by Janice Christensen
On August 20, the Riverwest Neighbor-hood Association (RNA) met at the Gordon Park Pavilion. The main item on the group’s agenda was a recap of Gordon Park’s first summer with Larry Kenny of the Milwaukee County Parks Department. Overall the park upgrades have been met with excellent response from the community. The Pavilion has been rented out far more often than projected, and attendance at the Splash Pad has been very high. A few problems were identified, and are being addressed by the Parks Department. Several of the harp lights have been vandalized and were replaced. A slight redesign of the approach to the splash pad is being considered, to discourage riding bikes through the area, and to help make sure children don’t go directly to the play equipment and climb on it while their feet are still wet and slippery. Other items included a presentation about a proposed new Family Health Center at North and Humboldt (article page 1), and designs for a new gas station on Holton and Burleigh (article page 19). The topic of forming a “Friends of Milwaukee River Parks” group was tabled for future discussion, and will be explored in the next few months by the Guardians of Green Space subcommittee. The next meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, Sept. 17 at 7 p.m. at the YMCA CDC office, 604 E. Center St. The main topic will be “Where Do We Go From Here?” given the distinct possibility that the RNA will lose the technical support of its community organizers due to Community Development Block Grant funding cuts in 2003. Riverwest Currents – Volume 1 – Issue 8 – September 2002
by Janice Christensen