DNAC Invites Community to View Progress Underway at Pierce Street Park‏

Lewiston, Maine - On Tuesday, October 23, 2012, at 1:30 p.m., members of the Downtown Neighborhood Action Committee (DNAC) will meet with downtown businesses and organizations at Pierce Street Park to view the changes currently underway.  These changes include an enclosed and expanded soccer field, installation of new playground equipment, and the creation of a winter sledding hill.  Community partners will also discuss plans to ensure the long-term stewardship and maintenance of the park.

Pierce Street Park, a popular destination amongst youth in the downtown residential community, has become a haven of outdoor play and activity.  Previously, the Park had become run down and underutilized due to the lack of organized activities and disinvestment in the maintenance of park equipment due to vandalism and a number of nuisance calls.  However, in the past 5-7 years, neighborhood youth have renewed interest in the park as a venue for soccer games and other outdoor recreation.  These positive use activities have had an impact on reducing the number of calls for municipal services and have given the park a renewed sense of purpose in the community.



The Downtown Neighborhood Action Committee (DNAC) wishes to facilitate better communication and more frequent interaction amongst all downtown stakeholders to continue to expand and maintain green spaces throughout the neighborhood.  Community-based organizations such as the Tree Street Youth Center, The Downtown Church, and the Somali Bantu Youth Association expressed strong interest in ensuring the long-term vitality of the park.

“Many of the youth who come to our Center also use the park. Therefore, the park presents an opportunity for us to instill ongoing lessons in neighborhood stewardship that reach beyond the Center in a very personal and tangible way,” notes Julia Sleeper, Executive Director - Tree Street Youth Center.  Community partners will also be joined on Tuesday by Lewiston’s Community Resource Team Officers.

In 2008, the Downtown Neighborhood Action Committee (DNAC) completed the Downtown Neighborhood Action Plan (DNAP) which established recommendations for addressing overall quality of life issues in the downtown residential neighborhood—establishing and maintaining green spaces being amongst them.  The redevelopment of Pierce Street Park has become an important piece of addressing green space needs in the densely populated downtown community where few residences have yard space for children to play.