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Hyde Park neighbors raising funds to turn fenced-off vacant lot that used to be a park back into a park
By adamg on Mon, 06/04/2018 - 10:23am
Humans of Hyde Park interview Arielle Spivey and Lawrence Wyche, who have been leading an effort with the Southwest Community Development Corp. to transform
the fenced-off field of weeds and concrete on River Street across from Rosa Street back into the park it once was. Any funds they raise for the first phase of the project - to clean up the one-acre space and put in new plantings and a mural - will be matched by Mass. Development.
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Comments
Why did the city or state convert it from the original park
to its current use?
Sounds like the playground was in bad shape
And rather than put in a new playset, DCR just ripped the whole thing up, put a chain-link fence around it and said au revoir, only with no intentions of revoiring.
And this is what they do
The city starves things like the parks department because they know that residents will raise funds for things like this. Then they use our tax dollars for more politically expedient endeavors.
Can't blame the city for this one
The land's owned by DCR. Same principle in action, perhaps - DCR has never much liked the small little playgrounds it somehow got stuck with - but blame where blame is due.
The surprising part
The land is still empty and not a parking lot.
A playground?
They might have to put in those horrifying croswalk thingies if they replaced the playground!
Department of Cars and Roads doesn't like that!
Hate to interfere with one's preconcieved notions
But there already is a crosswalk at the entrance to where the playground was/will be (hopefully.)
And the road is a city road, much like River Street on the other side of Mattapan Square where the DCR recently opened a trail with an entrance by the crosswalk at Fremont Street.
Reform the DCR
It's mind boggling that this balkanization of public spaces is so common in the city. See also, BPD not being the patrol force for major thoroughfares through the city. They want to run rinks, larger parks, places like Nantasket- great! But so much of their inventory should be absorbed by city/town parks dept. for local control.
Fair enough
City's off the hook for this one. But it goes for the state too. And the Feds - national parks always seem one of the first things to take the brunt of cuts.
This^
The DCR budget has been cut annually for at least the past 10 years and they have lost many of their most senior experienced staff. Advocate for them to have the budget they need to do their job.
First government cuts back on park support, often the next cuts come to libraries. Do let your representatives on the city, state, and federal levels, know your concerns.
further up the river / River Street...
...at Kennedy Playground / Kennedy Gardens, the community gardens were originally built in 1997 using City-funded labor... part of a special summer jobs program run by the Streetworker Program, Parks Department (summer youth jobs used to be under Parks) and CBO's, a job program that served young adults who were in the mix of street violence. Some community members had been organizing to redo the park, which was another abandoned DCR property - it was their concept but the City was able to provide a jump start. We (Streetworkers from the City and Ella J. Baker House) were already working with neighborhood youth so this was a great way to plug them in and keep the occupied rather than beefing with their neighbors further down River Street.
Google Street View
I run by there all the time,
I run by there all the time, and I had no idea that it was supposed to be a park.