BALTIMORE — Druid Hill Park is one of the largest recreational areas in the city, but some might argue that it doesn’t receive the investment it deserves. Well, that might be changing.
On Thursday night, a new organization called the Druid Hill Partnership was launched. It consists of residents and elected officials that will advocate for park improvements.
The partnership's goal is to operate as a one stop shop, where residents can easily communicate with the Druid Hill Partnership and voice their concerns.
In return, the members will have meetings with elected officials and push for the needs of the community. The Druid Hill Partnership will also create campaigns and fundraisers to fund park projects.
"We've allowed the park to kind of get aged out. There's some modern amenities that other parks and other cities have that we want to help fundraise for. So, we created this partnership to be a conduit for everyone in all in the community and the surrounding park area, so that everyone has a voice and knows what's happening next," said Catalina Byrd, Founding Board Member of Druid Hill Park Partnership.
First up on their agenda is making sure everything goes smoothly with the lake renovation in Druid Hill Park. This project has been in the works for a long time and the partnership wants to make sure it's receiving the right attention.
Organizers believe a community lake can bring more people together, and residents like Daniel Durg agree.
"I’m excited about the lake plans. I think those are great, they need to be funded. Seeing the drawings only makes me excited and a little nervous about will the city come together to really make this a priority, but this could be the center of activity for Baltimore and beyond, if we're willing to let it," said Burg.
People who came to the launch of this new partnership also expressed the need for accessibility. Paul Newson and Daniel Hindmen say getting across Druid Park Lake Drive is a big challenge.
"At the moment, it takes us 20 minutes to get to the same spot that will literally take us five minutes, if there was a way across the street. Especially with young kids it's crucial, so I'm really looking forward to that change," said Newson.
"I think one of the challenges with the park is you have this huge, beautiful park, and you have this road infrastructure around it that really separates people from that park. So, being able to just more easily get into the park to make it accessible to the community really seeing the vision for Druid Park Lake Drive funded through either city, state or federal dollars will be a huge step in the right direction," said Hindmen.
The Druid Hill Partnership plans to collaborate with other agencies to tackle that issue.
"So many things that the Department of Transportation is working on such as Druid Park Drive, and also different entry points into the park, so that we can get into this park as easily as possible without any issues with access" said Dale Terrlill, Chairman for Druid Hill Park Partnership.
The partnership is just getting started, they say once they have a few meetings and obtain funding they’ll announce project timelines.
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