We need parks, big and small

NOW that I hear the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) has actually provided a small park in Navotas for the public, I am encouraged to ask them to look into all Metro Manila areas and provide pocket parks for people’s health and leisure. The MMDA chairman, Romando S. Artes, has promised they would. If this is the case, I hope the local government units (LGUs) concerned will be enthusiastic about doing this and cooperate. Metro Manila has the highest population density in the world, with a population per square mile of 119,600. This density level is up there compared to cities in other countries.

According to the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), population density is neither good nor bad but becomes that depending on the basic services that are provided. And certainly facilities for parks in urban areas, particularly high-density areas, are a much-needed basic service.

It may be a challenging endeavor to build more parks. It seems there are no more public spaces left, even sidewalks have become markets, traffic islands have barangay halls or police stations. Other open spaces are turned into parking lots. There is hardly any green left except for struggling trees in public places like streets, which are put upon by people, garbage, detritus.

One very obvious sight is the amount of cement poured all over public spaces practically strangling trees and plants which have to fight its toxic presence. The lack of grass and open ground causes flash floods as the cement obstructs water from draining safely into the ground. And they can hardly be described as leisure or calm environments.

So, if there are no public spaces, the remedy is to invest in purchasing private property and providing a park, making it a public space. This may be unorthodox but under present circumstances, it is the only way to acquire public space for the good of city residents. It is time to be innovative and do what is necessary.

In New York City, which people think of as a concrete

jungle, there are quite a number of pocket parks aside from Central Park and other formal park areas. The pocket parks are 300 to 400 square meters with greenery, benches and flower beds, even grass. Many of them I would guess came from donations to the city by heirs or owners. Would that there would be civic-spirited citizens here who could donate property for public parks. The New York pocket parts are in between buildings providing open space, a view of the sky and the benefit of outdoor air. They mitigate the concrete jungle by giving residents or visitors natural elements that calm their nerves. There they take in the sun, eat their packed lunches, have coffee breaks, or just sit and breathe the open air.

We do have Luneta for a park, cluttered as it is. But it is in one part of a city that has many parts because of its huge sprawl. Mobility issue like inadequate and relatively expensive public transport and difficulty in transporting families with children is one drawback for those who live far from it. Neighborhood parks are just what everyone needs.

Many have criticized the Dolomite Beach that the DENR has put up along Roxas Boulevard. But it is very popular, much used and a destination for city folk. Yes, it was expensive to put up, and has high maintenance issues, but those are compensated for by the people who appreciate it. Besides, there is no alternative on offer.

Government officials should also rethink what they will use in the few public spaces that are left. They should be left exactly as that, public space for all to use, to go outdoors, to relax, to have healthy green surroundings. This means they should be invested in for general use.

While there is a need for housing for which public space may well be used, I hope that there will be room for small parks in these areas and not just a line of concrete houses and cemented surroundings. Maybe this is an opportunity to show that everyone, rich and poor, homeless and homeowner, young and old deserves parks.

But the truth is that the idea of parks and open spaces left as is for the public is farthest from authorities that think they have the ultimate say on them. And that is to put barangay halls, police stations, and even garbage disposal areas in these spaces.

I am just mentioning parks but I also mean putting some sporting facilities aside from ubiquitous basketball courts if there is enough space. How about a skateboarding area, areas for native games like piko, arnis, patintero? Even sandboxes for toddlers might bring babies out to feel the sun and air. Pass by the Heritage complex cemeteries in Bonifacio with their wide open spaces for tombs and mausoleums. Note that the green islands outside their walls are used by people, especially young ones to play in or just sit around. They have made them into a park because it is a green open space.

Obviously, there would be a need for maintenance and vigilance for parks. There must be authorized persons, park employees who will need to be paid. Parks are not just left to themselves, they must be supervised and cared for if they are to fulfill what they are made for.

Meanwhile, I note that when I take the Pantaleon Bridge from Rockwell at sunset, people from Mandaluyong, mostly teenagers, but also some families with children, even a handful of old folk, are in the pedestrian lanes of the bridge lounging and feeling the cooler night air, watching the Pasig River below and observing the lights from Makati as well as the moon and stars when they appear. They have made it into a park because there is none they can go to. More people could enjoy this kind of relaxation if there were designated areas for it and that means parks.

Government officials, particularly local government officials, please take note and give your constituents parks.