CITYWATCH Neighbors squelch cruising at East Side park BY AMY HAWTHORNE

Those walking their dog or jogging along River Road on Providence’s East Side these days will probably see some beautiful foliage and scullers rowing on the Seekonk. To neighbors on Angell and Paterson streets, the most important thing in this scene is what isn’t visible anymore. Until very recently, dozens of cars would park along the edges of Blackstone Park or troll slowly back and forth, and the occasional man or two would emerge suspiciously from the woods. A joint effort by the neighborhood and the city has managed to change what had been business as usual for years.

Over the past two decades, the participants changed from straight to gay, but Blackstone Park has been a hot spot for clandestine sexual encounters as far back as the 1960s. Police and neighbors have tried a number of unsuccessful tactics to quiet the area, but as one longtime resident put it, "The real problem, I suppose, is that it’s an urban park." Adopting a hands-off approach after some visitors claimed they were being unfairly targeted because of their sexuality, police began responding only to specific complaints from residents about after-hours activity in the park.

With less official attention, drug use and dealing joined the nuisance of strangers having anonymous sex in the thick of the woods. Fed up, a small group decided to take action this summer. Calling themselves the Paterson Park Neighborhood Association, they flyered the neighborhood and held regular meetings on how best to confront this problem. Taking a cue from a clean-up effort at Roger Williams Park that reduced the impact of similar illicit activity for abutting residents, the group advocated clearing the thick undergrowth that acted as cover. This would give police an easier way to conduct visual sweeps and deter people trying to keep their actions out of plain sight. Though there was some initial concern from the Friends of Blackstone Park and Boulevard, landscape architect Fred Holman helped the volunteers to keep this conservation district as natural as possible. The group took it as a sign of success that by September, "regulars" had shifted their goings-on away from the newly bare areas to still-camouflaged parts of the park.

The response has been mainly positive, but the regulars are predictably peeved. Individual members of the Paterson group have chosen to keep a low profile for fear of possible retribution in the small world of Providence’s civic life. One of the main organizers, in fact, had an unsettling confrontation with a man who emerged from the woods as she walked her dog one evening. He followed her in his car, claiming to be a lawyer and threatening to take action against her for infringing on his right to "jog" in the woods.

Despite this small aspect of uneasiness, the Paterson Park group continues to meet monthly, recruiting neighbors and city officials to their cause. It is currently working with law enforcement and Councilwoman Rita Williams to enhance its efforts. Bike patrols in the area have increased and officers are now encouraged to make their presence felt in the park. Though the long-term success of this effort remains to be seen, the Blackstone Park cleanup has so far shown that a group of concerned citizens can often come up with a solution to their own neighborhood problems.