MIDDLETOWN -- The park is in nobody's neighborhood, and that's just the point. Residents helping develop Middletown's Bicentennial Commons want to make the riverfront park a gathering place for the entire community.
"We want to have programs here that will include all cultures, where anybody can feel welcome," said Knight Goodman, chairman of the Bicentennial Commons Council.
Right now, some of Middletown's outdoor performing arts events are held at neighborhood parks and do not necessarily draw audiences from other areas.
The commons project, modeled after Cincinnati's Bicentennial Commons at Sawyer Point, is an outgrowth of Middletown's 200th birthday celebration in 1991. A citizens group spearheaded the planning and fund raising.
Most money has come from private sources. Gifts have come from individuals and businesses and from the Middletown Community Foundation. A state grant of $200,000 to the city helped pay for the most recent phase of the development.
A ceremonial flag-raising in April marked completion of the first two phases of the commons. Located along Carmody Drive parallel to Main Street, the park has a semicircular plaza flanked by a landscaped promenade. Steps from the plaza lead to a riverside natural area. One end of the promenade links the existing commons with the next phase, an outdoor performance area under construction.
A bulldozer is at work, shaping the site where a fabric pavilion will be installed. The pavilion and its surroundings are financed by a grant from AK Steel Corp. It should be completed by late summer, according to Jack Howard, retired Middletown city planner and member of the Bicentennial Commons Council.
Council member Ann Mort points to a stretch of riverfront downhill from the plaza. "With new funding from the Middletown Community Foundation and other donors, we will plant prairie grasses and wildflowers out there -- plants that can withstand temporary high water," she said.
The community is beginning to discover its new commons. Middfest has held events there. Ms. Mort mentions that a wedding function is scheduled this month.
As time goes on, the Bicentennial Commons Council hopes that Middletown residents will see the place as their own and turn out for programs or just stop by to relax, glimpse a blue heron or linger for a sunset.
