Northeastern region - Regional Reports

Parks & Recreation, Sept, 2002

In July, local officials, community leaders and park supporters participated in rededication ceremonies for the 21st Century Park Program, which is supported by NRPA and the Americans for Our Heritage and Recreation. Ceremonies were held at Worcester Common, in Worcester, Mass., and South Williamsport Borough Park, in Williamsport, Pa.

Recreation agencies in Delaware will receive the proceeds from the Delaware Recreation and Parks Society's 4th Annual C.R.A.B. (Come Ride Around the Bay) that will be held on Oct. 13. The event not only is a fun way to being cyclists and naturalists together to enjoy the benefits of recreation, but it also brings Delaware agencies together with a common goal of promoting parks and recreation and garnering support for programs.

Greenwich (Conn.) Safe Cycling has acquired 45 bike racks and will be installing them around town to ease traffic congestion and make the community more livable. Each U-shaped rack costs about $100 and can secure two bikes. The group bought more than half of the racks, and the rest were funded from the sale of train station parking permits. Working together, city governments and nonprofit groups made a difference.

After 25 years of making Boston a greener, more livable city, the nonprofit Boston Natural Areas Fund has adjusted its name to reflect its focus on special urban places as well as the importance of people and partnerships to its work. In addition to the name change, the Boston Natural Areas Network (BNAN) has expanded by joining forces with Garden Futures, the foremost community gardening support organization in Boston. In the spring issue of BNAN's newsletter, Urban & Green, President Valerie Burns says the partnership "enhances our capacity to expand the culture of environmental stewardship for community gardens, greenways and urban wilds." To celebrate its 25th anniversary and new name, BNAN will hold 50 free events in Boston's parks and natural areas this year. To learn more about BNAN and its anniversary special events, go to www.BostonNatural.org.

This summer, NRPA's partner, US Tennis Association, visited parks throughout the five boroughs of New York City to promote and develop the growth of tennis. The program culminated at Prospect Park Tennis Center in Brooklyn and Juniper Valley Park in Queens. The staff of the USTA National Tennis Center held carnival-like clinics, and talked to kids about Arthur Ashe Kids' Day and the US Open. Tennis-themed T-shirts were given out on a first-come, first-served basis.

The country's first urban Audubon Center has opened in Brooklyn's Prospect Park, signaling a new direction for Audubon and environmental education. The ribbon-cutting ceremony, which attracted such luminaries as Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) and New York City Parks Commissioner Adrian Benepe, marked an important milestone in Audubon's campaign to create 1,000 nature centers in the U.S. by 2020. A cooperative project of the Prospect Park Alliance and Audubon New York, the center features exhibits and activities, such as a human-scale oriole's nest, that serve as a starting point for environmental education programs on the park's nature trails. Local teachers helped design the exhibits, which means that many of them can be integrated into local school curricula. To learn more about Audubon's urban goals, go to http://ny.audubon. org.