Proposal 250 was amended at the City County Council’s Public Safety and Criminal Justice Committee Aug. 24 to exclude Babe Denny Park as a location for a safe distribution site after city officials met with residents to discuss the proposal.
Prop 250, which will be voted on by the full council Sept. 12, would approve an additional $76,000 in the Office of Public Health and Safety’s 2022 budget to purchase two public restrooms and cleaning services at Old City Hall and another location. Old City Hall has been operating as a safe distribution site since July 2021. The original proposal would have placed the second distribution site at Babe Denny Park, but was amended after 30 residents and descendants of Edward “Babe” Denny gathered in the basement of Bethesda Missionary Baptist Church Aug. 23 with city officials to discuss concerns.
Most residents expressed concerns that an already forgotten neighborhood will be overlooked even further if restrooms and cleaning services were placed in the park. Fourth generation great grandson of historic resident Edward “Babe” Denny, Edward Denny IV drove from Ohio to represent his great-grandfather’s legacy. He said the neighborhood continues to be forgotten by the city.
“You’re trying to add something else to where, that’s going to only add to that forgottenness in that open wound,” Denny said. “What it boils down to is these people have not been heard, and the park is being forgotten when it shouldn’t be.”
Resident Linda Floyd said it feels like the city is trying to devalue the area. Neighbors have already questioned the Department of Public Works’ commitment to keeping the park clean during staffing shortages and missed trash pickups.
“I feel very strongly that the city has not done anything for this area ever,” Floyd said. “Take it to someone else’s neighborhood, take it to the moon, but not here.”
The community already faces struggles with I-70 creating a physical barrier that tore through historically Black neighborhoods, uprooted families and businesses and forced them to relocate. Remnants of a path under I-70 to get to the adjoining neighborhood are still used regularly to this day. Long-time resident, Kim Mayfield, who was best friends with Babe Denny’s grandchildren and played with them at the park, said this is what is “unhinging” about the city wanting to put in restrooms and cleaning facilities at the park.
“The interstate wiped us out. Our neighborhood got demolished,” Mayfield said. “I’m not against helping the homeless, but to bring that element in is kind of like throwing dirt in our faces, like we have no value to our history, we just want to use this land because it seems desolate. But there’s a lot of history here and it just seems to me that would be the last dagger.”
Neighbors said they would like to see Babe Denny Park become a historical site so that the legacy and history is preserved.
OPHS released a statement regarding the safe distribution sites:
OPHS and other city officials have conducted numerous community listening sessions with local charitable organizations, as well as stakeholders of Babe Denny Park. Based on their feedback, we asked the Council to amend Proposition 250 allowing OPHS more flexibility in choosing the locations for the safe distribution sites now and in the future.
Old City Hall is currently the only existing safe distribution site. It has been in operation since July 2021, and will remain in operation as the City makes investments in lighting, trash receptacles, and restrooms to make the site more usable. OPHS will continue to engage community members and providers to identify additional location for safe distribution. Babe Denny is not currently under consideration as a safe distribution site.
Contact staff writer Jayden Kennett 317-762-7847 or by email JaydenK@IndyRecorder.com. Follow her on Twitter @JournoJay.
An earlier version of this story misidentified resident Kim Mayfield as a friend who played with Edward “Babe” Denny in the park. Mayfield was best friend’s with Denny’s grandchildren and played with them. We apologize for the error. The Recorder makes every attempt to correct its mistakes.
