What is your current favorite activity at Woodside? Choose one.
Basketball
Which park improvement plan do you prefer? Concept 1 or Concept 2?
Concept 2
Is there anything else you would like to tell us about these plans?
I am in favor of Concept 2, primarily due to the contiguous skate park. I think this is important so that the sidewalk could actually be adequately used. When skaters are there, they will bounce back and forth between the parks, use the sidewalk as a skate area (e.g., use it as a pad from which to air off of, etc.), and will cut that sidewalk off for use. For context, I have skateboarded for about a decade and a half. You may have already learned much of this from talking with the skate park designer etc but I want to pass off some of my opinions about how skateparks should be designed today. The parks should be designed similar to the experience of skating in the city on spots that exist "naturally" in a cityscape. For example, benches to grind on, stairs to air over, railing to grind or air over, cement pads to do manuals on, etc, rather than halfpipes and ramps like you might see Tony Hawk and skaters of yesteryear skating on. Linked here is a 2018 article by the reputable skateboarding magazine, Transworld: https://skateboarding.transworld.net/videos/the-best-skateparks-in-the-world/. Compare the first three parks, all "vert" style and filled with ramps and pipes, versus the fourth, fifth, and sixth parks, all modern street style and filled with stairs, rails, benches, etc. Woodside’s proposed design should mimic the fourth, fifth, and sixth parks much moreso than the first three. On this note, I think not only having the skate park designer and other folks speaking with the skaters but also having Park Commission employees going out there during this stage, when all the skaters are out there, and speak with the folks skating there about all of this. When I was younger my town in Florida did a skate park renovation. None of the skaters who I knew (and I knew all of them, because it was always the same people) had any clue what the changes would be. It was all above our heads. The changes were decent, but there is value in engaging here not only in the results but in the feeling of ownership and civic engagement this would confer to the skaters who frequent this park. Compared to folks concerned about the tennis court and picnic areas and even beyond the usual barriers to engagement, skaters are especially the type of counterculture/anti-system group prone not to engage with a Park Commission proceeding on their own accord--i.e., they need to be met where they are at. Park Commission staff themselves should mosey on down and get these folks involved early, like we are doing for those who are wont to comment in online fora or open town halls. Compared to a basketball court, tennis court, soccer field, etc, which of course are forays on their own, the devil is really in the details in getting a skatepark right for its users. One note about the mural work for the skate park and the basketball court… Awesome idea, however I have used such parks/courts and sometimes they are slippery. It would be helpful to ensure the murals won't impact the utility of the facilities.
I like the earthwork between the playground and tennis court. That may be worth the extra cost in order to make the park more connected/less disjointed and overcome the grade challenges in an elegant way. In my opinion, any interactive water feature is not worth the extra operations and maintenance costs, especially considering the extra costs for kids to be playing in very clean, purified water. In addition, since the current water feature is right next to the Georgia Avenue section, I would be against placing a splash pad for children in that dangerous section. In other words, a splash pad in the park would, I think, have to be relocated from Georgia Avenue and cost even more to accomplish.
As far as the covered picnic areas go, please make them as comfortable and inviting as we possibly can. Let's not shoot ourselves in the foot by creating a less comfortable park in order to cynically discourage persons without a home from sleeping there. Montgomery County has a Commission on Homelessness... how about we create a great park and address our issues in reducing the blight of homelessness there?
The final portion of my comments relate to the basketball court. First, and most importantly, the court should be the exact dimensions of either a high school regulation court or collegiate court. It is difficult to emphasize how even a few feet off court dimensions, a missing, wrong, or incomplete 3 pt line, or other inaccuracy can diminish the experience when playing a game. On that same note, the height of the rims should be regularly assessed and adjusted to remain at 10 feet--again it completely diminishes the experience because we are talking about a game of inches (like most any other sport of this nature). Most courts' rims around the county seem not to be regularly calibrated to ensure proper height and rim integrity, and I would submit that's something this Commission should pursue as it pertains to all jurisdictional parks. The hoops themselves (pole, backboard, rim) should be high quality and the rims should be “single,” not the dreaded “double,” rims. The basketball court is the most important part of the park improvement for me, and I just want to reemphasize how important it is for this court to be full, regulation size.
Thank you so very much for taking the time to hear my comments and concerns and indulging my many thoughts on this matter.
P.S. I would write a lengthy passage in favor of protecting the park's trees and nature, but it seems like I would be preaching to the choir and that you all have the well handled. Thank you!
Select your top three priorities for new or improved amenities at Woodside Urban Park. (Hold the Ctrl key to select multiple options):
Basketball
Enjoying Nature
Skate Spot
Please share additional ideas about Woodside Urban Park you would like us to hear.
Thank you for all your thoughtful and hard work on this!
Open Town Hall is not a certified voting system or ballot box. As with any public comment process, participation in Open Town Hall is voluntary. The responses in this record are not necessarily representative of the whole population, nor do they reflect the opinions of any government agency or elected officials.
