Hudson now has FOPS (Friends of the Public Square) doing planning and fundraising for improvements to Seventh Street Park. As Gossips announced earlier this week, the group is planning an in-person Community Engagement Workshop for Friday, February 18, at 6 p.m., at the Hudson Area Library, 51 North Fifth Street. Seventh Street Park, first known as the Public Square, is one of Hudson's oldest parks. The land on which the park is situated was donated to the City for that purpose in 1800.
What follows is the text of the notice distributed by The Spark of Hudson:
Last fall, The Spark of Hudson was approached by the City of Hudson Mayoral Office, Fourth Ward Alderman Malachi Walker & the City of Hudson Youth Commissioner Maja Reed on supporting improvements to Charles Williams Park in Hudson, NY. Excited about the prospects of improvements we've begun collaborating with Landscape designers Lucy McFadden & Scott Shinton on preliminary conversations and schematics.
Lucy McFadden and Scott Shinton have a wide range of experience designing landscapes with communities. Lucy is the founder and principal of Catalog Landscape Studio, a landscape practice focused on constructing specific, ecologically minded, and socially engaging landscapes. Scott was most recently a designer and project manager for Kounkuey Design Initiative, a nonprofit that partners with communities to address inequities through public park advocacy. Both received a Master of Landscape Architecture from the University of Virginia.
The purpose of this public/private partnership with the City of Hudson is to enhance Charles Williams Park to support the community of Hudson while linking together the park system. We want this process to be as collaborative as possible and for the community to take the lead in dictating the design of the park. We want to hear from YOU on what you envision for the park! We will be co-hosting the first of many community conversations with the City of Hudson on Tuesday, February 22, at 5 p.m.
The community conversation will take place on Zoom. The link to the Zoom meeting can be found here.
For the sake of history, this was the original plan for the park, and although $250,000 and probably more was spent, very little of the original plan for the park was actually realized.
That neglected park has some serious water drainage issues. Before making any plans, better speak with Rob Perry because something is not right. It is often, even well after rain, a soggy mess near the gazebo and play area. No matter the physical improvements, no one will want to use the park if this is not taken care of first. B Huston
ReplyDeleteWant to see this terribly underutilized park become a real asset? Restore the long gone staircase that once brought students from the Charles Williams School to the fields below. Connecting the park and the trails below from the dead end of North 3rd St would do more for the park and the green space deprived 2nd and 4th Wards than any other single improvement to the park itself.
ReplyDeleteI really like that idea and sounds doable. Lot of untapped skill and talent in this town.
DeleteIt was a blow to the 2nd and 4th ward when the
land that the Community Garden was on was sold by the City.
Lot of concrete around here.