by Joe Potter

On April 27, Gail Hamilton, Director of the Community Redevelopment Agency, faced the board with a map of the city’s changing face unfurled behind her. Shepard Park, she explained, is waking up anew. The 10-acre oasis at 3010 A Avenue now hums with life, its playgrounds dressed in red, white, and blue—new gear installed late in 2025 that has drawn crowds day after day.

Hamilton numbered the park among a handful of City spaces that saw fresh eyes and new equipment last year, a total that hovered around $2,145,661.81. The vision, she said, extends beyond the swings and slides: Shepard Park could someday serve as a southern gateway to the city, greeting visitors as they arrive.

The board pressed deeper into plans that stretch across Gall Boulevard and into the heart of the downtown, where improvements would beckon new businesses and more foot traffic. Zephyr Park, too, would receive attention, with renovations within the CRA district on the horizon.

Yet some anchors would remain intact: Alice Hall Community Center, perched at Zephyr Park for nearly half a century, would not be torn down as part of these changes. Past discussions had flirted with demolishing the old center and rebuilding a larger home for its name, perhaps somewhere else.

But the latest direction kept the original building in place, with a fence erected behind it to preserve use while Zephyr Park underwent updates. The chief aim of those improvements is practical as well as picturesque: to reduce the floods that plagued the area last year and make the park a more inviting place for everyone.

In the plans, a splash of new water joy waited—a Splashpad to join Zephyr Park’s refreshed landscape, promising relief, relief, and a refreshed sense of place for the community. ♥