Adidas Park (Boston, Massachusetts)

USA / Massachusetts / Brookline / Boston, Massachusetts
 Upload a photo
A City-owned parcel since 1974, this empty lot became a dumping ground by the early 80's. In 1983 twenty-one year-old Timothy White and friends cut down brush, hauled away junked cars and trash and installed plastic milk cartons as seats around the tallest tree. By 1985 it had become known informally as "Adidas Park" and that tree known as the "Adidas Tree". "Fresh Adidas" was painted on the brick wall in black and silver letters and dozens of pairs of old Adidas sneakers hung from its branches.

From the mid-80's through the mid-90's the "Intervale Posse" turned this grassroots neighborhood initiative into a drug den. By 1996 Mayor Menino & Boston Police enlisted National Guard heavy leveling & hauling equipment to bulldoze the tree, remove the trash and level the lot. Within months a joint federal/state drug bust resulted in the arrest of 22 gangbangers on the first day of school, permanently changing the atmosphere in the park and reclaiming it for the community.
Nearby cities:
Coordinates:   42°18'35"N   71°4'40"W

Comments

  • Intervale wasn't a posse...just people.
This article was last modified 9 years ago