Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Around Town / Phillips Buena Vista Park: A Review
Posted by Betsy Phillips on Wed, Feb 17, 2010 at 5:47 AM
In Short:
Location: Right where the Z. Alexander Looby Library is.
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Crowds: None
Approximate Age of Patrons: N/A
Topics of Conversation: "Oh, the park's right here. Thanks for nothing, Internet."
Stray Dogs Seen: None
Types of Vehicles in Parking Lots: Mine
Perceived Safety: Middling
Number of Gunshots Heard: None
Dog Friendliness: High this time of year, probably not appropriate for dogs once ball starts.
Number of pitbulls sighted: Mine
Accessibility: Not great
Incorporation of Local History: Middling
Recommended Patrons: Families, ball players, library patrons
You can't really take the word of either Google Maps or the Metro Parks page for the 
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location of Buena Vista Park. Google Maps will put you in the middle of some apartments. The Metro Parks site will make you guess from three different addresses.
But it's simple enough. Buena Vista Park is right where the Z. Alexander Looby Library is. There's a lot going on there -- the library (obviously), a pool, a couple of sweet-looking ball fields, and a new-ish playground. There's a lot crammed into a fairly small space.
I felt pretty safe walking around. You're right off Rosa Parks and there's plenty of traffic. Plus you're right up against a bunch of backyards. The only thing is that there are a couple of low spots where it seems that if you were on the ground, folks couldn't see you.
It's not very accessible. People in wheelchairs or on scooters would be stuck on the sidewalks. But if you have some mobility, there are a lot of nice places to sit and watch what's going on.
There's a nice sign that tells you a little about Z. Alexander Looby out front of the 
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library, but I think I trespassed in order to read it. I swear, you can totally guess what problems any given neighborhood has (or what folks think the problems are) based on the signs in the parks.
So apparently the folks at Buena Vista Park are concerned about trespassing and guns. Judging by the people who slowed down to look while I was taking pictures, they also like keeping an eye on large white women stumbling around with their dogs. There's no sign barring that yet, though. And hopefully folks won't get that done until after I finish reviewing all the parks. Ha.
Anyway, this is a nice park and seems like it'd be nicer in the summer. An empty ball field is like a daffodil just breaking the dirt. The sight of it makes you so hungry for spring.
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