact on Parks & Recreation and all Outdoor Space Design & Specification, and high-heat dried TM wood’s technical insights, including detailed information about the product’s processes, specifications, uses/applications, pricing, and performance.
SCHEDULING CONTACT: Makinsie Evans, makinsie.evans@noltco.com, (216) 771-4080
2025 THERMALLY MODIFIED WOOD PRODUCT PARK INSTALLATIONS
Pathways/Decking
Ceiling/Wall Cladding
Fencing/Screening
Exterior Benches/Furniture
Parks & Recreation Gallery
Great Lakes & Ohio River Watershed Parks & Recreation
Department of Natural Resources, US Army Corp of Engineers
