King Irving Neighborhood Association

Evelyn K. Davis Park Renovations - Des Moines Register

'Town square' park in Des Moines awaits makeover

Residents near a Des Moines park hope that additional equipment and services for their gathering spot will complement other improvements in the area.

Evelyn K. Davis Park, at 16th Street and Forest Avenue, will receive an $875,000 face lift in July in an effort to increase park use and safety.

Don Mayberry, president of the King-Irving Neighborhood Association, said the upgrades would be "an asset to the community."

Mayberry, who has lived in the neighborhood since 1961, said there had been positive changes in the area, and the park additions would continue that upward trend.

"This area doesn't have a great reputation, but I'll really say in the last five years there's been a big turnaround, and we're still working on doing more," Mayberry said.

Marlene Anderson, a spokeswoman with the city's Parks and Recreation Department, said the improvements would enhance a park that had essentially become the "town square" of its section of the city.

The park "is very much so a heart of the neighborhood," Anderson said, adding that the area is climbing upward from a time when the park and surrounding area faced problems of violence and other negative activities.

A half-court basketball court will join the park's existing two full-court basketball sites, in addition to a second open-air shelter that will accommodate 50 people.

Other park improvements will include a space net and other playground equipment, picnic tables, grills, expanded restrooms of an existing open-air shelter, a walking path and landscaping, and an additional 18 shade and nine ornamental trees.

A soccer field will replace one of two baseball fields at the park at a later date.

Work is expected to begin in mid-July and last about 10 weeks.

Organizers have worked for nearly a year to raise donations and gather grants for the improvements, which include $425,000 slated for park management and programming along with an increased police presence at the park.

Resident John Warrington said he was not entirely sure the changes would draw more people to the neighborhood landmark.

"There's plenty of things in there to do, but they're just not using it," said Warrington, who lives across the street. "The city cleaned it up so well. It used to be the place to get drugs for years, but it hardly gets used."

Edna Hall, who has lived three units down from Warrington for the past six months, said she saw the park used often, with "kids playing and parents talking" on the nearby park benches.

Hall added that the park improvements would provide an opportunity to bring the community together.

"I think it would inspire people to come out and talk to each other about bigger issues, like keeping our young people in school," Hall said.

Mayberry said he hoped the park improvements would help the neighborhood shed its negative image.

"With everything that's going on, I'm hoping that the negatives will leave this area because it really isn't as bad as it seems," Mayberry said.

Reporter Michele Brown can be reached at (515) 284-8065 or micbrown@dmreg.com

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