Dec 17, 2015 2 min read

Washington City Council at its meeting last week unanimously approved a motion to earmark a portion of the park development fund mostly for construction of a second access road to Washington Park. That road would provide a north entrance to the park off Clare Drive in South Strabane Township.

If the proposal seems familiar to readers, it should. The effort to create an entrance to the park off Clare Drive began 40 years ago!

Back in 1975, the Greater Washington Parks and Recreation Commission approved the second access in order to alleviate congestion at the Dunn Avenue entrance and spur park development. Under pressure from Clare Drive residents, South Strabane Township supervisors in 1976 refused to grant a curb cut, even though their solicitor, Francis Patrono, advised they could not refuse a property owner access to a public road.

The issue arose again in March 1997 after the great tire fire near the park that took eight days to extinguish. Concerns were raised about the safety of children at Washington Park Elementary School who might need to be evacuated in an emergency should Dunn Avenue be blocked.

Again, South Strabane fought access from Clare Drive in a battle that would go on for a couple of years and end up in Commonwealth Court in the township’s favor.

Sad to say, it’s more than likely the city will still find South Strabane’s attitude toward the park unchanged.

An editorial in this space published in June 1999 stated: “South Strabane Township, it should be noted, has an interest in the development of the park, even though the multi-municipal park commission has disbanded. It is the same interest that all residents of Greater Washington – in the city and the townships alike – should have in promoting a first-class park for the area.”

Our opinion has not changed since then, either.