The battle of Lexington Park
A Commentary by Matthew McLaughlin
(Note: The views and opinions expressed in the commentaries of the Somerville News belong solely to their authors and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of the News, its staff or its publishers.)

 
Several years ago, members of the Lexington Park community gathered for several meetings on how to best renovate the park.  I couldn‚Äôt have been more than fifteen, but I still remember how explosive and divisive the debate was about something I felt was very simple.  The youth wanted the one half court converted into a full court.

  The majority of  adults, however, wanted one half court, if any court at all.  An uneasy compromise (compromise being the youth were voted down) was made and two half courts were placed side by side.
  Since the renovations, the court where my friends and I played ball  for hours is now usually abandoned.  The awkward design of two half courts parallel to each other makes multiple games difficult and the low fences do not contain balls from bouncing off into the tot lots or onto the bike path.  The end result only solidified the youthÔøΩs suspicions that the compromise was in reality an attempt to stop teens from using the park.  Mission accomplished.
   Almost.
   Now class conflict and petty vandalism are dividing the community, pitting the ‚Äúnew‚Äù and ‚Äúold‚Äù Somerville against each other.  People can claim the conflict began with graffiti tags or an offhand remark from an adult to a youth to mind their manners, but I still trace the conflict back to that meeting years ago, when the community made it clear that the park was intended for only certain age groups.
   Growing up at LP, we never noticed how esthetically unpleasing the park used to be.  The jungle gym was a wooden splinter factory, a lawsuit waiting to happen.  One half court stood diagonally in the corner with its single rim and rusted backboard.  The rest was concrete pavement and steps.  But it was always a community park.  I don‚Äôt recall ever having an issue over ownership of the park, until the renovations that is.
    I was just a child when I saw the park, like the entire city, change before my eyes, for the better in many ways, but not in the sense of inclusiveness for everyone in the community.  We lost the fight years ago when we were young, immature and unable to play the big boys game of negotiations and politics.  But times have changed and the youth from those meetings now represent the core of Save Our Somerville, a non-profit group whose goal is to provide a voice for those who feel they have no voice.  To us Lexington Park isn‚Äôt just a playground; it is a symbol of the discontent and troubles facing our city today.
    Our proposal is simple: convert the two half courts into one full court.  Since the two halves are already the size of one full court, the only change to the park would be moving the hoops to face each other. 
    This would not encroach on any shaded areas nor would it take away from the two tot lots where people bring their children. To further prevent any issues of park space, we want the fences raised around the courts so the basketballs won‚Äôt bounce off the court.  Finally, we want to support artwork, by and for the youth of Somerville, on and around the courts.  This will give the youth a feeling of inclusiveness in an area where they feel excluded.  These changes will not dramatically change the world.  It is, however, a step in the right direction towards a stronger community.
   
Matthew McLaughlin is a lifelong resident of Somerville and president of Save Our Somerville, a non-profit organization. He is currently in Kuwait awaiting deployment to Iraq with the Army.