Cover Story

Building Park-nerships

Wendy Nilsson continues to champion East Side green spaces

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There is one unerring truth about life on the East Side: residents care about living here. Properties are manicured and kept clean, and the neighborhoods at night are quiet and undisturbed. But as summertime emerges and the weather calls for more time spent in the sun, it’s the parks and green spaces that reflect the efforts of our active communities.

There are more than 20 public green spaces on the East Side, many of which host a wide array of activities, from concerts to parkour classes. It’s typical to assume these places are so active and cared for because, well, they’re on the East Side – higher incomes plus higher taxes equals higher quality parks. Makes sense, right?

Yet the outcomes require more than simple arithmetic. What makes these green spaces special are the collaborative partnerships between its residents and City agencies. The philosophy is simple: if you want your neighborhood park to be something more than just clean and safe, you need to get your hands dirty and make it happen. Over the past decade, numerous associations have formed to provide input and encourage community support. These “Friends” groups now serve many parks within the East Side and beyond.

The Parks + Recreation Department (PRD) has been working in tandem with these groups to create more dynamic outdoor spaces. They provide basic services to keep the parks clean, safe and working properly. The Friends groups help to customize these places with neighborhood activities and involvement.

In 2012, the Partnership of Providence Parks (PPP) was formed to provide resources and facilitate stronger relationships between Friends groups, nonprofits, community leaders and the PRD. This partnership has transformed neighborhood parks to reflect the identies of their respective communities and function as multi-use spaces for all. It was also the brainchild of the newly appointed Superintendent of the PRD, Wendy Nilsson. We met up with Wendy at Brown Street Park – the place where her journey began.

The Very First Park Project

Back in 2006, Brown Street Park was not a beautiful sight. Much of the land was overcrowded with piles of dirt and unkempt grass. “I used to walk by [Brown Street Park] with my husband and he would say, ‘We should do something about this place,’” Nilsson says. “Eventually, the other neighbors and I just decided to do it. It was a group effort.”

What emerged was the Friends of Brown Street Park, a non-profit organization formed to engage the surrounding communities and ask for input on what should be done with the space. They held a series of neighborhood meetings that included the apartment complexes of University Heights and the students at Hope High School. “It became evident that this was a park on the corner of some very distinct neighborhoods with very distinct needs. We needed to include all of those voices,” she says.

The original plan was to advocate for a piece of equipment that would provide a centerpiece for children to play on with all the bells and whistles included. The Friends of Brown Street contacted the PRD to help organize a plan of action and started asking around the city for resources and donations. “Through this partnership I realized a lot about community engagement, park design, how green spaces really work and what the potential is. [I also realized] how important free, unstructured play is for children,” she explains.

Inevitably, Nilsson and the Friends group decided what their community needed was a multi-use space that people of all ages could access: a space that didn’t dictate how children would play, but left it up to their imaginations; a place where older kids had room to start up a kick ball game; and a place where adults could actually have a conversation.

They teamed up with East Side community leaders like Brown University and RISD to help design playground equipment at a low cost. According to Nilsson, “It cost a lot of time in asking people for support and donations. But overall, if you were to tally up the bill, it would look like $300,000 of renovations went on here, but in reality the cash cost was only about $15,000.”

The result of partnering with the PRD and local institutions was so successful, the Friends of Brown Street began conducting informal consultations with people around the city who wanted similar outcomes. It became clear, Nilsson explained, that not every community in the city had neighbors that were able to put in the time commitment, but they still wanted to have a role in bettering their parks. “The PPP was started to do just that – to provide a tool box for people throughout the city [where] they could have a say and a role in how their parks are developed and programmed,” she says.

Building New Park-nerships

In 2012, nearly four years after Nilsson helped start the Friends of Brown Street Park and transform their green space, she founded the Partnership for Providence Parks (PPP) to assist other communities within the city. Since its inception, PPP has helped form numerous Friends groups on the East Side and cultivated a working partnership with the PRD. “I think we really complemented what [the PRD] was doing and got everybody ready to interface and think creatively about how we use our open spaces – about play and fitness programs; about the arts; about how we conserve resources and our natural environment,” says Nilsson.

 We got in touch with several community leaders and Friends groups’ volunteers to ask their opinions on how city-wide teamwork impacts green spaces, what kinds of challenges are being faced and why community involvement is so important to maintaining healthy, unique and dynamic parks. Here’s what they had to say:

Albert Dahlberg, Friends of Paterson Park: “Paterson Park is unique for its beauty and utility. Maintaining the field and basketball courts in good condition is a challenge, [but] the key is collaboration with the PRD, the PPP, neighbors, volunteer groups and leaders like Wendy Nilsson, who has done so much.”

Diana Jackson, Friends of the Wild Place: “[Community involvement] is important because it builds awareness of the need for nature in the city. Olmsted knew this and created Central Park. People are starved for nature. When they experience it, they become more peaceful.”

Erin Casey, Friends of Gladys Potter Park: “When I moved to Providence three years ago, I started bringing my son [to Gladys Potter] regularly, and now it’s my family’s backyard.  When I found out there was a Friends group, I got in touch with one of the Providence Parks board members to find out how I could get involved. It’s a special hidden gem.”

John Rousseau, Fox Point Neighborhood Association: “The extension of the Blackstone Bikeway and the Gano Park boat launch are the result of such collaborations. Unfortunately, getting other members to volunteer to participate has kept our success with the PPP rather limited. Our board has dwindled to four members, who get overwhelmed in various projects, making it difficult to give the parks the help they really need.”

