Please Remove Those Boulders From Our Beloved Park!

In1868, after having designed Central Park in New York City, famous architect, Frederick Law Olmsted and his business partner, Calvert Vaux, were invited to Buffalo to discuss designing a park here. Instead of designing one park like they did in NYC, the two architects wound up designing six city parks: The Park (later renamed Delaware Park), Front Park, Parade Park ( later renamed Humboldt and finally Dr. MLK Park ), Cazenovia Park, South Park and Riverside Park They also went on to design seven Parkways, nine Landscaped Circles and several Public Squares: Lafayette Square and Niagara Square among them.

The park I am writing about now is Parade/ Humboldt/MLK Park. The Park was designed in 1873 and was redesigned in 1896 to include three ponds, a flower pond, a nature pond and the world famous wading pond that was billed as the largest wading pool in the United States of America. In the late 1940s and early 1950s, decisions were made to take portions of Humboldt Parkway and create an expressway to provide easy access and departure from the City of Buffalo. At a time when folks(largely White folks) were still working in the city but were building homes in the suburban, outer areas to avoid dealing with fast integrated neighborhoods, the city fathers made one of the most antiBuffalo decisions in the history of this region since Buffalo was incorporated in 1832! They voted to destroy a beautiful, perfectly designed Parkway to construct a road or expressway down the middle of it.

And now, here we are today, with those charged with managing the Parade/ Humboldt/ MLK Park, making the decision to desecrate Frederick Law Olmsted's beautiful park by placing hideous, dangerous boulders or rocks around the perimeter of the whole park.

There have been cars parking on the grass in other Olmsted Conservancy Parks, as well, but none of them have been met with the indignities that we, who participate in festivals in MLK Park, are being afforded by having to climb over or walk around dangerous, protruding boulders to enjoy the park. With one of the largest African American holidays, Juneteenth, several weeks away, what a shock this community is facing as we wonder how the Juneteenth Festival, and other community activities, can be all that it can be, with rocks, boulders and other impediments standing in or blocking our way.

MOTHERS DAY BRUNCH: Away Out Queens in Training Mentoring Program and owner/founder Trinisha S. Brown presented its 3rd Annual Mother’s Day Brunch last Saturday at the Johnnie B. Wiley Pavilion. The theme of the program was “There’s Nothing Stronger Than a Woman Who Had to Rebuild Herself.” Pictured above, Lakishia Collins, Pastor Bertha Brinson, Pastor Wanda Core, Lady Joanna Wingo, Pastor Tonya Williams-Morris, and Tanisha Franklin-DaCosta (MBA). The 2023 honorees were LaKishia Monet Collins, Lady Joann Wingo, Vivian Robinson and Joann Ponzo. Pastor Cole was the keynote speaker. Additional speakers included Ms. Franklin-DaCosta, Pastor Williams- Morris and Yvonne DuBois. Pastor Brinson hosted the event. Street LegacyPhoto by Darvin Adams

“WRITE ON” INTUITIVE WRITING WORKSHOP

Kind Fools, a program of Community Canvases 501c3, is a gathering of people who want to build community across communities in Buffalo.

Kind Fools’ next WRITE ON workshop is Thursday, May 18, 2023, 1:00pm to 3:30pm at the C.A.O. Rafi Green Masten Resource Center, 1423 Fillmore Avenue @ Glenwood, in Buffalo. This is a free workshop and everyone of any age is welcome. More info at (716) 259-2725 and hy@kindfools.org