Barker park meeting
The next public meeting for the proposed Barker property park near Franklin Park subdivision is tonight (Monday), 6:15-7:30pm, at Hazell Dell Elementary School.
I did a google map search to show the area.
Since I missed the first meeting I'll have some questions about how this impacts the possibility of a future entrance into the subdivision from the South or East. There's only one road in and out of the area and it will become increasingly congested since more commercial development is planned nearby around the new 6th Street Walmart. I suspect my neighbors will have mixed feelings about that.
I'd like the park to serve as a place for neighborhood and family gatherings. It's an excellent opportunity for a neighborhood that currently has no public spaces. I'd be excited to see a pavilion or gazebo that could serve as a stage for small neighborhood concerts or community festivals. It could be situated away from homes and given a natural sound barrier to minimize any potential nuisance to neighbors. That's another idea that would probably get lively debate from my neighbors.
Currently, there's no bike path that connects the neighborhood with the trails around UIS. I'm hoping that the park design will at least leave open the possibility of a future connection to those trails so that cyclists no longer have to risk riding down narrow roads with no shoulder.
Despite the SJR article, I don't believe most people in the neighborhood want to stay inside all day and lock their doors to keep the "outsiders" away. I'm not sure if anyone from the neighborhood actually reads my blog but I'll write again after tonight's meeting.