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Ostrander Park Gets a Facelift OPC Stewards Overhaul their Park Path
When 15 year-old Sam and 13 year-old Georgia Scherer took over the stewardship duties of Ostrander Park from their mother they already had a vision for their park far beyond just keeping it clean. During spring break this year they implemented part 1 of their grand vision, the creation of a paved path through the park. The project, which required expert planning and hard physical labor, was supported by the participation of family and friends and financed in large part by donations from the public in the area. The family donated the balance of the cost, which was substantial. OPC salutes Georgia and Sam for their passion, their ingenuity, their dedication and the transformation they have brought to Ostrander Park.
Georgia and Sam Scherer created this beautiful flagstone path at
Ostrander Park in spring, 2011, in just one week. Ostrander is in North Oakland. It runs parallel to Broadway Terrace, beginning
at Clarewood/Ostrander.
San Pablo Corridor Coalition Embraces St. Andrews Park In recognition of the problems of violence and environmental degradation in their community concerned citizens of Oakland’s west side have formed the San Pablo Corridor Coalition, a partnership of multiple neighborhood groups undertaking projects to benefit the community. One of those projects is the development and beautification of the area around San Pablo Avenue at 32nd Street and, specifically, St. Andrews Park, a shady plaza that is a respite spot to many homeless and needy in the area. The small park, situated just off the Avenue is across from the St. Mary’s Center which adopted the park under the City Keep Oakland Beautiful program and is glad to have help keeping it clean. Coalition members gathered on a recent Saturday
in November to conduct their semi-monthly cleanings which include sweeping, picking up paraphernalia, hosing down the cement
structures and benches and replanting. OPC salutes the good work of the coalition.
Maxwell Park Bathroom Beautification Project One year and three months after they first met to talk about a way to resuscitate
Maxwell Park, Friends of Maxwell Park--moms, dads, singles, kids and grandparents--gathered to install mosaic tiles on the
first of four restroom exterior walls. On the weekend of June 13-14, 2009, they transformed an ugly and often
graffiti-covered restroom wall into a work of beauty, and an inspiration to the community. The Mosaic Team, a group of mosaic artists and supporters from Maxwell Park and nearby neighborhoods, formed as part of a larger park improvement project, solicited designs from the community and nearby schools, and came up with the design for the first mosaic. The team gathered supplies, smashed tiles, prepared the wall, and then chalked in the outlines of the design in preparation for the big weekend event. Tables were set up so that children could draw flowers and insects, and then fill them in from trays of tiles on the tables in front of them. Adults placed special sticky paper over the children's work, so it could be transferred to the wall. An adult would apply mortar to in an appropriate spot, and the child would help press the tiles in place. As the Mosaic Team worked in later weeks to do the grouting and cleaning of the tiles, community members would come by to gaze at the mosaic. The children who had worked on the mosaic would race to show people their tiles, and the others would eagerly try to identify all the elements of the mosaic. When more people would come, the first children would act as "tour guides" on the wall, proudly showing off their knowledge. A celebration of this first mosaic mural was held on July 11th. With three more walls yet to be tiled opportunities for participation abound. Progress is also being made on the larger park improvement project. The project's conceptual design, which the Leadership Team and Design Team worked with a landscape architect to develop, is about to be completed. Grant applications are on-going.
Update: The second mosaic mural was completed spring, 2010. The back wall tile mural was completed spring, 2011. Congratulations, Maxwell Park!
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