By Park Investigators
Kaylee Hampton, Cianna Hobson, Sasha Hollins, Korie Thomas-Pritchett, and Aliah Ward

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KALAMAZOO (MICH.) –  Malcolm Jolly couldn’t wait to share what he liked most about Upjohn Park. “The hot dog slide!” the 5-year-old said as he rushed to climb up the ladder to slide down. When asked what other attractions he would like added to Upjohn Park, he told reporter Aliah Ward, “More slides!”

Children like Malcolm and their parents participated in an investigative report by Community Voices youth reporters. The reporters, also members of the Merze Tate Explorers, researched 59 parks managed by the City of Kalamazoo to rank their Top 10. The project is a collaboration between NowKalamazoo and Community Voices as part of Southwest Michigan Journalism Collaborative’s coverage of equitable community development. Community Voices is a member of SWMJC. The youth reporters created an investigation of local parks, which are vital to vibrant, thriving neighborhoods, particularly for youth. 

Why the Park Investigation?

Senior reporters Sasha Hollins and Aliah Ward searched the web for facts to support why parks are important to the physical and mental health of kids. Here’s what they found:

• According to a report on ScienceDirect, 49,146 American youth (24%) lacked access to a neighborhood park.
  
• Children without parks were more likely to be overweight, have ADHD, and get inadequate sleep.
  
• Children living near parks with playgrounds had better mental health than those living near parks without playgrounds. Source: ScienceDirect
  

In addition, the Trust for Public Land, a U.S. nonprofit organization dedicated to creating parks and protecting land, states that Kalamazoo’s green spaces are vital to the health of youth. The city was selected as one of three Michigan cities to take part in a mapping project.

The Kalamazoo Community Green Map is part of a national model by the Children and Nature Network’s Community Action Guide to propose green spaces in communities using Geographic Information System (GIS) technology. This mapping showed that 7,000 children in the city “do not live within a 10-minute walk of publicly accessible play areas.” Source: Trust for Public Land. The National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA), the leading nonprofit organization dedicated to building strong, vibrant, and resilient communities through parks and recreation, confirms that separation from nature is detrimental to human development, health, and well-being. Regular contact with nature is required for good mental health. Source: NRPA

Investigative Process

With the facts at hand, the young reporters went to work. They visited the Kalamazoo Parks and Recreation website, where they learned that the city manages 59 parks and recreational facilities on more than 1,000 acres of land throughout the county.

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“We first looked at all of the parks in the city and broke them down to which ones we would visit,” said Cianna Hobson, a 10th-grade Explorer who attends Loy Norrix High School. “There were so many parks, but we decided to visit parks in neighborhoods only. We felt these were the ones kids could walk to from their neighborhood.”

The reporters then learned more about the history of the parks, their features, and any local history.

“I didn’t know that LaCrone Park was named after William LaCrone, who was the local parks superintendent in the 1930s,” said Aliah. “Many of the parks are named for people we never learned about.”

Learn more about the origins of Kalamazoo Parks History.

Once the students decided on the 15 parks they would visit to get their top 10, they created grading criteria and used Canva to create a scorecard for each park. Their scorecards included neighborhood safety, entrances, parking, seating for parents, bathroom quality, playground equipment, and more. They ranked these from 1-5 (5 being best). They also created a survey for parents and students for interviews and media-use permission.

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“We had to decide what the parks had that most kids would want,” said 4th-grade reporter Korie Thomas-Pritchett. “Then, we made sure to have an even number of parks for each side of town. We didn’t include big parks like Bronson Park or Mayor’s River Park because we didn’t see those as neighborhood parks where kids could walk to on their own or with friends.”

Then, they were off! The reporters spoke with kids, parents, and grandparents about what they liked most and least about the parks.

Getting the Story

With cameras and clipboards in hand, the youth reporters began their mission on the city’s east side. First stop: Spring Valley Park, located at 2600 Mt. Olivet Road.

