Madison Central Park has become a beacon for the community since its establishment in 2010. The park, located in the historic Madison Park neighborhood, is now in danger of being converted into dedicated athletic fields.

Dilworth Youth Sports Association (DYSA) is looking to expand and construct additional baseball fields on property within the Charlotte area. This would be as they called it, “a place to call their own”. A DYSA hub. Madison Central Park, frequented by the surrounding neighborhood and used for soccer, informal play, recreation and community gatherings, is the location where the fields are proposed to be built. Along with the baseball diamonds, potential future amenities have included concession stands, bathrooms and other infrastructure, which could further reduce valued green space at the park. Furthermore, Madison Central Park is located on the property of Pinewood Elementary, a CMS Title I school. The installation of dedicated baseball fields and other facilities could reduce student accessibility to this vital space.

When Madison Central Park was established in 2010, meeting notes from discussions between the neighborhood and Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools (CMS) documented that organized sports fields would not be allowed, specifically citing potential impacts on the surrounding community, including traffic. Residents believe those assurances, and the reasons behind them, should be honored.

Residents have also repeatedly requested data demonstrating a need for dedicated baseball fields among Pinewood students or children within the Madison Park community, but that data has not been provided. DYSA’s president stated that current Pinewood student participation in the league is “close to zero.” The concern is not with youth sports, but with converting flexible green space available to all children and residents into dedicated league fields when a local need for even one field has not been demonstrated. Residents have also identified numerous existing baseball diamonds nearby and have asked that reasonable alternative locations be fully evaluated.

Along with being used regularly by the surrounding community, Madison Central Park has a robust green space that is frequented by wildlife. The installation of baseball diamonds would reduce and alter this green space and bring increased organized activity, traffic and noise, with potential impacts on the wildlife that uses the area.

Our Call to Action:

Our request to the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education is to fully stop the proposed installation of baseball diamonds and related construction on the Madison Central Park property. It is essential that we protect the green space of the park for not only the surrounding neighborhood, but protect and preserve the space for Pinewood Elementary to use as well.

By signing this petition, you are protecting valued green space for generations to come and helping protect urban ecology. Let us stand together in protecting this essential community green space and ensuring it continues being part of our children’s learning journey for years to come.

In order to keep our cause going, please consider donating to Save Madison Central Park GoFundMe at https://gofund.me/459f6ab2e