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Snell-Crawford Park water crossings should be opened

Doing so will increase access, safety at popular site

For decades, vehicles used to be able to enter Snell-Crawford Park from Williams Drive and proceed deep into the park to a spot not far from the historic Granger cabin. To make that possible, the park road crossed through the shallow waters of Soldier Creek at two spots.

Those crossings, which have been closed for a couple of years, should be reopened.

The City Council will consider doing that this evening. We call on the council members to vote in favor of reopening the crossings.

A proposed master plan to guide the future care of the park will come before the council tonight. It includes two options for the water crossings. One option closes them. The other keeps them open, while creating some safety features that will force traffic to go very slowly when moving through the crossings.

Opening the crossings will provide greater access to the interior of the park for more people. That will be especially true for the elderly, the disabled, and even those using crutches or a cane temporarily while they recover from an injury. Right now, those folks are essentially prevented from going into certain areas of the park.

Opening the crossings will also enhance the safety of the park. With the crossings open, police vehicles will be able to go deep into the park so officers can make sure nothing improper is going on there. And if someone gets sick or hurt in the park, an ambulance will be able to get much closer to them if it can cross the creek.

Access and safety are important in any park. At Snell-Crawford Park, open water crossings will provide both of those elements.

Therefore, we ask the council members to vote in favor of opening them.

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