Question

TOXIC RECREATIONAL CENTER ENVIRONMENTAL RACISM?

The growing concern for the environment has increased public interest in the need for eco-friendly cities.  Baltimore City residents and policymakers are, therefore, becoming more environmentally conscious in the development and rehabilitation of  the city. The management of Baltimore City is becoming increasingly more complex as city is experiencing, crime including political corruption,  socio-economic divisiveness, racial segregation, dwindling tax base and stalled physical and economic growth. Remembering you are the Assistant Director of Recreation and Parks for the City of Baltimore. You are the trouble shooter and problem solver for the city residents and the parks department. When something happens in this city you are the go-to person they  (The Director of Recreation and Parks, The Mayor and, The City Council) turn to you, you are respected, experienced and well educated so your decisions actual become departmental policy.

Urban growth in East Baltimore has led to an increase in land values; thus, leading to competition between land uses including the demarcation of land for urban parks. The indirect economic benefits of urban parks make it difficult to place an economic value on them; thus, affecting the ability for policymakers to assess their true cost and benefits. This adversely affects the level of investment in the development of parks which limits the sustainable management of parks. Strigl (2003) describes the sustainable management of parks as the efficient and effective organization of park use through negotiations, comprises, and consensus building among stakeholders. However, recent news reports and complaints by residents in the city, especially West Baltimore and its residents who have been severely neglected in terms of  overall development and improvements because of crime, abject poverty and socio-economic demographics which prevented the private sector developers from investing in the area. In addition, the West Baltimore area houses some of the poorest areas of the city and some of the worst areas in terms of city services according to residents and outside observers. This is especially true regarding parks and recreation facilities in the West Baltimore area. Recently a park refurbishment in the Harlem Park section of West Baltimore was halted due to concerns by environmentalist that the grounds where the park was being built were contaminate decades ago during early part of the 19^th century by an automobile battery factory owned by General Motors. The environmentalist have determined through studies that the company upon closing the factory have buried thousands of tons of automobile batteries and chemicals underground which have been slowly leeching out into the grounds of the park.  However, during the initial development of the park several soil samples have been taken by several different groups including the Federal government through the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), The State of Maryland Department of Environment and The Baltimore City Department of Environmental control all signed off on the project. government indicating that the grounds under park were safe and free from harmful levels of contamination and the project was greenlighted by the Mayor, The City Council, and numerous other elected officials, neighborhood association leaders, celebrities and the surrounding community. The project was viewed as a resounding success and the park was expanded into a neighborhood recreational facility complete with a food bank, job training center, daycare and senior center  and numerous sports programs and activities for the community. The facility is currently viewed as model for urban revitalization of impoverished communities nationwide. It has evolved from a simple clearing of abandoned homes to a large recreational center with the possibility of further expansion. It has attracted numerous volunteers, donors throughout the country

In spite of the success of the facility and its effects on the neighborhood a recent Netflix Documentary/investigation about the extremely high cancer rate amongst residents  in the West Baltimore, Maryland 21215-area code surrounding the facility and neighborhood. After the documentary investigation more samples were taken of the soil and investigation of the processes undertaken to complete the project. In addition , the Maryland Department of Health, Johns Hopkins University, and several other public and private hospitals and concerned citizens formed a consortium to investigate the allegations outlined in the documentary. The consortiums findings revealed that the facility should have never been built on the site and it was highly likely that the site and the underground contamination were possibly the root causes in the high levels of cancer, asthma, skin rashes, COPD, suffered by the residents and patrons on the facility. In the mad rush to open the facility and under pressure by the constituents and the media someone signed off on the project. Further investigation has found that the culprits who were involved in green lighting the project are either deceased or retired so there would be one alive to held accountable, no criminal convictions, arrests, indictments but there will be a Class Action Lawsuit by the residents. Currently the facility has been ordered closed temporarily by the city effective April 20, 2020  based on recommendations by the consortium researching the situation while further tests and a solution to correct the problem is discovered. However, the summer months are coming up and the need by all stakeholders is to get out in front of this issue ASAP by coming up with a plan.

The Mayor of the City of Baltimore has ordered an Emergency Action Plan to be developed by the Department of Recreation & Parks. The Director of Recreation and Parks has asked you to come up with a plan to determine what are the essential programs and how to transfer/ temporarily move those services to other organizations in the area to keep the programs operating. Because many of the programs utilize separate funding specifically for their programs based upon participation it is essential that there be no disruption of their program or they would lose funding for the program  Your directives coming from the Mayor, the Director of Parks & Recreation, and other city leaders is to first address the community in a Town Hall Meeting at a local church in the area.

In order to address the conflicts between the environmental and economic use of land; planners, park administrators and advocates need to combine their procedural and substantive skills and become central players in dealing with the conflict between growth, environment and social justice (Campbell 2011). The Baltimore City government and the Baltimore City Recreation & Parks authorities are also confronted and pressured with the problem of gentrification, budget challenges, appeasing various ethnic and cultural groups, socio-economic challenges, funding, creation, management and maintenance of urban parks and recreation. Despite their social and ecological benefits some of these projects will continue to move forward in an effort to appease constituents and the public. These competing interests make dealing with most urban issues such as the management of parks complex and costly; thus, the need to study some of the factors that influence the urban park development. The ability of recreation and park professional to conduct critical analysis, make strategic decisions make it imperative that leadership in the field be knowledgeable and taken seriously because the importance of recreation and parks cannot and should not be underestimated.

QUESTIONS:

1. You will write a statement( 1 page) on behalf of the Department of Parks & Recreation position of the issue, addressing the constituents, parents/children, vendors, staff, and all members of the community regarding the Recreation Center current status and what will be done to continue the programs and services offered be the community.
2. You will develop an emergency action plan to move the essential programs and services to other organizations, and entities in the community and determine the best way to notify the community of these changes.
3. You will develop a table outlining where the essential programs will be moved to and held.
4. Create a list of who you should approach and address with moving the programs and explaining the departments position. (simply cite the place where you obtain you references).

Answer 1

Summary:

In the first image, a statement on behalf of departments of parks and recreation is mentioned.

In the second image, it is noted that emergency action plans to move the essential programs and services to other organizations and entities in the community to determine the best way to notify the community of these changes.

In the third image, tabulation of essential programs to whom to move and held.

In the fourth image, it is stated the list to whom to approach and moving the programs. And explaining the department positions.