Heads Up Celebrates Earth Day 2010 By Helping Build New Downtown Pocket Park
Heads Up pitched in as part of a partnership project with the Downtown Action Team (DAT) and Gordon Bernell Charter School on Earth Day to help construct a brand new pocket park in downtown Albuquerque. The park is scheduled to be completed mid May, 2010.
Frances Tinnin Park, located near the corner of 2nd Street & Gold Ave. is not a large space; as one of the 1881 New Mexico Town Company plats it is only 25’ wide by 140’ deep. This sliver of land on Gold Avenue has been vacant since the building was torn down in 2003, but on April 22nd, Earth Day, a group of volunteers, led by the Downtown Action Team, commenced construction on the newest park in Downtown Albuquerque since 1895.
Heads Up's role in the project was to provide landscaping services for the park, contributing
design services, equipment, labor, and plant material.
In July of 2009, Gordon Bernell Charter School (GBCS) opened its doors in Downtown Albuquerque and immediately reached out to the community, seeking new ways to educate and empower their student body. At the same time, DAT was looking for a partner on a community driven streetscape project. Using resources from the New Mexico MainStreet program, DAT coordinated a student led design studio, which included lectures, design review, participation in permitting, community presentations and implementation.
The park will ultimately feature free WiFi, trash cans, cigarette litter bins, solar powered lights and a beautiful xeriscape with two benches. Pocket Parks are a commonly used concept in urban areas to add green space. In this case, property owners Robert Tinnin and Nancy Milski leased the land to DAT for a term of 5 years, having no intention to develop the space before that time. DAT took the initiative to develop the pocket park with a design that takes into consideration that it may all one day be transferred to a new location, if Mr. Tinnin chooses to develop the land. Until that time comes, the park will be a beautiful placeholder that all the community can use and enjoy, and DAT will maintain and manage the park, with daily cleaning, watering, upkeep and programming. For both DAT and GBCS, resources are precious and ever more difficult to come by, therefore it was essential to leverage resources and recruit community partners. Over 20 organizations have already contributed to the effort, donating time, resources, materials, labor and design related services.
A dedication and ribbon cutting ceremony with the many park contributors will take place mid May; more information will be made available once construction is completed
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