Asheville Parks and Rec and City of Asheville leadership need to explain why the renovation of Weaver Park playground and work on the baseball diamond were done with minimal community engagement and very little communication and produced a result that doesn't work on many levels. The playground was fenced off for six months before construction even began, preventing families from using a beloved and much-utilized neighborhood gathering and recreation place. Now that construction is complete, the end result is a down-sized playground that doesn't meet the needs of the community and a baseball diamond that doesn't meet the needs of the volunteer-run league it anchors.

There were very limited opportunities for community engagement during the design process of the new playground. The Norwood Park Neighborhood Association was not contacted by APR or asked to give design input or feedback. APR should have had a participatory design process so that families living in the neighborhood surrounding the park who use this playground on a daily or weekly basis and are aware of the community's needs could have had an active voice in the new playground design. Instead, community members who tried to give input were told that the design had already been chosen and other neighbors who have tried to give feedback to or get answers from City officials have been shut down.

In the words of one neighborhood mom: "There are concerns regarding the accessibly and inclusiveness of the new playground design. I truly believe all children should be able to enjoy and access this new space, including children with disabilities, mobility challenges, developmental differences, and younger children. Currently, the playground appears heavily focused on climbing structures, steep access points, and elevated elements, with limited inclusive or ground-level play opportunities. This raises concerns regarding ADA accessibly and inclusive recreation standards for a newly renovated public park. I had previously shared these concerns with the project manager but only received a generalized response, and since then many neighbors in the community have expressed similar concerns. Additionally, the walking path would benefit from benches placed throughout the route so older adults, grandparents, and individuals with limitations have places to sit, rest, and enjoy the park comfortably."

North Asheville Little League, which has utilized Weaver Park for its volunteer-run baseball program for the past 50 years and was aware of the needs of the field and the league, met with Parks and Rec leadership to give their feedback because they weren't included the original project design for the Weaver Park baseball diamond renovations. The NALL concerns were not heard, communicated to the appropriate staff, or they were simply ignored.

Now, there are multiple issues with the field that will need to be fixed, costing more taxpayer dollars. The outfield of the renovated baseball diamond is unsafe due to uneven ground, and the dugouts are located in the outfield where young players can't hear their coaches. In fact, the dugout location (including the fence openings to the field) depart from any little league design that NALL leadership is aware of. The location is not standard, it disrupts the flow of the game, and it makes it hard for volunteer coaches to keep control of kids in the dugout while monitoring on-field action.

Other issues with the Weaver Park baseball diamond renovations:

-- The bullpen is too short -- less than regulation pitching distance -- and is thus not fit for its intended purpose.

-- The scoreboard is no longer functional, requiring volunteers to bring a generator to power it.

-- There is concrete in the infield and holes along the fencing, and the drainage issues have not been repaired.

According to subcontractors on the project, the scope of work kept changing, causing chaos and confusion and pushing the timeline for completion well into the baseball season, leaving NALL without one of three fields during the season of its highest enrollment in the league's history.

Despite its name, NALL serves kids from all over the City of Asheville. It expects to serve 500 kids next season. In 2025, Little League recognized the NALL by awarding the Carl Stotz Community Leadership Award, a national award honoring leagues that create a player-centered culture. Leagues that receive this award are inclusive, diverse, meet the needs of under-served communities, remove barriers of entry, allow female participation, and provide a high-quality experience.

The renovations to the Weaver Park baseball diamond and playground have left the community deeply disappointed and frustrated.

The community is requesting the following from Asheville Parks and Recreation:

1. Norwood Park and NALL Little League would like a town hall style meeting with at Weaver Park with APR leadership and the project manager to better understand the design and construction process.

2. Furthermore, the community is respectfully requesting that APR replace the inadequate play structure and add benches for seating. Ensuring infrastructure is accessible to the needs of our intergenerational community and community members with access and functional needs should be a priority. The current play structures and seating installations do not reflect this need.

3. NALL is asking APR to work with them, not separately from them, to improve the baseball diamond so that it is once again usable and safe for kids. This includes relocating the dugouts back to their traditional location near the first/third base areas, fixing the scoreboard, creating an adequate bullpen, and fixing the drainage issues and turf in the outfield.

Asheville Parks and Recreation and City leadership, it's time to take action so that Weaver Park can once again serve as a beloved and much-used community gathering place for neighborhood families, NALL families, and all Asheville families.