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Monroe Park is a place where Richmond's diversity is readily apparent, and where students and local residents alike gravitate to enjoy the outdoors. (Photo by Brooke Marsh)
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The park is a prime spot for people watching, from vantage points such as these benches across from the Cathedral of the Sacred Heart. (Photo by Brooke Marsh)
Editor’s note: In anticipation of Monroe Park’s closing for a $6 million, 12- to 18-month overhaul, photography intern Brooke Marsh and editorial intern Holly Speck sought perspectives from some who frequent the park about their connection to this public space. Excerpts of this article appear in our November issue along with “A Richmond Centerpiece,” our Richmonder of the Month spotlight on the park, which is slated to begin undergoing renovations on Nov. 14.
LIONEL STOKES
Gazing out at the park from a spot under his favorite tree, Lionel Stokes says he moved to Richmond from Washington, D.C., 13 years ago, after being injured in an accident.
What does he like most about Monroe Park? “It’s kind of [a mix] of anybody,” he says. “That’s what kind of makes it. There’s people studying here and people walking through. A lot of people come here to get food. I just feel like when they’re talking about shutting something down, people take offense to it because it’s like they’re trying to run us out. I mean it affects you. … Some people look forward to coming to the park like me, today. You know, I’ve been coming under this tree for at least 11 years. This is my little spot that I like to come just to get my rest and a little shade. If it ain’t here, that would kind of be a problem.”
Lionel Stokes says, "I’ve been coming under this tree for at least 11 years." (Photo by Brooke Marsh)
Most of the time, he says, the park is a peaceful place. “People are coexisting and when you got over 200,000 people here [living in the city], people want to feel safe. This is where they can get that.”
Stokes tells us that some of his friends have experienced homelessness, but he asks us to “make sure you say I’m a homeowner.” He urges those in charge of the development plans not to forget about the homeless people who come to the park. He says, “This is somewhere they can come to feel safe and I think if you’re going to take it away, then maybe have a solution. Be a problem solver, don’t just react if you’re getting feedback to not just cut it off.”
CHRISTOPHER BURCH
Christopher Burch, a friendly man, approaches us with a smile and a wave. He says he has spent his time in the park learning to dance, enjoying nature and meeting students.
Christopher Burch says he learned to dance in Monroe Park. (Photo by Brooke Marsh)
“I try to get here every day,” he says. “Something’s always happening, kids need tutoring, you know. … I learned how to dance here, last fall in the park, they had shindig or something for the students when they came back to college.”
Asked about the upcoming renovation of the park, he says, “I’d like to see something better, some innovative thing ... I don’t want the trees to go or anything.”
AHMAD SADEK
Ahmad Sadek sits on a park bench with one hand on the satchel beside him. His son is a student at Virginia Commonwealth University, and as his son studies, Sadek does some learning of his own.
Ahmad Sadek, whose son is a student at VCU, comes to the park to read. (Photo by Brooke Marsh).
“I go to the library,” he says. “Often I come here with a book from the library. Every day. Sometimes two times a day I come to the park to read.”
KRISTEN SAMUELSON, HALEY ZIELINSKI, COLLEEN ANDRE
When we spoke, VCU sophomores Kristen Samuelson, Haley Zielinski and Colleen Andre were unaware of the future renovations of the park.
From left, VCU students Kristen Samuelson, Haley Zielinski and Colleen Andre (Photo by Brooke Marsh)
“I get food over at Bleecker [St., in Snead Hall] all the time, so it’s going to suck if I have to walk all away around and not just like straight across,” Samuelson says. “I’m sad that it’s closing because everyone hangs out here.”
Andre says, “I think it’ll be worth it, because I think the park kind of sucks right now. I think they need to re-do the concrete and fix the grass.”
“There’s homeless people, like, everywhere,” Samuelson adds. “That’s what makes me sad, though, because they always hang out there, so where are they going to go?”
KELSEY HUBER, NICOLE MICHALICK, DANIELA MORALES
VCU students Kelsey Huber, Nicole Michalick and Daniela Morales were enjoying a beautiful afternoon in the park, something they say they often do when it’s nice out.
VCU sophomore Nicole Michalick makes a comfortable perch in Monroe Park. (Photo by Brooke Marsh)
“People watching is prime here,” Michalick says. “Everywhere you look, there’s always weird things going on. Right now, look to your left there’s hula-hooping and a jam band.”
In terms of renovation, she says, “I feel like the only thing they need to fix is the sidewalks like the gravel —they better keep the monuments and stuff.”
Huber agrees. “The whole point is that it’s, like, the hub and something you can walk through. And then I wonder about the homeless people, like what are they going to do?”
Morales responds, “You can tell by them closing the park at nighttime and on the weekends and stuff, it’s like, ‘Hey you can hang out here during the day but, like, get out.’ ”
The three students say they have never had an issue with the homeless population in the park.
“They yell at each other sometimes, but not at us,” Michalick says.
Huber says candidly: “There’s a kid and dad throwing a ball over there and there’s a homeless person right there. It’s just Richmond, you know, and it’s, like, different people and this is where they all can come.”
