North Gate Park Volunteer Activity

We've been working for about six years to clean up and improve North Gate Park, and take it back from the neglect and abuse it had suffered over the years.



From left to right, this is myself and three neighborhood activists. I forgot to ask if they minded me publishing their names, so they're not named. If you're a neighborhood activist, a commercial property manager, or community-services police officer in the Aspen Hill area (King Sector, Fourth District), you already know who they are.

We are discussing our plans for yet-another volunteer clean-and-trim session.

Here's the playground the Parks people were nice enough to add after we (and others) at the Mid-County Neighborhood Initiative Community Policing Workgroup agitated. It's pretty nice, and it has no graffiti! We have to pause and thank all of the neighbors to the park, and also Kathy Paunil from the Graffiti Abatement Partners. Thanks to other volunteers, including myself -- we all come out and tackle things as a fairly large team effort -- when the summer leaves come out, you'll still be able to see all through the woods around the playground's immediate area; we trimmed everything so that nothing could use the cover of leaves to sneak up on unsuspecting parents or children.



The last time we had a huge group of volunteers come out from Marriott Corporation, they did a fantastic job of cleaning out scrub, low-hanging branches, etc. Here's a look at a part of that, even a year later, it looks great.



This is to give you an example of how we have been leveraging volunteer activity with community activism that works where it lives, identifying problems that can legitimately be dealt with by a wide variety of low-cost/no-cost approaches.

See this weed-clogged tree, below?



Once we remove the invasive vines, you'll be able to see from one side of the park to the other. Behind the screening vines is the playground. If you were a parent, you could feel comfortable walking around the park and getting some exercise, and still keep an eye on your kids in the playground.

Do you have any suggestions on how to improve this park? Do you want to improve the park in your own neighborhood? We're happy to share lessons learned, and to put you in touch with all of the same people we've been so please to work with over the years to get such constant improvements.

Due to budgetary restrictions, we have always worked the low-cost/no-cost angle as much as possible. You'd be surprised at how much you can do, if only you are patient and never stop working at it. It can take a decade, and very little cash investment, to produce completely satisfactory results. We are six years into this, and expect it to be a showcase in four more years. After that, rather small amounts of completely constant and consistent maintenance will keep everything in good order, a place for kids of all ages, with a soccer field and basketball court for teens and young adults, walking for the older adults and elders, and a lot of natural native Maryland vegetation and a recovering ecosystem to help bring a touch of nature into an aging core suburb.