Friends of Dublin Park seeks solutions for park concerns
MADISON — Dublin Park has long been a well-known staple of recreation in the City of Madison. Recently, a group of Madison citizens have formed a new organization called “Friends of Dublin Park” (FOD) in hopes to increase the park’s value to the community by identifying and solving a variety of issues.
Margi Daly, a resident of the nearby Walton Acres neighborhood, is spearheading the effort. Daly said the mission of FOD is to make Dublin a “clean, safe park to be used by all the residents.”
According to Daly, the original donation of the 60-acre piece of land on which the park sits was intended to be for residents of Madison City to enjoy. Today, the park sees numerous visitors from across northern Alabama and southern Tennessee, often through outside programs like the American Youth Soccer Organization (AYSO). Daly noted FOD’s desire for outside organizations to respect the park.
With nine total soccer fields—two full-sized and seven smaller fields—Daly also expressed a concern that Dublin does not have enough green space for children and families who are not involved in soccer.
“There’s not one [bit] of flat green space left to have a picnic, throw a frisbee—for kids that don’t play soccer,” Daly said. “We have autistic children [in Madison], and they can’t play soccer, so they enjoy more passive recreation, and there’s just not a spot for them in the park.”
Daly noted that many of these autistic children enjoy the ponds at Dublin, but one of the fountains in those front ponds is not functioning. Not only is this disappointing to the children who enjoy it, but Daly said a lack of oxygen circulation from the fountain can be harmful to fish that inhabit the pond as well.
After meeting with Madison Parks and Recreation Director Kory Alfred and Assistant Director Kelly Johnson, Daly said she learned that the cost to repair the fountain would be about $12,000. Alfred said these funds are not in the budget, so FOD decided to fundraise for the repair costs. The two parties discussed some ideas to accomplish this.
“We appreciate them working with us trying to solve a problem,” Alfred said. “It’s always nice because we get people that complain all the time and never want to put any effort into solving it, and it’s nice just to have a group come together and say, ‘Hey, we’ve identified these issues. What can we do to help?’”
Daly said FOD will help to put on a class fair in the Dublin Park gymnasium to help raise money for the fountain. They are looking at holding it on the first or second Sunday in December.
FOD will also partner with the Parks and Recreation Department on other ideas. They are working to have an annual flea market in the gym, donate sturdy benches and have a silent auction. They are also working to hold a Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) class for emergency preparedness in January 2019.
Something Alfred said he thought was “fantastic” was Daly’s idea to have a fitness station around the trail at Dublin Park.
In terms of safety, Daly said she and other residents in her neighborhood have been concerned about the back gate staying unlocked. Daly noted that there have been multiple “smash-and-grab” crimes in that area, and the last two perpetrators that have been caught were not from Madison.
“We feel that they could park up there, and then they go to the neighborhood [to commit a crime], run back to that dark area and hide from the police and then sweep out,” Daly said.
In an effort to prevent such crimes, FOD has suggested implementing an electronic gate that uses a code, key fob or solar power to open.
To join FOD and stay updated on their causes, request to join the group’s Facebook page: “Friends of Dublin Park (FOD).”
Dublin Park is located at 8324 Madison Pike in Madison. Dublin’s facility is open Monday-Friday 5:30 a.m. – 9 p.m., Saturday 8 a.m. – 8 p.m. and Sunday 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.
