Rocky has led way on park

Rob Briggs (Readers' Forum, July 20) and David Christensen (Readers' Forum, July 21) seem completely unaware of Mayor Rocky Anderson's impassioned leadership in advocating for the revitalization of Pioneer Park. Four years ago, with Mayor Anderson's direct involvement, the city hired a consultant and organized the "Friends of Pioneer Park," a diverse group of community stakeholders, to develop a world-class design for improving the park. This effort enjoyed broad community support. Seventy-eight percent of respondents to an April 2005 Dan Jones survey of Salt Lake residents said Pioneer Park should "definitely" or "probably" be renovated "to become a more welcoming place."

In collaboration with the community, Mayor Anderson and the city developed a visionary plan for the park, distributed materials urging the renovations, and fostered activities in the park, such as the Farmers Market, artist displays and the new, ongoing Pioneer Park Concert Series on Friday evenings. Despite years of local advocacy and budget requests, the City Council has funded only a small portion of the envisioned improvements to Pioneer Park. Mayor Anderson has taken a strong and sometimes lone stand to help alleviate the problems in the park. Too many of those who hold or seek elected office believe Pioneer Park does not deserve attention, and risk losing the gains that have been made on behalf of the park and the community.

Patrick A. Thronson

director of communications

Office of Salt Lake Mayor Rocky Anderson

Tony Caputo

Salt Lake City