Promoting Safe Community Spaces

Cooper Park has really become a communal respite in the last year. We are daily visitors to the park because we are one of the many residences that include a dog. Very often our dog Cody runs into his good friends Sam & Tess, Joshua or the newest edition in the doggy neighborhood, Noah. Barney, Daisy, and Bubba are also frequenters of the park, with their owners in tow. Because we appreciate its beauty and value our community spaces, us dog owners are diligent about picking up after our dogs and also utilize the frequent walks to ensure that trash and litter is properly disposed of.

It’s not just dog owners using the park either – a few weeks ago we were there as part of the Downtown Dayton Walking Tour and were serenaded by a young lady playing the oboe.  A few days later I watched a group of young men playing hacky sak.  Our neighbors were sunbathing on a recent afternoon and a group from the Cannery was playing Frisbee.  Quite often you see school aged children from the Richard Alan School playing kickball.

There are a few gentlemen that sit near the playground every day and watch closely as I make my way through the park with Cody, smiling and waving and greeting me warmly.  I have always assumed they were homeless, because they are staples in the park no matter what time of day, but it didn’t really matter much because they are part of the community and are always friendly and pleasant.  I actually feel better seeing these familiar faces in the park each day.

Last Thursday I walked over to the park with Cody, and as I looked up from crossing Second Street, I saw a stranger relieving himself on a tree in the middle of the park.  I was dismayed and appalled.  I was also a bit deflated because we have come a long way in making the park a place where our community feels comfortable over the last year – and that scene did not make me feel safe or comfortable in the least.  I immediately thought of my child (to be born in August) and how I would react as a mother if she were witness to that scene.  Luckily there were no children at the park at the time.  My feeling of safety and confidence started to wilt – he was not a frequent visitor and he obviously had no regard for the other park visitors.  The man began walking toward the entrance of the library, and to my further dismay I saw that he wasn’t actually making his way to the library, he was going to the table set up nearby to feed the impoverished.

The first thing I saw was a man making the park his public restroom.  The next thing I saw was a large gathering of people receiving food handouts.  If you recall the news stories from last year, there was a substantial controversy between residents and sponsoring churches about the feedings in Cooper Park.  The result was the passage of an ordinance to require the rental of a portable restroom to accommodate large groups of people that are organized in the park.  The ordinance is clearly being ignored and resulted in this man’s rude and inappropriate behavior.

We really value our park and want to keep it a place where those from the community feel comfortable.  City living relies heavily on making the most of our communal outdoor spaces.  I want to protect the spaces that make up our neighborhood and help develop a thriving community.  Whenever I see the ordinance being broken and destructive behavior in the park, I plan to call the non-emergency number for the police, 333-COPS.  I know that a lot of residents also read this blog – if you feel the same way I do, please make the decision to promote law abiding behavior in the parks and make the call if you too see destructive behavior.

Comments

[Leslie]

Good comments! I feel the same way as you, and I hope too that others in the neighborhood share the same view.