CAMDEN, N.J. (KYW Newsradio) — A popular park in Camden reopened Thursday after millions of dollars were spent over the past four years to bring it back to life, with the help of a Philadelphia Eagles legend.
More than $3 million went into expanding Whitman Park from six acres to 10 acres. It has a brand new turf field for football and soccer, new baseball and softball fields, a playground, a basketball court, and a new concession stand with bathrooms.
Olivia Glenn, who is from Camden, works with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. She spent a lot of time here growing up and says this is a huge improvement for the community.
“There used to be a lab here. I remember when I was a kid that lab was open, then it closed. There was a lot of illegal dumping,” said Glenn. “This is a major transformation.”
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Money came from federal, state and local sources as well as from donors.
Eagles legend Ron Jaworski helped through his foundation Jaws Youth PlayBook, and says he’s blown away by the transformation.
“What has been structured here to help kids is just remarkable,” said Jaworski. ”18, 19 months ago when I was here, it was a dump.”
It was a literal dump full of trash, used needles, and who knows what else.
Mayor Vic Carstarphen thanked "Jaws" and all of the other stakeholders for making this happen, for creating a place where Camden kids can thrive.
“Access to safe, quality parks are a critical part — as I always talk about — in improving the quality of life in our neighborhoods,” said Carstarphen.
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Brad Hawkins, a longtime youth football coach, gets emotional thinking about how important this is for the kids.
“You know when they were first doing this, I said, ‘When they cut the ribbon, I’m gonna cry,’” Hawkins said. “However, I cried five weeks ago.”
Hawkins said five Camden natives play in the NFL including his son, also named Brad, and he can’t wait to get to work with the next generation of greats.