City of Atlanta to Participate in National Park(ing) Day

Note: We haven't received word that Fayette County was participating in this project, but it sounded kind of interesting. Not sure that putting a park in a parking place is going to gain any support in Atlanta given the fight for good spots in some places! Can you imagine what would happen if a large group of artists descended on City Hall in Peachtree City and turned all the spots into mini-parks? It made a few of us think back to the days of sit-ins... (yes, way back). Given the fact that this was sent out by the City of Atlanta, I'm sure they have their blessing, and I'm sure if someone out here decided to do the same they'd coordinate with the city or county government also. It would be fun to do something like this, wouldn't it? Maybe we'll pop the info in our Arts Across Georgia blog, too, just to see if some enterprising artist wants to take on the project. One more little note: Is anyone surprised the idea originated in California?

On National Park(ing) Day, Friday, September 19, 2008, volunteers in more than seventy cities across the U.S. will create more than four hundred temporary parks in public parking spaces. The goals of the event, according to organizers, are to celebrate parks and promote the need for parks in America’s cities.

National Park(ing) Day is sponsored by The Trust for Public Land (TPL), a national conservation nonprofit, based on an idea conceived by REBAR, a San Francisco art collective.

The City of Atlanta will host a Park(ing) Day park at City Hall, involving local artists, farmers and a demonstration solar panel.

“By turning parking spaces into instant parks, National Park(ing) Day creatively demonstrates how much our cities need parks,” said Will Rogers, TPL president. “Across America, cities are renewing their investments in parks, because civic leaders have come to recognize that close-to-home parks, gardens, and playgrounds are essential if we are to have cities that aren't just livable, but lovable.”

In 2007, National Park(ing) Day spawned more than 200 new parks in more than fifty cities nationwide and around the world.

National Park(ing) Day 2008 is a concept created by San Francisco art collective Rebar in 2005 to re-imagine the potential of the metered parking space. In 2006, in collaboration with TPL, REBAR founded “PARK(ing) Day”: a global exploration of the creative potential of streets.

Brief descriptions of all the parks planned for this year and photos from last year’s event can be found at www.tpl.org/parkingday.
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