Save Hines Park

Several people have reached out to us to ask if we are still an active group. The answer is yes we are. Things have been quiet lately and we don't have much news to share. We are out there enjoying our public park lands and we hope that you are too, especially Hines Park! We will share a few pictures of a very flooded Hines from this morning. The park is completely shut down for vehicular traffic from Dearborn all the way to Northville.

UPDATE

Brennan Rec Center Meeting Postponed to November 30
The Public Comment Meeting for the Rouge Park Recreation Center has been rescheduled for November 30 at 5:30pm. Please attend if you can and spread the word.

THANK YOU to all of you who wrote letters to the City of Detroit on this important issue. If you haven't written yet please do so, and urge others as well. (email: Crystal Perkins, GSD Director at [email protected] and please cc: [email protected]).

Bridge Detroit published an article on the Brennan Oak Grove yesterday.

We need everyone who values the beautiful and historic Brennan Oak Grove to email the City and express their opposition to the loss of this priceless natural and historic landmark. (Email: Crystal Perkins, GSD Director [email protected] and please cc: [email protected]). We also need you to attend the November 30 public meeting at the Brennan Pools Building to support an alternative location for the new recreation center. The meeting starts at 5:30pm (map).

BACKGROUND:

This centennial oak grove was planted as part of the original park landscaping in the 1920s when the park first opened. The pools were the first amenity built in the park, and the Oak Grove was the very first trees planted. It is a precious and irreplaceable part of Rouge Park history and indisputably the oldest and most beautifully landscaped area in the entire park, enhancing the beautiful architecture of the Brennan Pools Building. The City's proposed location for the center requires the removal of 25 of these historic trees.

A new recreation center is much needed on the west side of the city and will be a great asset for Rouge Park. The Friends of Rouge Park are extremely grateful to the Pistons Foundation for making this center possible and strongly support the new recreation center.

At the first public meeting, we raised concern about impacts to the Oak Grove. At the second public meeting, the presented design addressed this concern and showed the center parallel with the pools, avoiding the Oak Grove (see the design on page 7 of the City's report here). It was not until the third, most recent meeting on Sept. 25 that the new design was presented for the first time showing the removal of 25 of the 100 year old oak trees in the grove.

We would support any alternative location that does not destroy precious park assets such as the Brennan Oak Grove, and sent a letter to the City explaining our concerns and suggesting alternative locations. After nearly three weeks we have still not received a response (see the letter here).

REASONS TO SUPPORT AN ALTERNATIVE DESIGN OR LOCATION:

1. Preserving the Brennan Oak Grove
As Rouge Park approaches its 100th Anniversary, this is a time to be celebrating the park's dynamic history and its most precious assets, not destroying them! These trees were planted as part of the original landscaping just a couple of years after the release of the original Rouge Park Plan which read "The purpose of the design has been to preserve a beautiful natural environment free from the rush and the sight of man's dominating influence. Here is to be preserved a natural landscape". Let's honor the park founders and preserve this centennial oak grove!

2. Preserve the Value that these Trees Provide

Mature trees like these with their extensive root and leaf systems clean our air, filter our water, reduce flooding, provide shade and protection from wind and rain, provide food and homes for wildlife and increase our quality of life with their services and beauty. In this age of climate change, we have lost thousands of trees to Dutch Elm disease, Emerald Ash Borers, ice storms and wind. In Rouge Park, the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department has removed over one hundred trees, many of them over one hundred year old oak trees. The City recognizes the value of trees and the GSD Department that makes decisions about Rouge Park set a goal of planting 10,000 trees to “improve health equity.” They cite that “studies have shown mature trees can reduce temperatures by 10-20 degrees. 14% of Detroiters suffer from Asthma, and trees can help by reducing air pollutants that can cause or trigger asthma. Trees have also been found to reduce stress, blood pressure, and even tension.” Removing these trees is contrary to the City's own goals. Since many suitable alternative locations exist for the recreation center, why would we diminish our quality of life by taking out these trees in a city that suffers from so much inequity?

3. Lower Construction Cost
The current proposed plan is a complicated split-level structure connected by a ramp and requires excavation of the hill east of the pools. An alternative location on open, flat ground would remove the increased cost of (1) a split-level building, (2) excavating the hill, (3) removing the 25 trees and, (4) planting and maintenance of many hundreds of new trees to compensate for the loss of the grove. A single level facility would also provide better access for disabled persons.

4. Better Access and More Adjacent Land for Recreation and Parking
The Rouge Park Master Plan released in 2016 calls for the recreation center to be located adjacent to Dixon School at Joy Rd & Trinity St. However, we would support any location or redesign that does not destroy valuable existing park amenities.

Save the Brennan Oak Grove!

At the Sept. 25 Community Roundtable, the city first presented the draft plan to remove 25 centennial oak trees from the Brennan Oak Grove to make way for the new Pistons Recreation Center in Rouge Park.

We need everyone who values the beautiful and historic Brennan Oak Grove to email the City and express their opposition to the loss of this priceless natural and historic landmark. (email: [email protected] and please cc: [email protected]). We also need you to attend the November 16 at 5:30 public meeting at the Brennan Pools Building (map) to support an alternative location for the new recreation center planned for Rouge Park.

