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Dunedin Park That Will Have Monument Dedicated

Mark Schantz/SUNCOAST NEWS

Members of the Dunedin business community and city officials attended an early Tuesday morning Dunedin Chamber of Commerce ribbon cutting ceremony to dedicate a park at the entrance to downtown Main Street that will include a Purple Heart Monument.

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By Mark  Schantz | The Suncoast News

Published: May 24, 2008

DUNEDIN - The city's newest park, on Broadway at an entrance to the city's busy downtown retailing and entertainment district, is in one of the most visible places in town.

So city officials are trying to make sure the park has just the right name.

Early Tuesday morning the city and Dunedin Chamber of Commerce dedicated the yet-to-be-named park. The city is planning to unveil its monument to Purple Heart winners there on Purple Heart Day, Aug. 7.

For years the area was informally known as SunTrust Park. SunTrust, the bank, owned the property and the site was mainly a quiet seating area.

Recently, however, Joseph Kokolakis, a local developer, acquired the land and donated the park property to the city. Kokolakis bought the land in connection with his plans to redevelop a number of shops at the western end of the downtown district.

Assistant City Manager Harry Gross said the city has received many name suggestions for the park. A lot of people want the park named in honor of the women who in the early 1900s tried to prevent the felling of large oak trees that stood along Main Street, he said.

The women tied themselves to the trees to protect them. When they later went home, however, someone chopped down all the trees.

City commissioners eventually will have to make the park naming decision and they are taking suggestions.

Site work on the berm in the park on which the Purple Heart monument will stand is scheduled to begin next month, Gross said. The monument will be placed in the middle of a brick wall set into the berm. Oak trees will stand on either side of the monument.

Mayor Bob Hackworth called Tuesday's park dedication "awesome." While other cities are struggling with budget cuts in response to falling tax revenue, Dunedin is still dedicating parks and talking about its downtown redevelopment, Hackworth noted with pride.

The public-private partnerships the city fosters enables it to continue to move forward with projects such as the park and Purple Heart memorial, the mayor said.

Commissioner Deborah Kynes said she likes the revised plans for the monument.

The memorial now fits the scale of the park, she said.

City Manager Rob DiSpirito agreed the decision to reduce the size of the monument and alter its layout makes it a better fit for the park.

The revised design features a smaller brick wall and has the flag pole situated in front of the monument rather than behind it.

The park is at one of the busiest intersections in the city, so the monument will be seen by thousands of motorists every day, said Bob Burdewick.

A retired former police officer, Burdewick is a National Armed Services and Law Enforcement Museum volunteer and board member.

The 8-year-old private museum is on Douglas Avenue.

Mark Schantz can be reached at 727-815-1075 or mschantz@suncoastnews.com.

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