There are as many as 20 parks within the city of Belize. With the exception of the BTL Park on Newtown Barracks and the Constitution Park on Cemetery Road, both of which are adopted by BTL, the remaining 18 or so parks are the responsibility of the City Council, that includes maintenance and management. On that long list is the Southside Park on Regent Street which was created with the help of BTL in 1999. This week the park that many forgot got a much needed facelift just in time for summer. We saw the finished product today.
Keith Swift Reporting,
These ACC students are spending the first week of their summer break in the BTL Southside Park on Regent Street. But they aren't here to take in the breathtaking coastal view or to enjoy the soothing sea breeze. Since Monday these teens have been here working. Armed with cans of paint and a healthy dose of community spirit, they have taken over the adopted park that lately seemed abandoned.
Tyrone Anthony, ACC Student
"This is close to my school, ACC, and when we come across here after to school to hang out its like dirty. There is a lot of dirt and people just mess up the place so we help to clean it up and fix it better for us."
Eve Banks, ACC Graduate
"The swings for one were not up, they were already deteriorated. Most of the slides were not even tact. The benches weren't clean."
CJ Williamson,
"The park was like real crappy and stuff so we had to paint over the benches and fix the swings and all that stuff. We put up new swings because they were old and stuff."
Tyrone Anthony,
"We did painting, fixing new swings, painting and those stuff. We also painted the cathedral wall for the school and those kind of things."
Eve Banks,
"We painted the park, trying to keep it clean, that's mainly it."
Sharon Stevens, ACC Graduate
"We painted and raked the yard."
The students worked with five missionaries from Richmond Virginia who were all under the leadership of Deacon Wayne Kirton. Kirton says choosing this park was an easy decision.
Deacon Wayne Kirton, Anglican Youth Director
"There was a need to have a community project and being attached to the cathedral as well we realized that there was a need to do some work with this park so when the group from Southern Virginia asked about having a community project, I thought this was the ideal place to do some work. Again because of its location to the cathedral as well and also because I waned to get some ACC students involved in community work."
Laura Esquivel, City Councilor
"The council is very appreciative of all groups that would contact the council regarding any community work that will help out the residents of Belize City. We are very excited and grateful to the students that took time out to come down to Belize and choose this project as their community service project."
Equally appreciative is Winston Thompson. He doesn't live in the park but spends a lot of time here and welcomed the facelift.
Winston Thompson, City Resident
"It's better than it was before. It wasn't that clean and now its all cleaned up and stuff."
Keith Swift,
What would you say to these students?
Winston Thompson,
"Thanks."
While it is still referred to as "the BTL Southside park," the company never adopted the park and because of a lack of maintenance, BTL actually removed its name from the park. The materials such as paint for the renovations were donated by the group from Richmond Virginia. This weekend the City Council is holding a flea market to raise funds for their parks program.
City Councilor with responsibility for parks Laura Esquivel told us the first park they plan to work on is the Battlefield Park in downtown Belize City. Meanwhile the BTL Constitution Park on Cemetery Road is scheduled to be opened next week.
