Parks play an immensely positive role in the life of a community. Chattanooga and Hamilton County are powerful testimony to that fact. It’s hard to imagine how different each would be without Miller Plaza, Coolidge Park and the other inviting green and open spaces that dot the riverfront, the shores of the lake and cities and neighborhoods both small and large throughout the city and county. Other communities understand the benefits of parks as well. Cleveland, Tenn., is one of the most recent examples.
First Street Square, that city’s newest park, officially opens with a ribbon-cutting ceremony this morning at 11:30. Unofficially, the park has been open for a few days. If the initial responses from visitors to the downtown site are any indication, the park quickly will become a beloved and heavily used destination. That’s certainly understandable. A well-designed and inviting place of repose nestled in the heart of the city is always welcome.
First Street Square, in fact, is doubly welcome. It will provide a resting spot for downtown workers and for visitors. It also replaces an eyesore – a long-shuttered dry cleaning plant – and an alley, which, one resident said, was so threatening that many people were afraid to walk there.
The new park does the reverse. It invites people in rather than frightening them away.
The park, several years in the planning, is the result of a joint effort by the city of Cleveland and MainStreet Cleveland, a nonprofit, grass-roots organization that works to revitalize downtown Cleveland. As is often the case – it certainly was in Chattanooga – the partnership between government agencies, public-minded citizens and private entities proved extremely beneficial to Cleveland and the surrounding area.