Happy New Year

Six months ago, the citizens of Memphis were invited to “Speak Up” for Overton Park by taking a survey created by a volunteer working group. You were asked to tell us how you really feel about Overton Park, and that’s exactly what you did.

With nearly 1,700 responses, the Speak Up survey created a strong community vision for Overton Park.

You said you want a clean, safe park. You want restrooms. You want better playgrounds and a fenced dog park. You want to protect and enhance the Old Forest and the Greensward. You want more community events at the park, and more bicycle/pedestrian links to your neighborhoods.

We asked if you would support non-profit conservancy management of Overton Park, and 68% of you gave unqualified support for that idea. Only 1% of you said no.

Based on these survey results, our working group went to Mayor AC Wharton and the Memphis City Council with a proposal for non-profit management of the park. The Overton Park Conservancy management agreement was approved unanimously by the City Council on December 6, 2011.

Our goal is to help Overton Park become the best park it can be. To make that happen, we need your continued input and support. Please follow us on Twitter, like us on Facebook, and subscribe to our email newsletter.