Debate Pitch: Here’s How I’d Fix The Parks

A network of green spaces linking every public park in New Haven. A larger role for people of color and women in building the city’s physical landscape. A pedestrian walkway connecting Union Station to Downtown. A ban on new parking lots and garages in favor of playgrounds.

Abdussabur described Kensington Park as a “beautiful park, a wonderful space.” He acknowledged the park’s historical reputation for being a site of drug trades and substance use, even as he recalled playing in the park as a kid. “Before the war on drugs, before crack cocaine, that was a park that we played in as a kid, and it’s there for a reason. It’s for kids, it’s for adults.”

He explicitly criticized the price of the park’s sale: “Why are we selling anything from the city for a dollar? You can’t buy a stop sign in the city for a dollar.”