Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2010

County can do more for parks

County Commissioner Jeff Carver is probably right. The most valuable piece of real estate in this country is likely a park, Central Park in New York City. By law, it will forever be an island of green in a sea of steel and glass. But what can a park in far-away New York teach us here in Johnston County?

Maybe Central Park says that not every subdivision has to have its own green space. Perhaps centralized swaths of green are sufficient, even preferable. Central Park is the most recognizable of New York parks, but it's hardly alone among centralized parks. Hudson River Park, on the West Side, has 550 acres with bike paths, batting cages, kayaking, canoeing, summertime movies and concerts. Riverside Park, on the Upper West Side, has about 267 acres with ballfields and paths for bikes and pedestrians.

We could go on, but for the sake of argument, let's say that centralized parks are better than pockets of green in every subdivision. What is Johnston County doing to foster such parks?

The glass is either half-empty or half-full depending on one's point of view. A couple of years ago, County Commissioners did ask voters to borrow $3.7 million for parks and recreation, and voters said yes. That money is aiding the public and private groups that operate parks and recreation programs in Johnston.

The county's record is less impressive when it comes to using proceeds from the fee that developers pay when they choose not to set aside open spaces in their subdivisions. First, the fee is too low -- it has generated just $800,000 in its many years of existence. We doubt the county could buy centralized parkland with that money. Second, County Commissioners have shown no inclination to do anything with the money they took from developers.

County Commissioner Wade Stewart likes to note that Johnston County has plenty of open spaces. He points, for example, to Howell Woods Environmental Learning Center and its thousands of acres east of Four Oaks. But Howell Woods, unlike Central Park, is not convenient to residents. It's not in a population center.

Fortunately, towns in Johnston are building parks near where people live. Smithfield has done so with Community Park, and Clayton is about to do so with a park on Glen Laurel Road. Maybe County Commissioners, with that fee they're collecting, can find a way to help those groups that are building Johnston's Central Parks.