Residents press council to fix Woodland Park trash problem and remove ADA-blocking chain

Two residents used public comment to press the Kennesaw City Council for faster action at Woodland Park, urging cleanup, ADA-compliant access and a replacement entrance sign.

"While the tributary to Butler Creek flowing through Woodland Park is as peaceful as a Sunday morning, the amount of trash scattered throughout this waterway and the surrounding green spaces is a blasphemous sin," Jory Lyons (Speaker 9) said, listing glass, tires, metal pipes, car batteries and other debris he said he had removed during roughly 15 hours of cleanup. Lyons accused Parks & Rec director Bill McNair of failing to replace a stolen entrance sign and of telling him to stop revitalizing the park.

Matthew Mayo (Speaker 10) followed, speaking as a disabled, lifelong resident who said he could not safely access the park because a yellow chain blocks the entrance. "Please immediately remove the yellow chain from the entrance to Woodland Park and replace it with an entrance that is compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act," Mayo said, adding he would pay or help replace the sign. City staff responded elsewhere in the meeting that there was an earmark and other funding for trail repairs, but commenters said Woodland Park maintenance and ADA access need faster attention.