Dereef Park represents the last green space in the Cannonborough/Elliotborough neighborhood. Simply put, it is a failed City Park that is now part of a development plan. It represents one of the last vestiges of Black achievement on the peninsula of Charleston. Dereef Court represents a proud heritage of professional and middle class families that began with the innovation and hard work of the Dereefs.

There are additional historical heritage sites in close proximity or adjacent to this park, including:
• The former home of Florence Alberta "Bertie" Clyde (1873 - 1967), one of Charleston's leading African-American educators, located on Smith Street.
• The meeting place United Order of Tents, a fraternal organization of women that dates to Civil War times and is run entirely by African-American women, who strive to provide help to those who need it most.
• The home of the oldest continuously chartered Heritage YMCA in the United States and only one of six in the country, the Cannon Street YMCA has provided academic, community based, and sporting programs throughout its 147 years of history, including the famous 1955 Cannon Street YMCA All Stars Little League team.

I encourage you to walk down Morris Street from King Street and notice the complete Phase 1 project on the south side of the street. Does it seem that the city is on track to recognize the important neighborhood redevelopment goals set forth in the original PUD to “include more affordable housing, improved parks, and playgrounds, and strengthened community institutions”? Now look to the opposite side of the street and envision a neighborhood that celebrates its history, provides a safe environment for children to play and learn, and creates quiet places within the city bustle to experience nature. To learn more about the history and proposed alternative, please visit the Preservation Society of Charleston’s website http://www.preservationsociety.org/program_currentdetail.asp?icID=49.