The View From Prospect Hill for the week of July 26

Dennis Sullivan has done many good things in his years as an elected official, but his attempt to restrict city playgrounds is not one of them. Sullivan wants to ban teenagers from the swing sets and play areas of local parks after a recent trip to Chicago where he saw playgrounds that exclusively allowed children under 12 years of age to enjoy them.

  Teenagers in the city already feel alienated and marginalized. If Sullivan has his way, they will receive an explicit message that they are not welcome in the public gathering spots of this community.
  A law banning certain people from playgrounds runs in direct conflict with the concept of open space and what it should be used for. There are precious few parcels of open space in Somerville, what we do have should be shared and enjoyed by all.
  Sullivan must withdraw his order and continue his work bringing people together, not drawing lines in the sand separating citizens in the parks of Somerville.