Although there are rumors that the proposed trail along Crestwood has been shelved, we have not yet received official confirmation from the City of Houston Parks Department. While we wait and see if the rumors prove true, we must continue to express our opposition to a new multi-use trail being constructed along Crestwood, now or in the future.
Please contact Mike VanDusen, civic club president, with any questions about how you can help.
Please contact Paul Bice if you want to sign the Resolution he presented - and received unanimous support for - at the April all-neighborhood meeting.
The following briefly explains the issue and our neighborhood's position on it. Thank you for supporting our neighborhood.
Issue:
A trails subcommittee of the Memorial Park Conservancy is recommending a new multi-use trail be built along Crestwood Drive. This multi-use trail was NOT included in the 2004 approved Memorial Park Master Plan. The neighborhood received a presentation about the proposed trail at our April all-neighborhood meeting and voiced unanimous opposition to the trail being built along Crestwood at that meeting. Neighbors have been speaking against the proposed trail at City Council meetings, writing letters opposing the proposed trail to elected officials, City Parks and Recreation Department staff and the Memorial Park Conservancy.
Main neighborhood objections to the proposed trail are:
1. This is a big change from the approved Master Plan and the change is being put forward by an un-elected, un-accountable body of people without input from our neighborhood or the public at large
2. The approved Master Plan's trail plan already allows for an expanded trail system and the construction of new trails within Memorial Park that would not affect our established neighborhood
3. No new parking spaces or additional infrastructure within Memorial Park are being added to accommodate the additional people who will come to use the proposed new multi-use trail
4. Parking, increased vehicular traffic and the possibility of increased crime associated with all the additional cars parked along Crestwood and other neighborhood streets have not been addressed, even though City of Houston street codes recommend that streets be “developed for residential purposes that discourages through traffic while maintaining adequate access and traffic movement for convenient circulation within the subdivision and access for fire, police, and other emergency services.
5. Neighborhood children would be put at risk if/when additional Park users drive and park their cars within our neighborhood to use the proposed new multi-use trail
Letters and/or e-mails to the City of Houston and Memorial Park Conservancy should be addressed to the following:
o Joe Turner, Director, City of Houston Parks & Recreation Department: 832.395.7050, joe.turner@cityofhouston.net
A template for your message is provided here; it should be customized to voice your own opinion:
Dear Mayor/Council Member/Parks Director/Mr. or Mrs. [choose correct title and add the correct last name] -
I write to urge you to stop the proposed Memorial Park outer loop trail along Crestwood Drive. Although there are rumors that this ill-conceived trail will not be built along one of our neighborhood streets, our civic club has not received any official confirmation from the City's Parks Department and I continue to worry about this.
I am a long time resident of the Glencove/Crestwood neighborhood located on the eastern edge of Memorial Park.
I am a supporter of Memorial Park, recognize it to be a tremendous asset inside the loop of the City of Houston and am a frequent user of the park amenities.
I play golf almost every week, use the gym and the tennis courts and often use the trails within the Park to ride my bicycle or walk.
I oppose a new multi-use trail along Crestwood for the following reasons:
1. This is a big change from the approved Master Plan and the change is being put forward by an un-elected, un-accountable body of people without input from our neighborhood or the public at largeThe approved Master Plan's trail plan already allows for an expanded trail system that begins and ends at the intersections of Memorial and the Park Loop road at the east and west entrances. The construction of this trail within Memorial Park would not affect our established neighborhood
2. No new parking spaces or additional infrastructure within Memorial Park are being added to accommodate the additional people who will come to use the proposed new multi-use trail
3. Parking, increased vehicular traffic and the possibility of increased crime associated with all the additional cars parked along Crestwood and other neighborhood streets have not been addressed, even though City of Houston street codes recommend that streets be “developed for residential purposes that discourages through traffic while maintaining adequate access and traffic movement for convenient circulation within the subdivision and access for fire, police, and other emergency services.
Neighborhood children would be put at risk if/when additional Park users drive and park their cars within our neighborhood to use the proposed new multi-use trail
Thank you for your consideration and time. Please contact me with any questions at [your phone #] or [your email address].
Please send an e-mail with any information or concerns to:
StopTheCrestwoodTrail@CrestwoodGlenCove.org. If you’d like to speak with a board member about this topic, please feel free to call Mike VanDusen at 713.864.0221 or Mary Christ at 713.410.4888.