BACKGROUND:

This Centennial Oak Grove was planted as part of the original park landscaping in the 1920s when the park first opened. It is an irreplaceable and precious part of Rouge Park history and indisputably the oldest and most beautifully landscaped area in the entire park, complementing the beautiful architecture of the Brennan Pool Building. The City proposed location for the center requires the destruction of 25 of these historic trees.

A new recreation center is a much needed asset for the west side of the city and will be a great asset for Rouge Park. The Friends of Rouge Park are extremely grateful to the Pistons Foundation for making this center possible and strongly support the new recreation center. Before the Sept. 25 public meeting, we were assured that only a very few trees might need to be removed, However, the proposed plan released on Sept. 25 requires the destruction of 25 of the 100 year old oak trees in the grove. We would support any alternative location that does not destroy precious park assets such as the Brenna Oak Grove, and sent a letter to the City explaining our concerns (see it here).

REASONS TO SUPPORT AN ALTERNATIVE LOCATION:

1. Better Access and More Adjacent Land for Recreation and Parking
The Rouge Park Master Plan released in 2016 calls for the recreation center to be located adjacent to Dixon School ay Joy Rd & Trinity St. This location was chosen for three important reasons: (1) The advantage of the proximity to Dixon School and the immediate neighborhood, (2) the abundance of open land adjacent to the site for parking and the development of ball fields, an ice rink and other recreational amenities and, (3) its central location in the park and access to other park amenities. Wedged between the parking lot and pools, The Brennan Pools site offers no adjacent land for additional recreational assets or additional parking at the already overcrowded existing parking lot. It also eliminates the current accessible entrance to the Brennan Pools building for people with disabilities.

2. Lower Construction Cost
The current proposed plan is a complicated split-level structure connected by a ramp and requires excavation of the hill east of the pools. An alternative location on open, flat ground would remove the increased cost of (1) a split-level building, (2) excavating the hill, (3) removing the 25 trees and, (4) planting and maintenance of many hundreds of new trees to compensate for the loss of the grove. A single level facility would also provide better access for disabled persons.

3. Preserving the Brennan Oak Grove
As Rouge Park approaches its 100th Anniversary, this is a time to be celebrating the park's dynamic history and its most precious assets, not destroying them! These trees were planted as part of the original landscaping just a couple of years after the release of the original Rouge Park Plan which read "The purpose of the design has been to preserve a beautiful natural environment free from the rush and the sight of man's dominating influence. Here is to be preserved a natural landscape". Let's honor the park founders and preserve this centennial oak grove! In addition to their historic and aesthetic value, they also provide important storm water control and natural wildlife habitat to many species.

It is so nice to see Wayne County FINALLY repairing bridges on Hines. We know it's a pain to have part of the road closed, but they are going to maintain access to Parkland. This bridge is in such bad shape that here is a visible gap where you can see the Rouge River below it.

Hines Drive will be closed between Outer Drive and Ford Road starting on Wednesday, July 5, 2023, through November 2023 for bridge work.

https://www.arabamericannews.com/2022/02/18/warren-valley-golf-course-closed-until-further-notice-due-to-a-breach-in-contract/

Warren Valley Golf Course closed until further notice due to a breach in contract The city of Dearborn Heights announced in a Facebook post that due to a breach in contract, the Warren Valley Golf Course is temporarily closed.

A lot of people are asking what's going on with Nankin Lake in Hines Park. Here you go!

Wayne County Parks, an ARC member, is starting the exciting U.S. EPA Region 5 (Great Lakes Region) Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI) funded Nankin Lake Restoration Project in Livonia Community and City of Westland - Administration, Michigan (Grant # GL00E0240). Dredging operations (shown here) are beginning and anticipated to go through the summer. When complete, the project will create/restore 4 acres of habitat, remove approximately 30,000 cubic yards of lake sediment, and help control 3 acres of invasive species. For more information visit: https://www.allianceofrougecommunities.com/PDFs/general/Nankin%20Lake%20Public%20Ed%20Piece2022.pdf

Anyone hear anything about the Warren Valley Golf Course lately?

It looks like this same company has purchased Newburgh Mill and Wilcox Mill too.

https://www.hometownlife.com/story/news/local/plymouth-township/2022/03/16/historic-phoenix-mill-plymouth-goes-ford-plant-banquet-hall/9444655002/?utm_campaign=snd-autopilot&fbclid=IwAR0alNNL7R81RCmAscXR0na2134YmiU0AwDWTuxeQZS3eHYo80s3BXve9GI

The Phoenix Mill in Plymouth once manufactured Henry Ford's auto parts. Now its a banquet center Take a look inside the renovated Phoenix Mill in Plymouth Township, which recently opened to the public for weddings, meetings and more.

Save Hines Park members have sent us photos and videos from last month's flood in Hines Park.

We need every square foot of floodplain and uplands in Hines Park to do its job to reduce the impact of floods on our streets and in our basements. Further loss of this precious resource through sales and development threaten us all.

This photo is of the submerged Warren Valley Golf Course that Wayne County attempted to sell to a developer to build homes in 2016.
See all of the flood photos and videos here:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/FzT8PiqE47DsTyjr9