Chestnut Park

The front side of Chestnut Park

Chestnut Park is a very active community park. In good weather in the afternoons, it is often filled with pickup and team-practice soccer games, softball games, dog walkers, basketball players, tennis players, and of course, kids and their parents. At night, you never know who you'll encounter there, from dog trainers to a group of medieval knights rumored to gather occasionally for sword play.

This park allowed for consumption of alcohol without a permit until the City Council passed a measure no longer allowing it on May 24th, 2005. The ban of alcohol without a permit was due to a large number of residents complaining about not feeling comfortable in the park, due to a few drinkers that were spending most of the day, almost every day there. In the year before the measure was passed, the number of calls to the police regarding Chestnut Park exceeded the total number of calls received for the other major parks in the city. The measure became another town/gown flashpoint for Davis, as the residents felt that they were protecting their local park, while some students felt like it was yet another encroachment by the city on their rights.

Based on information available on the city Web sites, it appears that open containers and softball/baseball are still allowed together without a permit at Slide Hill Park and Westwood Park. They are also allowed at Community Park during hours when school is not in session and no school events are occurring. Please see the Wiki Open Container Ordinance page and visit the Official OCO page.

The lights at the basketball and tennis courts turn off automatically by 10pm.

For runners or walkers in the park, the loop inside the park is almost exactly one-third of a kilometer. This makes it a good place to do running workouts. The bike path has connections to the cul-de-sacs that back up to the park, Craig Place, Gregory Place, Penny Place, and Georgia Place.

Pictures

A crowd of people surrounding a picnic table and grill. View of the playfield There be rumors of dueling knights

Also see Parks for info on other local parks or consult the comprehensive info for Davis parks, Maps

2009-05-06 10:44:38   What's up with the basketball court lights lately? Went there last night at dusk and they never turned on. All other lights in the park were on. There aren't many places to shoot hoops at night in Davis, so this is a real bummer. —jackmon

2014-12-07 13:18:46   I was walking my dog at 7pm. It seemed pretty early to me but it was surprisingly dark around this hour due to the season. I noticed I wasn't the only one walking my dog at this hour. There were also a few afternoon joggers getting their exercise on. Just the type of thing we love to see in our Davis community. I tried turning on the lights at the basketball court as I walked by but only one was lamp was functional. I'm sure replacing the lightbulbs is an easy fix. So I am writing as a request. Not only for me but for everyone that enjoys coming to this wonderful park. How can anyone feel safe in darkness? I feel safe walking along my trusty companion but I worry about those who don't have a dog. I love seeing this park full of active people, so full of life. I feel the number of people has decreased do to the lack of light.

Please fix the basketball court lights and the surrounding lights as well. —JamesConnrad

JamesConnrad - I believe you need to contact the City Parks Department for this request. The Wiki doesn't really work as a City Services Request Site in my experience. loneshark