News Archive:

February 2001

Links to some of the articles listed below may function only for a limited time after the publication date.

DETROIT RIVERBANK: INDUSTRIAL OR PARKLAND?
February 26, 2001: A legal battle has developed near Detroit on the use of industrial waterfront land and its possible conversion to parkland. Reported in Detroit News.

REPORT RANKS CITIES ON SPRAWL
February 23, 2001:USA Today report ranks the nation's 271 metropolitan areas on levels of urban sprawl and analyzes population trends over the last decade.

TOO MUCH OF A GOOD THING?
February 23, 2001: Park lighting is all well and good, but neighbors of Dupont Circle in Washington, D.C. are questioning a move to floodlight the park at nighttime. Reported in the Washington Post.

PUBLIC/PRIVATE PARK DILEMMA
February 21, 2001: Residents of tony Grosse Point, Michigan must choose between opening their exclusive, gated parks to the public, or paying Michigan state property taxes on them. Reported in the Detroit News.

NATIONAL PARKS: THE NEXT GENERATION
The National Parks Conservation Association recently recommended ten new sites to be added to the National Park System. Reported in NPCA Magazine.

REVERSE LAND RECLAMATION
February 15, 2001: A neighborhood park in Evansville, Indiana, has slowly been transformed into a city dump. Reported in the Evansville Courier-Press.

ACCESSING PARKS SAFELY
February 12, 2001: A child's death near a community park has sparked motions to improve traffic safety surrounding the park - and build a skatepark inside it. Reported in the St. Petersburg Press.

ON TOP OF THE WORLD IN THE HEART OF LOS ANGELES
February 11, 2001: The Kenneth Hahn State Recreation Area, some of which is still being converted from former oil-drilling sites, is one of the city's best-kept secrets; it includes Olympic Forest with a half-dozen ecological habitats. Reported in the L.A. Times.

BIG WIN FOR PARKLAND PRESERVATION
February 9, 2001: Plans to build proposed 23-acre, $680 million water-treatment plant in a Bronx park have been halted by New York's Supreme Court - bringing cheers from a range of politicians, legislators and community groups. Reported in the New York Times (requires registration).

MORE SENIOR PROGRAMS IN ST PAUL
February 5, 2001: Responding to a growing - and increasingly active - senior population, St. Paul's Parks and Recreation Division has moved to diversify its programs beyond the traditional card games, darts and bowling. Reported in the St. Paul Pioneer Press.

PARTS OF PARK SOLD IN LINCOLN
February 4, 2001: Neighbors in Lincoln, NE, were recently taken by surprise with city plans to sell parts of their community's park. Read more in the Lincoln Journal Star.

SETTING ASIDE LAND IN S.E. WISCONSIN
February 4, 2001: The Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission recommends that nearly 19% of the land in Ozaukee County should be protected from development by 2020 - and set aside for recreation or the preservation of natural areas and wildlife habitat. Reported in the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinal.

WHEN DOES PARK DEVELOPMENT BECOME URBAN DEVELOPMENT?
February 3, 2001: As the debate continues over a proposed park in downtown Portland, Oregon, a new design indicates the issues are shifting from parks to the future of downtown retail. Reported in the Oregonian.

PAYING FOR PARK UPGRADES
February 2, 2001: Plans are in place for a $6 million rehab of East Palo Alto's two down-at-the-heels neighborhood parks - now the city just needs to find a way to pay for them. Reported in the Mercury News.