Have You Been to Aston Park Lately?

At the new and improved Aston Park tennis courts community members take advantage of three regulation-size courts.

The City of Asheville was recently awarded a two-year “Fit Community” grant of $60,000 to continue the recent improvements to Aston Park. The renovations completed last March included a walking trail, a gazebo with picnic tables, new playground equipment, basketball goals, and a tennis backboard. The vision of the new grant is to restore Aston Park to its place as a treasured community resource.

Fit Community grants are dedicated to improving the health of a community through physical activity and/or nutritional programs. More playground equipment for children will be added, and free fitness programs will be offered in the park to increase opportunities for physical activity for the community. The goal is for children and families of the diverse groups who live in the area or attend neighborhood schools, churches, and after-school programs to have a safe, fun, and engaging place to play within walking distance.

Such daily use of the park by area residents will improve the health
and safety of the community, and, it is hoped, also create a space for
community-building.

Given the history of the park, the project will continually seek
guidance from the community to ensure that the site becomes a more
attractive recreation area. A survey was conducted in July of
neighbors, organizations, and businesses in the South French Broad and
West End-Clingman Avenue areas. The information gathered will be used
to help choose playground equipment and recreation programs as well as
address factors that influence whether or not people use the park. The
newly formed Aston Gateway Community Board, made up of representatives
from neighborhood partners, will be an integral part of the grant
implementation and will ensure that the park becomes what the community
wants it to be.

Aston Park has gone through many stages, from being a segregated
park to one that was a central place of neighborhood activity, to a
state of disrepair and crime, and now to its current state of renewal.
To encourage greater use of the park by all community members, the
project will address the history and perceptions of the park. One way
of doing this will be to talk about the park using photographs owned or
taken by residents. This photo project will be geared towards
empowering the community to address safety concerns and racial
inequities regarding park use.

There is still a lot of work to be done to improve the park and
the surrounding area: some residents sat they still don’t feel safe
walking down South French Broad to get to Aston Park. But many
neighbors have said that they already feel safer in the park because
more people are out using it: families enjoy the playground, couples
play tennis, YWCA summer campers play kickball.

Sharing the
history, current state, and envisioned future of the park with the
community and policy makers can be a powerful process for change.
Current residents and those who grew up in the area and who have
memories or pictures of the park at its various stages are encouraged
to participate in upcoming conversations about Aston Park.

Ellen Bailey is Project Intern for the Aston Park Photo Project.
If you would like to participate in the Aston Park Photo Project or
have general questions about the project, contact Alphie Rodriguez at
(828) 254-7206 x212 or [email protected].