Ridgely’s Recreational Park Project

The Ridgely’s Delight Association works to make the community a better place to live and work. To achieve that goal, many of our initiatives focus on improvements to our public areas. We are currently working on a large project to complete the renovations on the playground on the north side of the neighborhood.

Mission Statement
To improve the current playground by establishing a green, recreational and gathering space for community members of all ages.

Background
The recreational space, currently known as the tot lot, is located at the intersection of Penn, Melvin, and Bankard Streets and is frequented by parents with young children from Ridgely’s Delight and surrounding communities. The Baltimore City-owned property was designated as a children’s playground when the surrounding neighborhood was redeveloped in the 1970s. New playground equipment was installed in 2006; however, the larger project to improve the space remains uncompleted. Other than the playground equipment, approximately 50 percent of the space is largely underutilized.

Current Project
In 2011, the Ridgely’s Delight Association recognizing that the space is largely underutilized, refocused its efforts to improve the space. A group of interested neighbors formed a Ridgely’s recreational park committee under the direction of the Association. Its goal is to guide the process and raise funds needed to transform the space into a green and more environmentally sound recreational park that can be used by community members of all ages.

The committee shared its goals with the Neighborhood Design Center, which donated $50,000 of its time to develop plans to meet the vision for a greener and more usable space. The committee presented the plans at the November, 2013 Ridgely’s Delight community meeting. Following the community meeting, the Ridgely’s Delight Association’s Board of Directors voted to earmark $7,000 of the cleaning and greening funds received from the Baltimore Grand Prix for this project.

In fall 2014, the overgrown wood planter was removed and a sickly tree was removed in the playground.

The Ridgely’s recreational park committee is actively:

obtaining quotes from landscaping companies to complete the project
working with Baltimore City on lighting and water access
researching grants and fundraising opportunities

Due to the scope of the project, the work will be completed in phases as money is raised. We have received casino resources, which will enable the City to move forward on some aspects of the existing plans.

VIEW THE LATEST PROJECT PLANS

Progress Meeting March 30

Sarah Hope, design planner and playground safety coordinator with Department of Recreation and Parks, reviewed the plans and provided details on the next steps of the project. Review the meeting minutes.

Next Steps
We will provide updates on this initiative on this page and in the newsletter as the project progresses.

Questions?
If you have a general inquiry about the Ridgely’s recreational park project, please contact editor@ridgelysdelight.org.

Make a Donation
Help Ridgely’s Delight reach our goal of transforming our park into a space that people of all ages can enjoy. To make a donation, simply give a check made out to Ridgely’s Delight Association, Inc. or cash to a board member at any community event or send an email to editor@ridgelysdelight.org to arrange pick-up.

The Ridgely's Delight Association is a 501(c)3 organization. Consult with your tax adviser to find out if your donation is tax-deductible.

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