The third program day of Weston University focused on the operations of Weston’s parks and recreation, landscaping, and public works departments.
Before taking the class on a tour of some of the city’s parks, Director of Parks and Recreation Don Decker led students through an exercise to design their own dream park. They came up with some clever concepts:
Generation Park featured a community garden, dog park, and amphitheater.
X-Stream Park offered residents a lazy river and swimming pool, along with athletic fields and an arcade.
Park of Friendship and Tolerance featured bicycle rentals, sports fields, a pool and a community garden.
Sunny Side Park featured a series of egg-like public art pieces throughout the park, including one decorated as a chicken. The park also included a Ferris wheel on an island accessed by a bridge, a small dog park, athletic fields, beach volleyball, a community center and day care center.
Sunset Park offered residents use of a swimming pool, sports fields and a circular garden and green space in the center of the park.
Decker says he was impressed with the students’ creativity. “It is always exciting watching students use their imaginations without the restraints of budgets, politics or red tape. It reminds me that those restraints don’t necessarily have to mean our ideas are impossible.”
Following the dream park design project, students spent time with officials from the Public Works and Landscape departments where they learned about proper tree trimming, as well as the mitigation area and stormwater maintenance system, which included a tour of one of Weston’s pumping stations.