How far do you live from Woodside Urban Park?
How often do you visit the park?
How do you get to the park?
What is your current favorite activity at Woodside? Choose one.
Which park improvement plan do you prefer? Concept 1 or Concept 2?
Is there anything else you would like to tell us about these plans?
I am in favor of Concept 2, primarily due to the contiguous skate park. I think this is important so that the sidewalk could actually be adequately used. When skaters are there, they will bounce back and forth between the parks, use the sidewalk as a skate area (e.g., use it as a pad from which to air off of, etc.), and will cut that sidewalk off for use. For context, I have skateboarded for about a decade and a half. You may have already learned much of this from talking with the skate park designer etc but I want to pass off some of my opinions about how skateparks should be designed today. The parks should be designed similar to the experience of skating in the city on spots that exist "naturally" in a cityscape. For example, benches to grind on, stairs to air over, railing to grind or air over, cement pads to do manuals on, etc, rather than halfpipes and ramps like you might see Tony Hawk and skaters of yesteryear skating on. Linked here is a 2018 article by the reputable skateboarding magazine, Transworld: https://skateboarding.transworld.net/videos/the-best-skateparks-in-the-world/. Compare the first three parks, all "vert" style and filled with ramps and pipes, versus the fourth, fifth, and sixth parks, all modern street style and filled with stairs, rails, benches, etc. Woodside’s proposed design should mimic the fourth, fifth, and sixth parks much moreso than the first three. On this note, I think not only having the skate park designer and other folks speaking with the skaters but also having Park Commission employees going out there during this stage, when all the skaters are out there, and speak with the folks skating there about all of this. When I was younger my town in Florida did a skate park renovation. None of the skaters who I knew (and I knew all of them, because it was always the same people) had any clue what the changes would be. It was all above our heads. The changes were decent, but there is value in engaging here not only in the results but in the feeling of ownership and civic engagement this would confer to the skaters who frequent this park. Compared to folks concerned about the tennis court and picnic areas and even beyond the usual barriers to engagement, skaters are especially the type of counterculture/anti-system group prone not to engage with a Park Commission proceeding on their own accord--i.e., they need to be met where they are at. Park Commission staff themselves should mosey on down and get these folks involved early, like we are doing for those who are wont to comment in online fora or open town halls. Compared to a basketball court, tennis court, soccer field, etc, which of course are forays on their own, the devil is really in the details in getting a skatepark right for its users. One note about the mural work for the skate park and the basketball court… Awesome idea, however I have used such parks/courts and sometimes they are slippery. It would be helpful to ensure the murals won't impact the utility of the facilities.
I like the earthwork between the playground and tennis court. That may be worth the extra cost in order to make the park more connected/less disjointed and overcome the grade challenges in an elegant way. In my opinion, any interactive water feature is not worth the extra operations and maintenance costs, especially considering the extra costs for kids to be playing in very clean, purified water. In addition, since the current water feature is right next to the Georgia Avenue section, I would be against placing a splash pad for children in that dangerous section. In other words, a splash pad in the park would, I think, have to be relocated from Georgia Avenue and cost even more to accomplish.
As far as the covered picnic areas go, please make them as comfortable and inviting as we possibly can. Let's not shoot ourselves in the foot by creating a less comfortable park in order to cynically discourage persons without a home from sleeping there. Montgomery County has a Commission on Homelessness... how about we create a great park and address our issues in reducing the blight of homelessness there?
The final portion of my comments relate to the basketball court. First, and most importantly, the court should be the exact dimensions of either a high school regulation court or collegiate court. It is difficult to emphasize how even a few feet off court dimensions, a missing, wrong, or incomplete 3 pt line, or other inaccuracy can diminish the experience when playing a game. On that same note, the height of the rims should be regularly assessed and adjusted to remain at 10 feet--again it completely diminishes the experience because we are talking about a game of inches (like most any other sport of this nature). Most courts' rims around the county seem not to be regularly calibrated to ensure proper height and rim integrity, and I would submit that's something this Commission should pursue as it pertains to all jurisdictional parks. The hoops themselves (pole, backboard, rim) should be high quality and the rims should be “single,” not the dreaded “double,” rims. The basketball court is the most important part of the park improvement for me, and I just want to reemphasize how important it is for this court to be full, regulation size.
Thank you so very much for taking the time to hear my comments and concerns and indulging my many thoughts on this matter.
P.S. I would write a lengthy passage in favor of protecting the park's trees and nature, but it seems like I would be preaching to the choir and that you all have the well handled. Thank you!
Select your top three priorities for new or improved amenities at Woodside Urban Park. (Hold the Ctrl key to select multiple options):
Please share additional ideas about Woodside Urban Park you would like us to hear.
Thank you for all your thoughtful and hard work on this!