Lewis Park, Saint Paul

Dear St. Paul Parks and Recreation:

You are truly excellent. Your pools are glorious and your parks are numerous and inviting. I'd be your Leslie Knope any day.

But there is an execrable amount of trash in some of the parks I have visited recently, notably, Lewis Park. I spent some time cleaning it up, so before we left there was only a partially dismantled kids' bike and a damp, decapitated stuffed animal of some kind within range of the play area. Oh, I didn't pick up the empty condom wrapper, either because, well, you know...

After this communion with candy wrappers, bottles, and beer cans, I noticed a lack of accessible and clearly-marked bins. The only receptacle I saw in Lewis Park is what I would call a "burn bin:" a rusty old steel oil drum like the kind in which we used to burn our paper trash.

The website for Lewis Park shows a department that is obviously proud of the new play area and splash pad, and it should be:

"The play area features a new line of play equipment like nothing you have seen before. It has something for kids of all ages to play on.  Rave reviews have been made of the synthetic turf surfacing which allows people of all abilities to access the play equipment.  It even allows parents to get into the play equipment to assist their children or even play on it themselves. Another highlight of the improvements is the debut of the City of Saint Paul’s first splash pad. Water sprays from 5 in-ground jets, 2 water wiggles, and a water tent which are all activated by a touch bollard at the edge of the splash pad."

Lewis Park is definitely a nice place, with large trees and grassy areas as well as the above-mentioned play set and splash pad. But there is only street parking and a single port-o-potty. The trash made me begin to despair for humanity. Recently, my son asked me why people litter, and I couldn't give reasons other than laziness and not caring. Wecould get into a lot of sociological discussions about the disenfranchisement of urban youth and how this can translate into a lack of neighborhood pride and connection, but that doesn't clean up my median on a daily basis.

In any case, this park had a feeling of desolation. Granted, it wasn't the most glorious of days, and it was before lunch on a weekday, but I was surprised that there were not more people around. And the playground, while cool, is a bit too big for my boy (3' 5.75"). There are no slides or traditional swings, though there are two toddler swings. He had difficulty navigating the climby bits because he could not reach or otherwise breach the distance between two points. There is also a small climbing wall, and it has a message for you.

My guess is that you are aware of the issues with trash and assignations that involve the use of prophylactics, and that it's something that is difficult to combat. I know that Americans have been brainwashed to believe that taxes are the devil, and they don't understand the function of taxation and all the good that government does on a daily basis to provide them with a stable society. I know that cuts have occurred at all service levels and revenues are down, but is there anything that can be done?

Love,

-kitty