The site was a former convenience store, according to Jan Lepore-Jentleson, EDNDC executive director. Lepore-Jentleson said the building was demolished in 2024. The park was donated to Dayton Public Schools on Nov. 12.
“Today, we are celebrating the space that is both a gathering space for the community and also a place for the children to use it after school, or during the school day,” Lepore-Jentleson said.
Credit: Bryant Billing
Credit: Bryant Billing
Parents will also be able to drop students off from Xenia Avenue, something that David Lawrence, DPS superintendent, said is helpful for Ruskin families.
The speed limit in the area will also decrease, Lawrence said.
“This is one of those spaces where we can have safe travels and safe passage for kids,” Lawrence said.
Ruskin has several after school programs that could use the space, Lawrence said. Ruskin’s after school programs include Q the Music, a Dayton Philharmonic project that teaches students how to play string instruments. Three Q the Music students, two sixth graders and one fourth grader, performed pieces at the ribbon cutting and dedication Wednesday.
Credit: Bryant Billing
Credit: Bryant Billing
The park is set to be named after Paul R. Woodie, the EDNDC board president. The space features a fence, mosaic leaves with “hope” in multiple languages, and trees that are expected to be planted in the spring. The mosaics were donated by the Mosaic Institute and put together by Ruskin students.
“We want to thank all those kids for creating a small part of this large legacy that will outlast us for generations to come,” said Jes McMillan, the founder of the Mosaic Institute.
Ruskin has been at the center of much of Dayton’s history, including as part of enforcing desegregation orders in the 1970s, said Dayton Mayor Jeffrey Mims, Jr.. He praised Lepore-Jentleson’s vision for the space.
“You never saw anybody work as hard as you would work,” Mims said of Lepore-Jentleson.
Lepore-Jentleson said EDNDC is working to add nine housing units in Twin Towers, one of which would be used for addiction recovery and the other eight for infills.
Credit: Bryant Billing
Credit: Bryant Billing
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