City Heights joined communities throughout the world for the annual Park(ing) Day. Participants transform parking lots into community parks for the day to demonstrate the benefits of having more open space in urban neighborhoods. | Video Credit: Brian Myers, Media Arts Center San Diego
By Brian Myers
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City Heights residents have an interesting way of saying, “We need more parks in our neighborhood.”
Just north of the busiest intersection and the heart of redevelopment in City Heights sits a vacant lot. What was once an active family dental care center has been an empty cracked concrete and rubble lot for nearly a year.
The lot was given new energy, at least for the day, when neighborhood advocates transformed the vacant lot into a community park Friday.
“If kids had a safe place to do things that were fun and proactive and have a community with their peers, they would be less likely to be roaming around or be getting into trouble,” said Deyna Roberson, a City Heights resident and youth mentor.
The event in City Heights was just one of the hundreds around the world that took part in the annual Park(ing) Day. Communities convert parking spaces into temporary public places to emphasize the need for more open space in urban areas.
“To build community – not just with kids, but parents, teachers, everyone – have some place to go where you can just chill out, talk about your day, eat together or hang out. Everything doesn’t have to be a business. Sometimes its just nice to have open space to be able to interact,” Roberson said.
Local skateboarders lined up to skate the makeshift skatepark made of portable ramps and grind rails. Many said they found the short skate run to be more fun than City Heights’ skateboard hotspot near Rosa Parks Elementary School.
“There’s more stuff to do, instead of just skating flat ground all day,” said Sean, a local skateboarder.
According to a report Health Equity by Design, City Heights is park-deficient, with less than half the park space per resident than other San Diego neighborhoods.