Friends of Watsessing Park Conservancy

By Mimi Peizer Michalski

At the end of 1997, the neighborhood surrounding Watsessing Park was having problems with crime and other quality-of-life issues. A small group of neighbors met at one of their homes to discuss banding together to make improvements in the neighborhood.

From that early conversation, a neighborhood association was born. The first public meeting of the association, dubbed “The Watsessing Heights Neighborhood Association,” took place in the spring of 1998. The WHNA’s goals were to clean up and improve Watsessing Park, revitalize local businesses to ensure their success, make street improvements on Carteret Street, address crime, and hold community events to help neighbors get to know one another. The group eventually divided into committees to address specific goals.

From the beginning, Watsessing Park was always a focus for the WHNA. The first park cleanup was held in April 1998 and was one of the first unifying gatherings hosted by the nascent group. During the holiday season of 1998, the WHNA decorated the fences by the park with holiday symbols. This holiday tradition continued for many years.

In August of 1999, members of the WHNA met with then-County-Executive James W. Treffinger, Director Dan Salvante, and his Assistant Director, Sarah Hanson, at the home of one of the group’s officers. At the meeting, the WHNA presented concerns related to the condition of the park, including pollution, dangerous and obsolete playground equipment, broken benches and fences, missing trees, litter, etc. and discussed how to address them.

It was at this meeting that the WHNA first discussed the creation of a Conservancy that would enter into a contract with the County to have a say in projects that are done in the park in exchange for doing volunteer work to benefit the park, something the County had already done with 7 other neighborhood groups within Essex County. However, with so many other projects going on, although there were a few improvements done to the park after the meeting, the Conservancy was still a distant idea.

By early 2000, the park had continued to deteriorate. Members of the WHNA spoke in front of the Essex County Freeholders to demand improvements to Watsessing Park. In March, then-Freeholder President Joe DiVincenzo went for a walk-through of the park led by members of the WHNA executive committee, followed by a meeting at the Senior Center.

Over the years WHNA Park Committee continued to work with the County coordinating park cleanups, negotiating a solution to radon remediation efforts in the area that were going to affect the park, and choosing the design of new playgrounds to be installed by the County in the park.

In the meantime, the WHNA was expanding its efforts much more broadly. The group presented recommendations to the Planning Board for the Master Plan Revision, got involved with monitoring and working with developers planning to come into the neighborhood, and more. The Park Committee wasn’t receiving the focus it needed. It soon became clear there needed to be a separate group to oversee Watsessing Park and give it the full attention it deserved.

By focusing solely on the park, new members and volunteers could be recruited who were more interested in the park vs. other community projects.

By this time the County, under County Executive Joe DiVincenzo, had driven access to more Green Acres grants from the state by helping park conservancies apply for the Green Acre grants, which would then be matched by the County.

The County encouraged all park organizations to form nonprofit 501(c)(3) corporations to be able to take advantage of this opportunity.

The WHNA voted to split the former Park Committee off as the Watsessing Park Conservancy. The nonprofit was officially formed in August of 2003. The original trustees were Karen Altman, formerly of Cleveland Terrace, Jane Myers (deceased, formerly of Clinton Street), Thess Prince (Olive Street), and Mimi Michalski (Morse Ave).

The County assisted the new group in applying for a Green Acres grant that would roll over every year as funds became available. There was a list of projects included in order of priority. Over the ensuing years many of these were accomplished, but much was still left to be done.

Unfortunately, people moved away, some lost interest, and others became too busy over time. Recordkeeping went downhill and WPC lost its 501(c)(3) status in 2011.

But like a phoenix rising from the ashes, a whole new group arose and created a new Friends of Watsessing Park Conservancy, and now once again there is a great group championing our park.