“Americans spend a great deal of time on their homes – the front yard, the back yard, the private zone. But the public realm, what all citizens own together, has a collective value that is essential to the quality of life of a community.”
~ Mayor Joseph P. Riley, Jr.
Mayor of Charleston, SC, 1975-2016
Jim’s efforts to support and initiatives to create new green spaces and places in Nashua for recreation, relaxation, play, and celebration include the following:
- For Nashua’s children and young people who love the games of soccer and lacrosse, the installation of two soccer fields at Charlotte Avenue Elementary School and in 2023 two new soccer fields at Atherton Park.
- For Nashua’s skateboarding athletes, summer skateboarding camps for children at the state-of-the-art David W. Deane Skatepark.
- For those who love our namesake river, implementing the Nashua Riverfront Development Plan, which will include the installation of riverside walkways, enhanced access to the waterfront, and new landscaping, lighting, and greenways.
- For residents of the Tree Streets neighborhood, participatory budgeting projects (Your Voice, Your Choice!), which feature the decision-making process driven by local residents and which has brought a futsal court (“soccer-on-pavement”) to the neighborhood in 2019 and the Los Amigos Park Improvement project in 2021.
- For everyone who wants to get out on the Merrimack River, whether by kayak, canoe, or small motor boat, the Greeley Park Boat Ramp Improvement Project with a design including a new access roadway from the end of Hills Ferry Road to the river, full accessibility, 24 abutting parking spaces with a layout to accommodate trailers, revegetation within the 32-acre site to prevent damaging use by all-terrain vehicles, and a wooded walking trail.
- For families seeking playgrounds for their children, recent upgrades to the city’s playgrounds and playground equipment at Atherton Park, St. Andrews Park, Lincoln Park, and Lyons Field.
- For all Nashuans seeking a totally refreshed and relaxing green space, a charming downtown children’s playground, and engaging public art installations, Nashua was recently awarded a $3 million congressionally directed spending grant to bring the eagerly awaited Library Plaza Renovation Project to the downtown. This park and playground will be completed in 2024.
