Defenders of public lands succeed in restoring urban green space
Click to enlarge. Photo: Nayeli Salcido.
HERMOSILLO
It took us 26 Saturdays, but we did it: We restored Villa de Seris Park, and on Sunday, Feb. 23, we celebrated the Citizen’s Grand Reopening of this symbolic space.
Our usual bunch got together, along with a good number of people invited through social networks. It was a wonderful day because we were able to reconnect with other people involved in their own conservation efforts across the city. They showed up to congratulate us on our work and to invite us to create synergies that will allow us all to hand down a more livable Hermosillo to coming generations.
We wish to thank Martín Matrecitos and María Dolores del Río, who were the only state representatives to make an appearance, although all 33 members of the State’s Legislature were invited. Likewise, Carlos León deserves a shout out as the only Hermosillo City Councilman of the 21 invited who joined us at the event.
While the majority of politicians turned a blind eye, it was a true grassroots celebration. We were especially moved by one woman’s participation. She invited us to continue planting trees, something she has been doing all her life, and told us that in spite of still recuperating from three recent strokes, she wanted to be a part of the festivities. She also had a message of commitment to deliver to our capital city when she offered the fruit trees she had for us to plant.
Another participant, Lourdes Moreno, spoke out to ask for our solidarity with a group of neighbors who for months have been trying to turn a vacant lot located in front of the ISSSTE hospital into a green area. Eva Calderón, staunch defender of Parque Madero, also addressed the gathering and acknowledged our work.
She participated in the takeover of the location by holding a yoga practice that complemented the other activities taking place there, including cell-phone free games for kids.
There was excellent media coverage, complete with live web links allowing many to follow the ceremony step by step, in real time.
We wish to thank the following media outlets for providing the majority of the coverage for the various stages of the park’s restoration: César Fraijo and Diario del Yaqui; El Periódico Expreso; Proyecto Puente, Radio Pólitica y Rock and Roll; and Libera Radio.
Honorable mentions go to TV Azteca, Televisa, El Imparcial, and Uniradio Noticias for a number of broadcasts and publicity of specific activities, as well as to all the media outlets that publicized the efforts of the Cuidadania Activa collective at this latest event or during our years of struggle to make our city sustainable.
This feat was made possible by a growing wave of citizen participation in our capital of those seeking to reach out to decision makers to share ideas and find solutions to the tragedy we are experiencing.
The persistent lack of sufficient public spaces for healthy recreation for Hermosillo residents must be addressed, both during and after the current Covid-19 pandemic.
In addition to what remains to be done at the Villa de Seris Park, there are many issues that we would like to address. We urgently need to further discuss with the government the conservation of important public spaces such as La Sauceda recreational area, and the Héctor Espino Stadium, as well as the creation of green areas in these places to provide the lungs our city needs.
More than a year ago, we made a written request for a meeting with Hermosillo Mayor Célida Teresa López Cárdenas, in order to discuss possible solutions to the problem. She publicly promised to meet with us, but didn't do so until after obtaining a resolution to auction them.
We want to urge her not to sell any more green spaces and to tell her we do not want a repeat of what happened in the original Villa de Seris Park, where more than 600 trees were killed.
We want her to know that we have planted more than 100 trees in the park, and all they need is tending. Furthermore, in La Sauceda's recreational area, on municipal property where the private concession expired, we are beginning rehabilitation, having removed the buffel grass in more than 70 percent of the parking area, all in compliance with the current health measures established as a result of the pandemic.
We want to tell her that betting on the environment can be profitable economically, especially if our idea for a biological corridor is adopted which would entail the planting of 14,000 to 20,000 trees along the bed of the Río Sonora between La Sauceda and the Ecopark.
We want to say that she doesn't need to look for resources to rehabilitate these public spaces because she already has an even more important resource right now, human power. We can tell her that more than 30 environmental groups already have done restoration work in the last year, and that for us the revitalized public spaces will be very beneficial.
We want her to know that these new green areas will combat the effects of increasing environmental pollution and, at the same time, will serve to reweave the social fabric, giving Hermosillo families the opportunity to enjoy places where they can meet outdoors under the shade of many trees.
There is much that can be done collaboratively between civil society and government, and so we have been knocking on doors with our proposals. Citizen pressure is getting stronger. We hope that politicians understand this and support rather than hinder the public interest.