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Business & Developmentby Ed Gunts2:28 pmJan 7, 20160

Food boats? Pickleball? A public brainstorming session for Rash Field

Last night the Waterfront Partnership held the first of several meetings planned to guide improvements to this city-owned park

Above: The berm. The sand. The weird pipe thing? Existing conditions at Baltimore’s Rash Field.

Everyone knows Rash Field is all about the beach volleyball.

But one student at Digital Harbor High School believes it also could be good for “club music and dancing.”

An older man who lives nearby wants to be able to play “pickle ball” there. A younger guy envisions an old fashioned playground with a jungle gym and monkey bars, but for adults only.

Alex, a volleyball player, suggests a new kind of culinary gathering – a Food Boat Market.

“Instead of food trucks, you’d have food boats,’ he said. “I for one would go to that.”

Those are just a few of the ideas that people have for redesigning Rash Field, the seven acre waterfront park on the south shore of the Inner Harbor, between the Maryland Science Center and the Rusty Scupper Restaurant.

More than 200 people came to the Science Center last night to express their views about the proposed changes and the pet projects they’d like to see included.

$4 million Planning Phase

The meeting, held in the IMAX theater, was the kickoff of a public planning process that is being held to generate ideas for ways to upgrade the city-owned park and make it more “attractive, accessible and usable” for residents as well as tourists.

Volleyball is staying but what else should be in a re-imagined Rash Field?

There will be beach volleyball at rash Field, but what else should there be? (Photo by Fern Shen)

The planning process was organized by the Waterfront Partnership of Baltimore and its lead designer, Mahan Rykiel and Associates. The partnership has made it clear that volleyball players, who would have been kicked out of the area under a previous plan, will be welcome in this design and the city is looking for other activities to join them.

Waterfront Partnership president Laurie Schwartz told participants last night that the city has committed $4 million for the first phase of improvements , so “it’s not just planning for planning’s sake.”

The audience was a diverse group of people who visit the park regularly or care about it. It included a strong representation of volleyball players and others who exercise there, south Baltimore residents, retirees, designers and Digital Harbor students. Everyone was asked to fill out a survey as they came in.

After an overview of the planning effort, the gathering broke into smaller discussion groups of 18 to 25 where participants talked about their visions for the park. They came back together at the end of the meeting and shared their ideas.

Done Deal?

Before the group session, Gary Goldstein voiced a concern about the planning effort.

Saying he noticed all the volleyball players in the room, he wanted to know if other ideas really will be implemented. He asked if the meetings were just a way to rubber stamp an already-set plan.

“I’m just wondering if we’re wasting our time because it’s done,” he said. “I have a feeling that it’s pretty done. That’s just paranoia.”

President Richard Jones and others from Mahan Rykiel said a plan has not already been completed. They said the final design will grow out of the public planning process that began last night.

“We’re at the listening stage,” said planner Isaac Hametz. “We have no preconceived ideas of what the outcome should be…The design will be driven by the feedback we receive.”

“It’s a pretty incredible space, one that has incredible potential for the city,” Hametz added. “We’re not taking it lightly.”

Adult Playground!

Prodded by facilitators, the different groups came up with a long list of activities and uses they’d like to see in or around Rash Field.

It included kayaking, “a more attractive farmer’s market,” climbing walls, a sculpture garden curated by the nearby American Visionary Art Museum, a sculpture that “represents Baltimore,” more information about the area’s history, and more “child-friendly” and “grandchild-friendly”activities.

One woman said she’d like to see an ice rink returned to Rash Field. Many said they’d like to see more winter activities. One group suggested having a snowmaking machine in the winter and using the park for cross country skiing.

People gathered in the Maryland Science Center to discuss how to revitalize Rash Field. (Photo by Ed Gunts)

People gathered in the Maryland Science Center to discuss how to revitalize Rash Field. (Photo by Ed Gunts)

Sandy Apgar suggested that Rash Field be designed to be flexible, like “a living room where you can change the furniture.”

Apgar said he thinks the Waterfront Partnership needs to determine how much of the day it wants Rash Field to be busy with activity and how much it is willing to let it be more passive. He said he believes the new design needs to emphasize flexibility and utilization.

“This is an expensive asset,” he said. “It is underutilized.”

Outdoor Showers, Bike Racks

John said his group wanted to make it a place primarily for locals.

“There are a lot of places around the Inner Harbor for tourists,” he said. “We appreciate that there’s an area that’s great for residents, and we want to protect that.”

People made suggestions for purely physical changes as well as programmatic changes. Some suggested removing the berm that separates the park from Key Highway. Others said they like the separation because it makes the area more for locals.

People suggested replacing the “splintery” bleachers. They discussed the need for public restroom facilities and the fact that homeless people currently use the Port-A-Potties placed there for the volleyball players. One man suggested providing “outdoor showers like at the beach.”

Others wanted bike racks, better lighting, better directional signage, more electrical hookups, more security, more permeable surfaces and less concrete, and coordination with the proposed streetscape improvements to the intersection of Key Highway and Light Street.

Bio-berms, Floating Wetlands

Group spokesman Lon said his group wanted to see Rash Field stay essentially the way it is but be enhanced with more amenities and exercise options around the perimeter.

“The general observation was: Don’t change it. Enhance it,” he said.

People talked about how much retail activity they would like to see. (Generally, not that much.)

They talked about the need for more shade and trees and greenery, but they didn’t want views of the water blocked. They mostly didn’t want just acres of green lawn, saying that would be redundant with other areas in the city.

Jamie Webster, a leader of the volleyball players, said they would like to see the number of courts increased from seven to eight and to have the courts reconfigured in a more efficient way. She said her discussion group wanted any changes to be done in a way that would be good for the environment; possibly including features such as a water garden, bio berms and “floating wetlands” like the National Aquarium has.

Planning efforts will continue with a series of focus groups later this month and another public meeting at the science center in late March. People who missed last night’s meeting can still fill out the survey at www.rashfield.org.

By the end of the night, the group had provided enough feedback to write an academic thesis. That’s exactly what one participant, Sean, intends to do.

“I’m an architecture student at the University of Maryland,” he told the group. “Guess what my thesis is? This is great research. Thank you so much.”

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