Nature’s Perspective is proud to announce the grand opening of Grandmother Park, located at 1125 Dewey Avenue in Evanston. Serving as the general contractor on this project, we worked closely with Gay Riseborough, president of the Grandmother Park Initiative, and Stephanie Levine, from the City of Evanston, to develop one of the most beautiful tot lots in Evanston. This park will provide a wonderful area for neighborhood children to play and serve many generations to come.
History:
Two grandmothers, Gay and May, were out walking one sunny, summer morning in 2009 in their West Evanston neighborhood and talking about their darling 4 year-old grandsons. They agreed that there was no place to take them to play when the little boys visited them, that there was no place for ANY small children there to play outdoors, and that something ought to be done about that. Quickly discovering that the city had no money for parkland acquisition or development, in typical grandma fashion, the two ladies decided to do it themselves! A poster at a neighborhood block party attracted others and soon a committee was formed, non-profit status acquired, and “Grandmother Park” was off and running.
A residential site, where an empty, foreclosed house burned down, was purchased, and Grandmas Gay and Mary worked very hard to raise the balance of funds needed for development. Though their grandchildren are “too old” now for the park, these two grandmas look very much forward to seeing other children play at Grandmother Park. It will be a gift to the City of Evanston and made a part of the parks system. Please stop by and see Evanston’s newest park at 1125 Dewey Avenue.
