Booker T. Washington Park community meeting
DEQ West Central Regional Office staff held a meeting at the Gainesboro Branch of Roanoke City Public Library on June 9, 2005 to meet with local residents about environmental concerns related to Booker T. Washington Park.
Residents have cited the historical landfill, on which the park is built, as a primary source of impact on the water quality of Lick Run. DEQ and stakeholders discussed the landfill and other urban sources impacting the water quality of Lick Run.
The following list represents the shared concerns:
- Water quality of Lick Run
- Lick Run watershed
- Landfill impacts on Lick Run
- Flooding in the Fairland area due to grate in Brooklyn Drive area
- Illegal parking on the grass along Burrell and Orange Avenue
- Student involvement/learning opportunities surrounding Lick Run watershed
- Condition of restrooms at Washington Park
- Establishment of community gardens
- Control of wildlife (deer, groundhogs)
- Leachate from the landfill
- Sewage overflows in areas above Washington Park, such as in Robertson-Brown Park
Staff members from DEQ and Roanoke City then made presentations on landfills, urban streams and storm water runoff, and addressed questions from stakeholders. Meeting participants identified action items and agreed to meet again to discuss progress. In several cases, the action items below require the involvement of additional stakeholders:
- Evaluate need for maintenance of safety grate in Fairland area to prevent flooding (Roanoke City)
- Evaluate need for stream warnings due to presence of bacteria in Lick Run (DEQ, Virginia Department of Health)
- Provide bacterial source tracking data and lead/arsenic data for Lick Run (DEQ)
- Provide status of sewer line upgrades to prevent overflows (Western Virginia Water Authority)
- Illegal parking on grass at Burrell/Orange (Roanoke City)