Group spurs city to get Aaron Mossell playground back on track
May 25—Aaron Mossell and his family were trailblazers in the Lockport community, advocating for and winning desegregation 80 years before the rest of the nation. Today, the idea of building a playground bearing his name is being revisited by residents and city officials.
Mossell's legacy has become a focal point for a group of Lockportians, called Lift Up Lockport, driving them to ultimately succeed in changing the name of one of the district's schools to Aaron Mossell Junior High School. They also petitioned and won a plaque honoring Aaron Mossell at Josephine Carveth Packet Park in 2018.
However, the designation of a park and playground memorializing the trailblazer was never fulfilled.
"People tell me that no one wants it," Jackie Davis, one of the Lift Up Lockport members, said. "I tell them, 'Who would not want a park and a place where children can play?' "
The new playground, to be built between South Street and Elmwood Avenue, would change the former Harrison Place parking lot to a recreation area for residents and visitors. The project, which was approved by the city in 2018 and again in 2022, was to be funded by a $450,000 grant from the state Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation which was awarded in December 2017.
However, nothing seemed to change. The parking lot, which was even used to store construction equipment and brush in 2023, remains a scar in the neighborhood.
Chuck Bell of Harrison Studios, and formerly the CEO of Greater Lockport Development Corp., said he came into the picture in 2015 when Harrison Studios was approached to do a needs assessment of the 16-block area around South and Genesee Streets. It was called the South Street Initiative and it found out that the public most wanted a recreation space, like a playground, and green space to bring their children to play in.
Bell noted that no design was made for the playground, but his firm wrote the grant that won the state's funding for the construction of, specifically, recreation space. He said the Covid-19 pandemic played a part in slowing the progress of building the park.
Remediation work may also have tripped up the progress. Current President and CEO of GLDC Heather Peck said she was aware of some issues with the park, but that they were also taken care of and the Environmental Protection Agency and the State Department of Environmental Conservation signed off on the property.
"Fast-forward a few years," Peck said that people were approaching her and Mayor John Lombardi III about the playground.
"Mayor Lombardi suggested to get a committee of people from Lift up Lockport and others who have worked on the grant like Chuck Bell," Peck said. "So I believe that will happen in the next couple of weeks."
Lombardi confirmed the plan of action before Wednesday's common council meeting saying he looked forward to the project, but cautioned that, "The cost of the project might've gone up."
Bell said that Peck had approached him, as well, and that the grant is still accessible. "A good amount" of recreation equipment and green space can still be bought with it, even not considering any more grant funding for it, he said.
Bell also noted that a completion date for the property was conceivable for summer 2025.
"I think it's important to regain that excitement and build the momentum here, again," Bell said.
