We need to rethink troubled park system

Updated 12:08 PM Sunday, August 23, 2009

We are better than this.

Springfield and Clark County parks should be the envy of any community.

Snyder Park, a gift to the community from the Snyder brothers in the 19th century, was and could be again one of the finest parks in the region.

When it was in its prime, it was central to the way many of the city’s people spent their leisure time.

A boat house and picnic areas may not be the best way to attract users in the 21st century, but the park is a jewel that just needs some fresh thinking to become useful again. Kayaking, rock climbing and bike trails could be some of the new uses that would make our parks vital again.

Snyder is just one of the city parks that have become tattered and run-down in many places and, frankly, an embarrassment.

Voters have turned down property tax levies that would have generated the revenue needed to restore them to the condition they deserve.

It’s doubtful that the park system explored in today’s stories by Tom Stafford and Samantha Sommer is going to get the financial help it needs anytime soon.

Some tough decisions are in the offing.

The National Trail Parks and Recreation District, which was formed to oversee both city and county parks, has been a good faith attempt at regional government. It could have created a park system that benefited the entire county and been a unique attraction for the area. But the failures to pass a levy largely doomed its original promise.

National Trail may or may not break up over the money issue. Springfield officials feel the city is stuck with the bill to keep up parks for a large number of county users who don’t help pay for them. The county has a response, they simply can’t afford to up their offering.

This might force us to take a tough look at our parks. And we may conclude that we simply have too many to maintain with the resources available.

In Springfield, there are five major parks, Snyder, Veterans, Old Reid, Davey Moore and Lagonda.

Of the five, Old Reid might be the least needed. It is very near Buck Creek State Park. Its series of lagoons are in desperate need of maintenance and the area is overrun with Canada geese and Canada geese mess that make the area un-park-like and possibly unsanitary.

If we can’t make all our parks usable, does it make sense to maintain Old Reid?

Old Reid does, of course, have users. It has tennis courts, a dog park and fishing areas.

It may be premature to look at abandoning park land. But if we, as taxpayers, won’t support these facilities that have helped preserve the green space that made Springfield a livable place despite the factories that fueled its growth, then we may need to do some unpleasant triage.

We have to do better than what we’ve done over the past several years.

The people who delivered the parks to the current generation and the generations that will come deserve better stewardship from us.

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