The vibes are off.

For the last two months, construction crews did a spectacular job of maintaining pedestrian access to Bushnell Park. They only closed off what was absolutely necessary, and all pathways were kept open, even when this required ramps to help people walk or roll over the giant pipes. It wasn’t pretty, but the park was probably still 95% or more accessible at any given time.

They just wrapped that project up days ago, but then, fencing started to be installed all over Bushnell Park this week. At first, it looked like they may have been blocking a small, specific area and I thought maybe there was tree work that needed doing with a safe area around it. By yesterday, it was clear this is not for construction, but for an upcoming ticketed concert which is for some reason being allowed to take place here when they could have been redirected to The Meadows or The Civic Center — actual private venues where it’s cool to refuse entry to those who don’t have tickets.

And the fencing? It’s high chain link. Lots of it.

In Hartford, we don’t even allow chain link fencing to exist in front or side yards; for civic or institutional use, chain link fences are not supposed to be “visible from the public realm.” It’s all codified. I’m sure they found some loophole.

Public access to the park was closed off early last night, and the concert does not even begin until June 29. Right now, through after this concert ends on June 30th, residents are stuck looking at this.

The juvenile detention center in my neighborhood has less offensive fencing.

So, that’s one message being broadcast out.

The larger issue than aesthetics is that the fence blocks more than half of a public park. Besides limiting access to recreation, this presents about eight different other access issues.

They did not maintain the pathway between Union Station and Frog Hollow, which means that people who use this to commute might be missing their ride to work, and then having to figure out an unsafe workaround on other days. There are no signs posted about how long this fencing is obstructing public access, so those who don’t know where to search for answers are just screwed in the meantime.

When I walked through just before the fencing was closed, I passed one of those folks who asked me if I knew what was going on.

Somehow, perhaps during the transition of Bushnell Park Conservancy leadership, this nonsense was given a green light. Please contact them to let them know that access to public parks must remain open at all times, unless there is an actual emergency, like a tree that falls across a path. A fireworks display is not an emergency, nor is a jazz festival. Shilling for a concert that costs $219.00 is not an emergency.

I, and others in the Hartford Livable Coalition, have met face-to-face with the Bushnell Park Conservancy in the past to try to get them to address the issue of people driving through the park (and also, parking on the grass). To me, it felt like they had no urgency in dealing with the problem that we suggested solutions for, though they assured us that they were working on it.

Actions speak louder than words.