Dear Neighbors,
I am ecstatic to announce that we have a winning sign design for the Hollywood Park Neighborhood sign! As announced in the Fall 2015 Hollywood Park Herald, Casey Marshall, of FABRITYPE, presented three of his designs to the Hollywood Park Neighborhood Association for a membership vote Wednesday evening. 71% of the votes were in favor of one of the three designs (34 out of 48) and almost half of those voted for the winning design dubbed “Front Yard” (16 our of 34). The plan is for the sign to be located at the corner of Freeport Blvd., Shielah Way and Stacia Way.
In keeping with much of the architecture along Freeport Blvd., the words “Hollywood Park” are emblazoned 10 feet above the ground in a font that reflects back to the 1950s era in which Hollywood Park was developed. On the back of the sign is a charming “come again soon!” message. The goal of the sign, however, is not just to put a name to the place, but also to build a sign that evokes the feeling of our place-of the Hollywood Park we know and love. In addition to the actual words, the sign, which will be built of steel to stand the test of time, depicts an oversized scene (1.5 scale) combining 1950s idealism with the charm of our great little neighborhood 60 years later.
This piece of neighborhood art is meant to be more than just a sign. It is meant to be conversation piece that creates a bit of a buzz about Hollywood Park. Even more importantly, it is meant to be a space that neighbors will engage with physically—personally, I can’t wait to plop my 1 year old on one of the steel lawn chairs and my soon-to-be newborn in the other and take a great photo with “Hollywood Park” up above in the background. Have you ever heard the complaint about there not being an actual park in Hollywood Park? Well, this sign, in its own little way will also make a little piece of our neighborhood a whole lot more park-like.
The sign still has a ways to go before it is a reality. First and foremost, we will be setting up an open house to present the design to the entire neighborhood. We will then work through the regular permitting process required by the City with a target ground-breaking to be determined. Stay tuned for the latest updates which will be able to be found here at hollywoodpark95822.org.
Meanwhile, we are super excited to begin raising funds for the sign. We believe these efforts will be another great opportunity for neighbors to gather together and strengthen our community. If anyone has any great ideas for fundraising or would like to help us in our efforts, please contact us at HPNA95822@gmail.com.
Many thanks for all of the wonderful neighbor participation. I, for one, am super excited about this project. I hope you are too!
Your neighbor,
John Maradik-Symkowick
President
Hollywood Park Neighborhood Association