“This park is huge!” said Kaylee Hampton. “But, where are the people?”

After exploring the park, students found a family having a picnic and frisbee golfers in motion. They quickly approached park-goers to get their views.

“I come to the park more than 10 times a year to frisbee golf,” said Vince, who didn’t want to disclose his last name. “I feel mostly safe, but I did hear gunshots one day, and then the police came. When you’re in big groups, it’s safe.”

Madison Cretsinger, on a picnic with her kids, said their favorite part of the park was the slide. Though the bathrooms weren’t as clean as she would’ve liked, they were open and safe. When her daughter, Kloe, was asked what she would like to see at Spring Valley Park, the 6-year-old replied, “A bucket of slime.”

After gathering their results, the students moved to Rockwell Park at 1106 Trimbel Avenue.

“I never knew there was a park here,” Korie said as she jumped out of the car and headed for the small playground. The park was lively with a 3-on-3 basketball game hosted by Trenches Church. Participant Asher Eichorn was visiting the park for the first time just for the tournament.

“I feel safe here. I liked the low rims, but they could use some nets on the rims and maybe fresh lines on the court,” said the 14-year-old.

Carolyn Wolski said she felt safe as well, but planned to start a petition for a tennis court to be added to the park.

The reporters continued gathering results and quotes from park-goers throughout the community. After visiting Milham Park, 607 E. Kilgore Road, they learned that there once was a zoo located there. At Frays Park, 4400 Canterbury, established in 1979, the park was a neighborhood fixture with no public parking.

Brant Downing visited with his children, AJ (7) and Emmett (9). They loved the rock wall and slides, but wished for more.

“A sand pit, swimming pool, hot tub, ice cream truck, and trampoline would be great!” AJ said, laughing.

The park investigation ended at LaCrone Park. There, a family was unloading food and games for a birthday party in the picnic area. Isabella Smith said she often comes to the park to meet her friends, but David Park is her favorite. Isabella did say the Splash Pad at LaCrone was a favorite attraction.

After hours of park visits, the young reporters felt they had enough information to complete their investigation. In celebration of a job well done, they, like Isabella, ran through the cool sprinklers of the Splash Pad.

Reporter Korie said she had her reservations about visiting the park, but was surprised to see it rank high on their list.

“I heard this is a ‘bad’ park,” she said. “I heard someone was shot here not too long ago. But this isn’t a bad park. I might come back.”

The Results

After more than six hours of park exploration, the Explorers had enough information to rank the parks. The results would be shared with the reporters of NowKalamazoo to present to the Kalamazoo City Parks and Recreation Department. The young reporters hoped their surveys would help the department address issues such as lighting, parking, signage, dog waste bag refills, and other concerns they noted that could improve the parks.

“Yeah, some of the parks were a bit sketchy,” said reporter Sasha Hollins. “I don’t know if I would feel like they would help my mental health. But there were other parks, like Milham Park and Frays Park, that I could see myself going to for a break.”

Cianna agreed. 

“Some of these parks need a lot of work if they want families to enjoy them.”

Check out their score and survey results here. 

Look for the full story and video report in the Spring edition of Girls Can! Magazine   

The Results 

Review Full Report HERE

Top 10 Neighborhood Parks in the City of Kalamazoo Rating: 

5 – Great 4- Good 3- Average 2- Fair 1- Poor Ranking 

1- LaCrone Park (Northside) 4.7
2- Frays Park (Westside) 4.6
3- Milham Park (Southside) 4.0
4- Spring Valley Park (Eastside) 3.5
5- Henderson Tot Lot (Westside) 3.4
6- Reed Street (Southside) 3.3
7- Upjohn Park (Southside) 2.9
8- Rockwell Park (Eastside) 2.8
9- Farrell Parl (Northside) 2.5
10- Sherwood (Eastside) 1.0
10- Krom and Prouty Playlot (Northside) 1.0