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| - Reviewing your neighborhood park is a little bit like reviewing your own back yard. Sure, there are things you'd change if you had the time or patience, but hey.. it's home. I feel a little bit this way about Independence Park, which stretches across Hawthorne Lane almost to the CPCC campus on one side, and extends well down 7th Street on the other. I live in Elizabeth and walk there on an almost daily basis.
Independence Park is, essentially, two parks. Incidentally, it is also the oldest of Charlotte's original city parks, having opened in 1904. Here's an item for you trivia fans: Where did Independence Boulevard (Charlotte's first "expressway") get its name? Answer: from Independence Park. Until the late 1940s, much of the park was located in the corridor where the Charlottetown/Independence name change occurs.
The north side of the park, on which Elizabeth Traditional Elementary School rests, is the action-oriented end of the park: there are ballfields, a track and jungle gym equipment that also serves as the school's playground. This end of the park also has an awesome view of the city skyline. It's also a place where team sports, both kid and adult, are practiced and played. The tennis courts are rather tucked away toward the Armory. Because of the school component, this end of the park is generally busy. The Hawthorne Recreation Center, located on Hawthorne Lane, is leased primarily for table-tennis league play.
The south end of the park on the other side of Hawthorne Lane is the "neighborhood" side of the park. With mature trees and large camellia bushes, it is both calm, quiet, and often a little overlooked. The rose garden on the park's far south end is well-tended and lovely. I've seen many brides-to-be having wedding portraits snapped there.
Two minor concerns: the first may well be addressed with plans currently in the works between city planners and Elizabeth residents. The south end of the park lacks much kid-friendly play space, which is important to residents who'd like to take their wee ones to play in an area not surrounded by older school-aged children. The second: there are no decent water fountains for four-legged companions. From personal experience with my own dog, I've received my share of dirty looks when I've held up my pooch to sip from the fountain (hey, I don't let her lick the metal!). I recently noticed that the park's north side has installed a pooch fountain, but it wasn't working. No points for that, but perhaps with warmer weather this will change.
All in all, Independence Park, my neighborhood park, isn't "perfect," but then part of its charm is its authenticity, its history, and its span from the tree-lined suburban to the panoramic urban side. I say it's A-OK, with room to improve.
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