Urgent Matter Requiring Resident Support

[Lee Cruz]

Dear neighbors & Friends:

This morning David Z. brought to my attention that graffiti damage has been done to Lewis St. Park. Many of you know that through the efforts of many people from the Quinnipiac River Community Group, the City and our Association this park was brought back from being a very unattractive and unsafe place. I am sure that many people will ask who did this? Please note that a police report has been filed. Others will ask why this happen? The truth is we may never know. I urge you to focus on the most important question of all: What am I going to do about this?

 

This is what I am going to do, I hope you will join me in one or more of these activities or suggest that neighbors join you in some other response that shows the power of the community that we have built:

 

1. Today I will email Chrissy Hass of the Parks Department to thank her as I understand that the Parks Department has put the park on their list of places to clean up the graffiti for tomorrow Wed. 7/7. Her email address is [e-mail]

2. Tonight I will be at the Park at 7pm today to view the damage and to see if there is anything I can do to make a positive difference in the appearance of the park.

3. Tomorrow I will be back at the park at 7pm to see if the graffiti was removed. If it was removed great, if not, working with whomever shows up I would like to develop a community strategy for getting this nuisance resolved as soon as possible.

 

I will ask Alder Stephanie Bauer to join us at both of these gatherings. I hope you can join in too.

 

Any other suggestions? Please write to me at [e-mail]

 

Lee

[Lee Cruz]

Update: Graffiti Conquered In Lewis Park   www.newhavenindependent.org/index.php/archives/entry/lewis_park_nei...

[Lee Cruz]

Update: Clean up and weeding was done at the park yesterday. An estimated 30-40 people used the park while we were there. Clearly all of the design changes and the work of the community to beautify the park are paying off. The graffiti was done on the metal sculpture and sidewalks leading to the park.

 

One family from the neighborhood inquired about reserving all or part of the park for a birthday party, a great "take back the park" response.

 

Alan Appel of the New Haven Independent came by, he will be doing a story on the response of the community and the city to the graffiti.

 

A group of us will gather at the park tonight at 7pm for additional clean up and to see if the city has fulfilled its commitment to cleaning up the graffiti. Please come by if you can.

 

Kerry, thank you for reporting the graffiti at Chatham Square Park.

 

Together we make a great statement about the power of community.

[kerry brown]

there is also graffiti in chatham square park, on at least one of the pathyways - its written in the same red spray paint - i plan to send an email  to our contact at the parks department and ask that they address this graffiti as well. thank you to everyone else who is also making an effort to see our lovely local parks restored to their pre-graffiti beauty. -Kerry

[David Zakur]

We can talk more tonight, but the sidewalk between our house at Pine and Front, and the next house down Front heading towards Chatham had the same tag. We removed it from the sidewalk. Has anyone on Front St. North of Pine seen the same tag?

[Steve Brown]

Thanks to everyone for taking the initiative. I was personally very disappointed to see the graffiti. I sincerely believe that the kids (I'm guessing) that did this truly do not fully understand just what a terrible thing it is to deface our public space like that.

 

Did they actually damage the mural? I hadn't noticed that, though I did see that they got the sculpture by the gate.

[Lee Cruz]

David and Hope,

See you at the park tonight.

Carlos,

Thank you for taking the initiative to draft the generic email to Chrissy Hass.

 

I count myself fortunate to live in such a great neighborhood.

[Carlos Galo]

Here is a generic email body that I am sending to Ms. Hass and her staff. Feel free to reuse or write your own! "Dear Chrissy,

On behalf of the Chatham Sq. community in Fair Haven I'd like to thank you for agreeing to so promptly remove graffiti from our beloved Lewis Street park. Small children from all over our neighborhood play in the park every single day. We appreciate your commitment to keeping areas of the city where families convene free of all graffiti and super clean.

Thank you so much!
<name>, Fair Haven Resident"

[Hope Metcalf]

Thanks Lee & David for letting the community know.  This is a real disappointment--and I am sorry for everyone who worked so hard on the mural.  I will stop by the park today too.  Chrissy Hass has been very supportive of CSNA festivals in the past, and I hope they'll help us out now.  Just like the issue with the trees last year--if we take a strong and consistent stand, this problem will go away. 

[David Zakur]

Thanks Lee! I'll be there tonight as well. I started a little weeding project as well! DZ