Fencing off downtown park should be the last resort

Downtown Modesto doesn't have many garden spots, places where people can sit in the shade for lunch or enjoy the fragrance of flowers. Tiny McClatchy Park, on I Street near the library, has been such an oasis for 15 years.

Tonight the Modesto City Council will consider whether to fence it off from everyday use by the public and have it available only by reservation. The city proposes a six-month pilot project to have the park overseen by the McHenry Mansion Foundation, which would rent it to private parties for weddings and other events.

There is a very real possibility that this public park will, by this time next year, no longer be accessible to the public.

While we acknowledge the problems there -- public urination, drug deals, etc. -- they are created by a few who are interfering with the potential enjoyment of well-behaved residents. Before taking away public access to the park, we hope the council will ensure that the city has done all that it can to clean up the park using strict enforcement existing laws, such the one against drinking alcohol in parks without a permit.

Although the park land was given to the city by The McClatchy Co., owner of The Modesto Bee, in 1995, we acknowledge that The Bee has no more say on this than any other downtown business. And we recognize that some neighboring business owners are understandably frustrated by the behavior of a few park regulars. The small park has no restroom and was never intended as a place where people spend hours on end.

We applaud the church groups and others who are providing food distributions to the needy, but suggest they need to set up in places where there are restrooms and ample space for multiple park uses.

There's no simple solution with McClatchy Park. But moving to cut it off from the public should be the last resort.

At tonight's meeting, the council also will decide whether to take a stand on the $11 billion water bond that will appear on the November ballot and whether to continue its program to defer fee-payments for single-family homes until they are occupied. While we initially opposed the fee deferral, it has not proven to be costly for the city -- or to be much of an incentive for construction. Only four permits have been issued with the deferral option in place.

The council meets at 5:30 p.m. today in the basement of Tenth Street Place.

• At its meeting tonight, the Modesto City Schools board is scheduled to ratify contracts with the Modesto Teachers Association and the classified employees union that call for a reduction in pay and working days for 2010-11. On the same agenda is adoption of a whistle-blower's policy and of a response to the civil grand jury that recommended the district have such a policy.

The school board meets in closed session at 4 p.m. to continue the evaluation of Superintendent Arturo Flores and consider other personnel items. The public meeting begins at 6 p.m. in the board room at 425 Locust St.

• The Turlock Unified School District board will look at rescinding layoff notices and consider naming a new principal for Medeiros Elementary School. The session begins at 6:30 p.m. at the Turlock High Performing Arts Building, 1700 E. Canal Drive.

• The Modesto council's Finance Committee, meeting at 1 p.m. Wednesday, continues its discussion of the city's 2010-11 budget. Basement, Tenth Street Place.

• No meeting this week for the Stanislaus County Board of Supervisors or the Modesto Irrigation District board.