Photo courtesy of Rachel Bradshaw
As part of their regular and ongoing efforts to clean-up parks in the Northwest Bronx, and generally to promote a strong community spirit, Friends of Devoe Park (FoDP), along with some members of Northwest Bronx Democrats for Change, gathered, once again, on Saturday, Nov. 7, to take part in a crocus bulb-planting and clean-up event.
This week, they were joined by a representative of Partnership for Parks, a public-private program that, according to their social media page, supports and champions a growing network of leaders who care and advocate for neighborhood parks and green spaces.
The program equips people, organizations and government with the skills and tools they need to transform their green spaces into dynamic community assets.
The initiative began in 1995 for two reasons. First, representatives were responding to decades of cuts in funding for New York City parks, and they believed that there was a large, untapped parks constituency that could be identified and encouraged to speak up to secure adequate public support for parks.
Photo courtesy of Rachel Bradshaw
Second, they saw striking results from the initial citizen-led efforts to transform parks, which involved groups which ranged from a tiny block association in Hell’s Kitchen to the Central Park Conservancy. This convinced them that local constituencies needed to be formed all across the city and strengthened for every park.
Since 1995, the program has connected dedicated community groups to over half of New York City’s 1,700 park properties, building a higher level of civic involvement in city government. Partnerships for Parks envisions parks as spaces where community members and decision makers work together to create their city.
A signature project of Partnerships for Parks is the Catalyst program, which exists “to build community participation and pride, and to connect people, ideas and efforts in order to develop shared goals, and sustain local leadership and green space stewardship.”
Pilar Maschi is a Catalyst organizer with Partnership for Parks. “For several months now, Friends of Devoe Park has been determined to not let their Devoe Park get taken over by illegal dumping,” Maschi said in relation to Saturday’s event. “They clean their park diligently every Saturday. If you live by the area, please show some love for Devoe Park and support FoDP in their campaign!!”
Photo courtesy of Rachel Bradshaw
Maschi was also heavily involved in the planning efforts for the revitalization and beautification of the historic Aqueduct Walk, which stretches from West Tremont Avenue to Kingsbridge Road and Aqueduct Avenue, as previously reported by Norwood News.
Also present at Saturday’s Devoe Park event was Assemblyman José Rivera, who used the occasion to hand out masks to community members, highlighting, once again, the need to remain vigilant regarding community transmission of the coronavirus. Gov. Andrew Cuomo said, during a teleconference on Nov. 11, that some areas of the Bronx (Concourse / Highbridge ) had the third highest transmission rates in the City, after Staten Island and some parts of Queens.
According to city health department data, there are currently a total of 41 ZIP codes that have positivity rates above 2 percent, which is seen as a threshold point for dangerous levels of infection. An additional seven ZIP codes have positivity rates above 1.9 percent. The neighborhood with the highest rate is Tottenville on Staten Island, with a rate of 6.57 percent, followed by Richmond Hill in Queens with a rate of 4.43 percent, and Concourse/Highbridge in the Bronx with a rate of 4.08 percent.
Meanwhile, Rachel Bradshaw, president of Northwest Bronx Democrats for Change and a member of Friends of Devoe Park, was pleased with the event turn-out and the beautiful weather on the day.
“Friends of Devoe Park has truly been like its slogan, which says, ‘Devoted to Devoe Park’,” said Bradshaw. “Despite the neighborhood’s density, we believe that by trying our best to assist in maintaining the park, it will keep it clean.” She added, “Our dedication will also encourage many more neighborhood residents to do all they can to keep their green space clean.”
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Welcome to the Norwood News, a bi-weekly community newspaper that primarily serves the northwest Bronx communities of Norwood, Bedford Park, Fordham and University Heights. Through our Breaking Bronx blog, we focus on news and information for those neighborhoods, but aim to cover as much Bronx-related news as possible. Founded in 1988 by Mosholu Preservation Corporation, a not-for-profit affiliate of Montefiore Medical Center, the Norwood News began as a monthly and grew to a bi-weekly in 1994. In September 2003 the paper expanded to cover University Heights and now covers all the neighborhoods of Community District 7. The Norwood News exists to foster communication among citizens and organizations and to be a tool for neighborhood development efforts. The Norwood News runs the Bronx Youth Journalism Heard, a journalism training program for Bronx high school students. As you navigate this website, please let us know if you discover any glitches or if you have any suggestions. We’d love to hear from you. You can send e-mails to norwoodnews@norwoodnews.org or call us anytime (718) 324-4998.
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Great to read about a group effort to enhance a community jewel during the pandemic.
Why is it up to the residents to clean up the park and prevent illegal dumping? We pay taxes, so where are NYC Parks services? Where is Sanitation? And where is NYPD?