Residents hope to instill pride, reduce drug use by giving Newport Parks TLC

Newport residents have cleaned, painted, repaired and raised money for some of the city’s 11 neighborhood parks for the past year.

They hope to do much more in the next year.

In the process, the residents of the Newport Parks Renaissance Commission hope community pride will go up while drug use in the parks will go down.

“Sometimes all it takes is one or two people to realize somebody cares about this, so maybe if your going to do (drugs in the park), you find another spot or stop all together,” said Christopher Bednar, a resident who moved to Newport about a year ago and is one of the leaders in the Newport Parks Renaissance Commission.

The commission, formed a year ago at the behest of Fire Chief Gary Auffart and community organizer Josh Tunning, has residents from all over the city working on the city’s parks.

“Being part of the community, being out in the public and hearing the necessity for green space, I saw the need to pull the community together, get residents together to take ownership and pride in the city parks,” Auffart said.

They’ve raised $6,000 since then for various park improvements. First on their list is Buena Vista Park in the southwest end of Newport along railroad tracks. Residents have complained about heroin users shooting up in the park.

“It was the highest need, the squeakiest wheel,” Bednar said.

The residents have focused cleanup efforts there and hope to make some major improvements, the biggest of which would be a $17,000 bike and pedestrian track encircling the park. The pedestrian path would include exercise stations. They hope to have money raised through grants and donations within a year.

“This would be a huge attraction to come to the park,” Bednar said.

The renaissance commission has also worked with Duke Energy to repair the park’s broken flood lights, with one being restored and another soon to be restored. This will hopefully discourage drug use and other deviant behavior in the park, Bednar said.

The parks renaissance commission has hosted Buena Vista Park cleanup days, repaired the shelter and organized an Easter Egg hunt. The Newport Park Renaissance Commission will have more fundraisers in the future including a golf scramble June 27 at Devou Park. People can also by naming rights for bricks, trees, benches, playground equipment and the walking trail.

By giving the parks attention, they hope it leads to more green space in Newport. Top on many residents’ lists would be a central park in Newport. Some of have proposed making the parking lot in front of the Syndicate and adjacent to the World Peace Bell into a central park. The property, however, is privately owned and many feel that’s not likely.

But the park commission has increased momentum, Bednar said.

“It could have a very large impact, not just for making the parks better but even for future building for even a central park in Newport, which I think a lot of the citizens have been pining for,” Bednar said. “I think the small steps we’re taking now will lead to much greater things down the road.”

To get involved or donate, visit the Newport Parks Renaissance Commission Google website that comes up through a Google search of the commission’s name.