Safety Patrols in the Park
While those of us who are in Franklin Park every day or every week KNOW the park is safe, it still suffers from decades-old negative perceptions around safety. I hear people who live a block away from the park say they would never go there - and people from Newton say, "Isn't that where all the bodies are dumped?" The media helps locate crime scenes by stating their proximity to Franklin Park. How do we turn the negative perceptions around?
The park does suffer from what the police call "quality of life crimes" that are not a threat to anyone but mean added trash or unsavoriness in the park. Roaring motor bikes, some drug use, a drinking party, or the occasional smell of pot impact our experience of the park and may chase people away.
The Franklin Park Coalition has advocated for more Park Ranger patrols in Franklin Park - a rider in uniform on horseback is a great deterent to quality of life crimes and makes people using the park FEEL safer. Horses can access the woodland paths and riders notice more than they would if they were in a patrol car. Among the FPC Board and broader membership we have imagined a dedicated park ranger during the warmer seasons. This would be someone we can get to know, who will learn the different areas of the park, hear about trouble spots from park users, and do nature education with young people and park visitors. A few dog walkers are wary of this. More frequent Ranger patrols might crack down on off-leash dogs.
In my decade as an active park user I have never once felt frightened or that I was compromising my safety by walking in the park alone. But how about you? Have you felt safe? Have you stayed away from the park out of fear? Would a park ranger you can get to know make a difference?
--Christine Poff, Franklin Park Coalition
Franklin Park Coalition
I actually think the park is really safe - even at night. It just feels spooky being in the dark woods. But this spookiness keeps out negative activity also. As one FPCer has said, "bad guys are afraid of the dark!"
There are two new blue call boxes that immediately dial 911. Police computers know where they are located, so a patrol car can be dispatched there fast. One call box is on the main road near the Golf Clubhouse driveway, the other is adjacent to the parking lot next to the Playstead - the big field where the festivals are held. Look for them next time you're in the park. Hopefully you'll feel safer knowing where they are. We've asked the city for one or two more. If you have a spot where you think one is needed, let us know.
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Reader Comments (3)
I think the six things that could help the park are:
1- I do think that more police/horseback presence would be so comforting and fun (especially for the kids) to see. I would love to know that a police officer might be around the corner.
2- More foot traffic and people walking in the park regularly. If I see lots of people walking around, I feel that there is less of a chance of me being alone in a bad situation.
3- Regular clean-ups (it doesn't make you feel good to see used condoms and broken beer bottles all over the place). I’m hoping to be able to help out in the clean-up event coming up;
4- Some fun family-friendly events and PR to help promote the park (scavenger hunts, kid carnivals, hot air ballons, kid games, family biking event, family hiking event, walks for charities, etc.). What about something similar to the Lantern Festival in Franklin Park? What about movie screening on the fields? The more events/PR, the more people who will think of it as a destination, the more people who might be interested in donating money to help specific improvements. I do think that if you market the park to families, automatically it will appear safer. Families walking in the park makes me feel safe...men running alone does not.
5- Revive White Stadium! It is a sorely underutilized and unknown stadium and would be so wonderful if there were certain hours during the warmer months that kids could come and run around. All you would need is one or two people to be there to organize. Not many people know that it is open during the day to walk around the track...but what about that huge field! That would be so fun for kids to play in.
6- I also think that better pathway signage and entrance signage would go a long way to helping improve the perception of the park (especially at the Green St entrance). What if there were pocket maps of the park that were free or for sale (at certain locations in JP).