____Need to Network more
____Need to market the park better
____Need to raise money to pay for things
____Use tools to get people into the park
____Develop a history of Hartford Parks
Only Park with Racquetball and Handball courts
Wish List:
____Clean Up dead and fallen trees
____Use computer room in Pond House to greatest potential
____Lock up gates at night; keep out those who dump illegally, drug people& such
____Improve water quality in Pond; get a system to flow/circulate water
____Basket ball Courts need repair
____Tennis Courts and racquet courts need repair and have been neglected
____Group who has played there for 30 years; they want to bring racquet and handball tournaments to Keney/Hartford
____Need Park Ranger/Police program in park
____Need a method to announce our programs, maybe a Marquee/Signs
____Clean up the underbrush to provide a clear view of park especially for the safety of children and women who want to walk in the park
____Capitalize on using the Pond House for education; we have computers.
____Clean up the Nature Trails so we an use for educational purposes
____Link programs with the two schools in area
____Develop a program for kids to help clean up and make them take ownership of park
____Facility is basically run down; we need a new center
Using this one temporarily, it is a tight space
____Needs new flooring and other renovations
____Needs to be cleaned up
____Needs better coordinating of programs
____Need to get the Youth involved and off the street
____Shortage of staff
____Use Youth for internships at center and create roles for them
Phase one of renovations: we removed roads through the park with great results
More parking available with new lots; before people parked along roads
Now have paths for bikes and walkers
Phase Two: New Play area
Are working with residents
Pool Hopping: installed 8 foot wrought iron fence this year
Zero kids getting into pool at nighttime
Still need security guards
Wish list
____Need to meet with the City more frequently
____Need to solve Drug problem in park areas
____Solve huge ATV problem (All Terrain Vehicle); Calls to police are useless
____Need Park Rangers or Park Police presence
____Need Restrooms open when events happen; often closed to public
____Need regular “wedding” and “mulching” parties
____Need to resolve the Union Issues vs. using volunteers to do work, which would not get done; not enough staff, but volunteers are willing
____Park administration: attend Friends meetings to hear problems first hand
(Police get to Block Watch meetings, why can’t park get to ours?)
____Bring Back Ice Skating in our parks: any park
Flood a soccer field in Pope or anywhere
We have tons of ice skates at Keney, not used any more
Cannot skate on ponds unless 9 inches of ice; not dependable
____Pope Park North: plans to clear out, increase visibility
Need special equipment for mowing this area
Youth groups use this area for sports and recreations
____Want to develop programs to reach further back to elementary school kids
____ Concession facility needs renovation and area needs to be cleaned up and maintained
____Basketball courts need repairs
____Parking is inadequate
____Paved walkways need repairs
Additional fences helped solve parking problem
Wish List:
____Fitness Trails have not been upgraded, signs missing, deteriorating
New Senior Center in area, this would be perfect for this group to use if repaired.
____Need signs of all types for park, the ones there are old.
____Entrance to Park needs to be renovated. We spend time and effort on this, and then there was not money for it.
____Proposal to dome the pool and we did not want it; money was pulled from our park for other projects
____Fix the Pond: Master plan from1995 targeted this as a project. A well was installed but still have problems. Can walk on the algae, it’s so thick
____Road is falling apart and eroding, this needs to be repaired
Pond House: met with council and DPW in past; the lighting does not work
It is dangerous at night and is safety issue
____Walkways need repair
____Need for Park Police on weekends which are very busy. The need for them was discussed in the past
____Park Rangers do not have police authority and will not be of use
____Investigate the DROP program from East Hartford Deferred Retirement Office Program. Negotiate with union and city: retired police officers who work for the park in the summers have full police authority, their hours worked are straight pay and do not go towards pension (which they already have as well as benefits); No monetary impact on the city, except hourly wage
____Close the roadways through the park: NO THRU TRAFFIC
People drive through at night to dump garbage
____With roads closed, the park will be better for bikes, walkers, and kids
____High Weeds areas need mowing
We are the new kids on the block!
Park has been neglected over the years
Broke ground for the renewal and renovation last spring for phase one
Phase two: will break ground next summer
Hartford Bike Tour stopped at our park last month
Wish List:
____Bring recreational programs back to the park
____Need programs for families and children
____Need police visibility in this park and all areas around it
____Want to make this park a focal place for the community
Batterson Park is a new group: Welcome!
There is an organization which wants to adopt Batterson Park
Huge attendance increase this summer
Over 10K on weekends and 14K for weekday summer programs
About 90% of visitors are from Hartford
Many family reunions held here, a good location for this
Bathrooms were fixed this year for phase one
People commented on the nice bathrooms
No problems in the park this year: no incidents; need to call police, no fights
Wish List:
____A new flagpole
____Buildings need repairs
____Basket Ball courts need repairs
____Grilles and picnic tables are old and need replacement
____Overall facility areas can be much better
No one from the Friends Group made it, so Al Ortiz, so Commissioner gave this report
Many of us have watched this park deteriorate over the years
Baseball teams could not ply because the fencing was curled up and torn, making it dangerous
If not ready for next summer, cannot play again
Important for kids to have a park in neighborhood
We will lose our kids if we do not have baseball
They will go play in other towns, such as Bristol
____Baseball fields: fencing and upgrading: Get ready for next spring
____Often the nightlights are on, and no one is playing on field: Big waste of money
____Need to meet with John Timm ASAP to begin to work on this and fix at least one field for next summer
ELIZABETH PARK
Overall park maintenance has been great this year
Wish List
____Large Maps (you are here maps)
____Historical point signs
____Several walkways need repair
____Tree replacement program
____Fountain in pond installed upside down: reinstall correctly
____More picnic tables
____Better drainage in picnic area, Oak Grove, and the rose garden
____Restrooms: keep open May-Sept; install time locks
____Clean on regular basis
____Stone Staircase on the Hartford side, by Sunrise Overlook, is covered with growth and needs to be cleaned up
____More benches needed on North side of Pond; we can get them but need okay from park dept, as they have to mow around them
Problems:
____Our park is too small for major public events, such as road races, charity walks, which close down the park; this is a botanical park
____Church Services at Stage by rose garden uses loud sound system; move them to another space in park, such as Western Loop, and NO sound system allowed
____Restrict the volume and number of church services; we get many complaints from the public who come to park for serenity and quiet
____Police are needed for enforcement of parking and traffic control, and for animal rescue
____Permit process needs improvement at city hall; we end up with complaints
Dave Peterson, president of Elizabeth Park, discussed the use of pesticides in our parks and the impact. Eventually, the pesticide management will go from the gardens and grass to the athletic fields where the children play.
Requested that the DPW investigate, write and implement an IPM (Integrated Pesticide Management) plan for the city, including the parks.
Elizabeth Park Rose garden has major spraying for 16,000 rose bushes.
Company we hire sprays about midnight, and needs to bring in lights and generator, because of people in the park at dawn
Possible to “close” the parks while spraying?