Jane Peterson, Blackstone Parks Conservancy: “PPP, in addition to bringing a host of resources to our parks and others, has done something wonderful by building team spirit among all the parks. The physical resources – press attention, grants, materials – are important. But the importance of that spirit should not be underestimated.” Rick Richards, River Road Restoration Project: “The PPP is instrumental in getting events into parks. They provide resources for performers and coordinate with local groups – in a way, they get ‘software’ into parks. The PRD keeps green spaces clean and neat – they collect trash, mow grass, prune trees and shrubs, and put in plantings. They take care of the ‘hardware.’”

Samuel Bell, Waterman Street Dog Park: “This park will give dogs a place to run off leash – something other parks don’t provide. The City did ask for a community contribution of $25,000 to build the fence, and the Dog Park Association is more than 80% of the way towards that goal thanks to a flood of donations from neighbors, businesses and community institutions.”

Sara Bradford, College Hill Neighborhood Association: “Prospect Terrace is a landmark site known to have ‘one of the finest views of the city,’ but one which could use a little – or a lot of – TLC. The College Hill Neighborhood Association is now working with the PRD in a public–private partnership improvement project to restore the luster to this park used by neighbors, tourists, local students and others, but beloved by all of Providence.

What it Takes to be the Superintendent

After a decade-long journey of building community awareness and facilitating partnerships for green spaces throughout Providence, Nilsson found herself in a position she would have never fathomed to be in: the Superintendent of the PRD. From what started as being a concerned neighbor about a neglected park down the street has now landed her at the highest possible notch in the totem pole – and all the responsibilities that go with it. “Looking back, it was a very natural path for me,” Nilsson says. “[It] combined my commitment to the community, advocacy work and love for the arts and fitness. In some ways, it’s an accidental career. In other ways, I feel like I was really meant to do this.”

Being Superintendent requires Nilsson to answer the concerns and complaints of Providence citizens, as well as the community organizations she’s built strong relationships with. Yet better than anyone, the new Superintendent understands what it takes to create something from nothing, and transform green spaces in Providence into inspiring and healthy refuges. “Partnership is the only way,” Nilsson says.

One thing that remains the same is Nilsson’s advocacy for involvement. No matter who is Superintendent of the PRD, the green spaces throughout the East Side and beyond can only be kept in good standing by active residents. “The PRD can do bare bones stuff. They can do general maintenance, make our parks safe, mow the lawns,” she says. “But to really make a park special, we need input from the community.” Only a small amount of effort once a week or even once a month can make a dramatic change.

Forming a Friends group isn’t difficult. Quite a few were started by neighbors sitting around a table discussing how to keep the sandbox clean, organizing trash pick-ups or wanting to plan a community event. Whatever the cause for involvement, everyone will benefit from a helping hand. “One thing about stewardship is thinking about the long run,” Nilsson explains. “Your park can be an asset to your neighborhood, it can be an asset to your property value and your community.”

Passing Parks on to the Next Generation

The PPP has gone on to build relationships with East Side schools and institutions, seeking to help integrate city kids with nearby green spaces. In May, the Wheeler School celebrated its annual Founder’s Day of Service by visiting 17 city parks, most of which were on the East Side, to plant flowers and learn about environmental conservation. The French American School, which uses Brassil Park for their recesses, also helps to mulch flowerbeds and inform PPP and the PRD when things are broken or need further cleaning. PPP also has a Conservancy and Education Coordinator, April Alix, who works with local schools to utilize green spaces as classrooms in alignment with their core curriculums.

This summer, PPP will be introducing their youth initiative, Playcore, to Billy Taylor Park on the East Side. The program was put into action last year to support the free lunches many Providence parks offer to youths under 19 years of age. The number of participants during lunch hours were running consistently low, so they decided to integrate this program which trained adults to facilitate play in open environments. The idea is that kids can come to the parks on their own and somebody will be there to help them build forts, create games and provide materials. “A lot of our kids are over-programed in sports or at camps where their days are pretty much figured out for them,” she explains. “[Playcore] is helping kids to play freely so their bodies and brains can develop the way they need to.”

Since being introduced last year, Playcore has had a dramatic effect on the amount of participation during summer lunch hours. “We saw some of our lunch numbers go up 200 or 300 percent because of Playcore,” Nilsson beams. “So we’re excited to bring one to Billy Taylor Park this year.”

“The neat thing about parks is that no matter how rich you are, how poor you are or what you look like, it’s common ground for everybody. You don’t pay an admission fee, you just come and enjoy it together as a community,” she says. “I think the East Side parks are unique because they represent who lives here, what they want, what they need and what they advocate for.”

Have a question about park upkeep, safety or equipment?
Parks and Recreation Department
1000 Elmwood Avenue, Providence
785-9450, 

Want to get involved with your neighborhood park?
Partnership of Providence Parks
11 West Drive, Providence

Wendy Nilsson, Providence Parks and Recreation, partnership of providence parks, Albert Dahlberg, Friends of Paterson Park, Diana Jackson, Friends of the Wild Place, Erin Casey, Friends of Gladys Potter Park, John Rousseau, Fox Point Neighborhood Association, Jane Peterson, Blackstone Parks Conservancy, Samuel Bell, Waterman Street Dog Park, Sara Bradford, College Hill Neighborhood Association, east side monthly, nicolas staab, mike braca, Partnership of Providence Parks

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