Town meeting will be held to discuss the future of city parks

By Ian Perrotta
Review Staffwriter
Spring is in the air, and parks are on the mind.
At least that’s the way it seems after parks have been the topic of two recent meetings in Hamtramck.
During the last Civic Engagement Initiative meeting the overwhelming sentiment was that there is a need for more parks in the city, and that a meeting should be held to discuss how do make that a reality. And at February’s meeting of the Recreation Commission, the governing body was asked to provide their input into the city’s new Master Plan.
The result of the latter meeting was the decision to hold a special forum before the March meeting of the Recreation Commission to specifically discuss parks and how to incorporate them into the new Master Plan. The meeting will be held at 5:00 p.m. on March 24 in the lower level of the Community Center, with the regular meeting starting at 6:00 p.m.
It will be an opportunity for residents to voice their opinions regarding anything park-related. This includes everything from ideas on where parks should be placed and how they may impact a neighborhood to concerns over how to make them successful.
The meeting will also offer a chance to discuss a recent proposal to reuse playground equipment from closed-down schools in Detroit. Suggested by commission member and City Councilman Tom Jankowski, the idea was discussed at the February commission meeting by Recreation Department Supervisor Craig Daniels, who said that several playscapes were already being considered for use.
According to Daniels, the playscapes that he looked at were going to be demolished by the schools they were located at and could essentially be obtained for the cost of removal and installation. He said that after visiting seven or eight schools searching for equipment suitable for the 2-5 age group, there were a few that had some potential.
“Two or three of them got me really excited,” he said.