Community Charette Small Group notes:
Q: What do you use?
A: The Pavillion. But everyone uses the pavilion.
Admire the pool.
Walk along the dike.
Q: What would you like?
· Modernize playground
· Sand volleyball court
· Move skateboard park
· Need more picnic areas!
· Need more trails!
· More flowers too! (along trails?)
· Concerns:
o Skateboarders destroy things
o Want return to old school
· Want more walking paths, formalizing park, bringing it back to 1870s
o Reason: Neighboring historic district
o There used to be a summer restaurant that was open for snacks
o Suggest closing road in back of the park and having a bicycle path instead
· Kids often use corner of park by Post St
· Fine with interesting accessories to park as long as not too wild (like butterfly chair as accent piece but wrought iron not colorful)
· Bring back the old ferry that used to run bringing people across the river
o This could be a theme for the park?
Q: What of the current parts of the park should be kept?
A:
· Pool – art deco style if nothing else. At the very least --- just like what we were thinking!
· Park split into two parts (actually works very well. Natural split.) – not sure they realized that there were other options to make it feel natural to be connected
o They thought it would be cool if lots of different themes, but blended together)
Q: Anything keeping you from using the park?
A: Not really.
In preference survey:
What didn’t you like?
· Modern things
· “overly fancy gadgets” Translation: plain and simple
What did you like?
· Liked Splash parks with curvy walls
o Multi-functional and appeal for multiple ages, not so specialized for kids. Teens and young adults could use it too and wouldn’t feel silly
· Arch gate with the stone bottom and wrought iron on top (one like McKinnon Park) – classy, historic looking… put up at intersection by Catherine St. Other entrance by X-press mart and at the corner by the school. Those are the access points.
· Other concerns (from my time standing by the posters)
o Is it affordable?
o Can you see it being placed in Brand Park?
o Colorful…kid friendly (some people felt this way)
o Others: Is it multi-purpose and can be used by a wide variety of users (the more modern splash park and the National Park fountain)
o Skate Board Park natural one…flowers and some thought side walk was a stream… bring the stream back into the park. Try to reconnect with the river. Bring it into the park again.
How do you get to the park?
· Everyone drives
· One person walked
· One person biked sometimes
They consider Brand Park one of the town’s biggest kept secrets
There’s a major parking problem
o Tried having farmer’s market there once but totally failed because lacked parking
o B/c lack parking and interest…ppl in neighboring office buildings drive all the way to McKinnon Park to have lunch even though right next to Brand Park!
o Provide seating areas and “rooms” for them so can use it for lunch breaks