Sandy Creek Park is located on a former wastewater treatment site. The land for this park was acquired by the City of Durham in 1928 and 1929. The plant originally served the Duke University Campus. In the 1950's the facilities were expanded and in 1984 the treatment plant was taken out of service, though this site was used for disposal of storm debris after Hurricane Fran in 1996. The City of Durham used the site as wetlands mitigation for the construction of the Martin Luther King parkway in the mid to late 1990's, agreeing to encumber the site with two conservation easements for a wetlands area; and the state’s Ecosystem Enhancement Program has constructed and manages the site wetlands. During that period, the City removed most of the old existing treatment plant facilities and turned the site over to the Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR) to manage as a City park facility. In 1999 DPR submitted an application to the NC Parks and Recreation Trust Fund to construct an asphalt trail, a picnic shelter, restroom facility and parking lot; this application was awarded and the project was completed in 2003.
Today the only parts of the treatment plant still on the site are two large green tanks—the Vacuator (on the left as you look up the hill) and the Digestor (on the right)-and the bridge connecting the two parts of the plant, now converted to pedestrian use.
Over the next few years the park suffered from vandalism, arson, and general misbehavior. The City was considering selling off the park as excess property. At this point the New Hope Creek Corridor Advisory Committee, a group formed by the cities or Durham and Chapel Hill and the counties of Durham and Orange to advise their governments on environmental issues withing the New Hope Creek watershed, stepped up to begin a process of improving the park. With the help of another State Parks Trails Grant, the NHCCAC designed and renovated the old bridge over Sandy Creek. For several years the park users from the Garrett Road neighborhoods had to dodge holes in the bridge and barricades to access the main part of the park. With the help of groups from Duke University and neighbors of the park, the bridge was completed in the summer of 2012 and dedicated to landscape architect Ken Coulter, who had written to original Master Plan for the Park.
Encouraged by the response from volunteers and park neighbors, the Friends of Sandy Creek approached Keep Durham Beautiful and Durham Parks and Recreation to work together with the Friends to write a matching grant to the Durham Open Space and Trails Commission. These grants, funded by the Durham County Commissioners, are available to non-profits in Durham County to "assist non-profit organization is Durham County, both inside and outside the city limits, in preserving open space lands and promoting new recreational opportunities for citizens of Durham County." As a matching grant, the Friends needed to get donations, pledge volunteer hours, and seek in-kind contributions to match the $10,000 that was provided by the County. The improvements to the park that were made possible by this grant included an observation deck near one of the park's ponds, a fence around the park's grassy areas, educational signs for the park, ADA barbecue grills, native trees, shrubs, plants and grasses, bike racks, and the removal of invasive species. By the completion of the grant in 2015 over 2000 hours of volunteer time had been clocked, over $5000 in cash raised, and over $5000 in in-kind contributions were made. Major contributions were provided by Ticon Properties, Allenton Management and Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina with friends and neighbor providing smaller amounts. Volunteer groups from Duke University provide nearly half the volunteer hours, and in-kind contributions from Coulter, Jewell & Thames LLC, and Hoffman Nursery rounded out the match.
Today the only parts of the treatment plant still on the site are two large green tanks—the Vacuator (on the left as you look up the hill) and the Digestor (on the right)-and the bridge connecting the two parts of the plant, now converted to pedestrian use.
Over the next few years the park suffered from vandalism, arson, and general misbehavior. The City was considering selling off the park as excess property. At this point the New Hope Creek Corridor Advisory Committee, a group formed by the cities or Durham and Chapel Hill and the counties of Durham and Orange to advise their governments on environmental issues withing the New Hope Creek watershed, stepped up to begin a process of improving the park. With the help of another State Parks Trails Grant, the NHCCAC designed and renovated the old bridge over Sandy Creek. For several years the park users from the Garrett Road neighborhoods had to dodge holes in the bridge and barricades to access the main part of the park. With the help of groups from Duke University and neighbors of the park, the bridge was completed in the summer of 2012 and dedicated to landscape architect Ken Coulter, who had written to original Master Plan for the Park.
Encouraged by the response from volunteers and park neighbors, the Friends of Sandy Creek approached Keep Durham Beautiful and Durham Parks and Recreation to work together with the Friends to write a matching grant to the Durham Open Space and Trails Commission. These grants, funded by the Durham County Commissioners, are available to non-profits in Durham County to "assist non-profit organization is Durham County, both inside and outside the city limits, in preserving open space lands and promoting new recreational opportunities for citizens of Durham County." As a matching grant, the Friends needed to get donations, pledge volunteer hours, and seek in-kind contributions to match the $10,000 that was provided by the County. The improvements to the park that were made possible by this grant included an observation deck near one of the park's ponds, a fence around the park's grassy areas, educational signs for the park, ADA barbecue grills, native trees, shrubs, plants and grasses, bike racks, and the removal of invasive species. By the completion of the grant in 2015 over 2000 hours of volunteer time had been clocked, over $5000 in cash raised, and over $5000 in in-kind contributions were made. Major contributions were provided by Ticon Properties, Allenton Management and Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina with friends and neighbor providing smaller amounts. Volunteer groups from Duke University provide nearly half the volunteer hours, and in-kind contributions from Coulter, Jewell & Thames LLC, and Hoffman Nursery rounded out the match.
