On Saturday, October 28th, the newly christened Sylvester Turner Park opened it's gates to the public. Festivities kicked off with a dedication and ribbon cutting ceremony by city and state elected officials speaking on behalf of the park.
“It was a true honor for me to create a fun and positive day for the children and families of the Acres Homes community,” Rep. Turner said of the park opening. “Because there is a significant absence of positive programs in the community and the fact that we have high levels of crime, my hope is that this park and this baseball league will serve as the first step in the right direction for our youth.”
KHOU news anchor, Debra Duncan, emceed the ceremony. Councilmember Toni Lawrence, whose district the park resides in and who led the effort to name the park after Turner along with Wayne Nordon of the Near Northwest Management District among others, spoke about her hopes for the future of the park and how far it has come since they first broke ground.
Councilmember Jarvis Johnson and State Sen. John Whitmire offered remarks on why they thought the park is a valuable asset to the community. U.S. Congress members Sheila Jackson Lee and Al Green also participated in the ceremony and presented Rep. Turner with an official Certificate of Congressional Recognition in honor of the park.
Following the ceremony and a first pitch thrown out by none other than the man of the hour himself, two teams from the Neartown Baseball League and the Sylvester Turner Youth Baseball League competed head-to-head for a riveting match-up. Councilmember Sue Lovell was on hand to help coach the Neartown team that lost a close game to the ST Youth Baseball team.
Down at the West Little York end of the park, Step Rideaux and his Zydeco band entertained the nearly 2,000 people that showed up for the park opening.
And keeping with the tradition of a park for everyone to enjoy, complimentary hot dogs, nachos, sausage on a stick, popcorn, and drinks were provided. Even the kids were out and about to play on the inflatable amusements and get their face painted during this fun-packed day in the park. 
As the sun set and the festivities wound down, Rep. Turner brought out the big guns for the final event of the evening: a 20 minute fireworks show that left the crowd in awe and ushered in a new, fresh start for the neighborhood park.
From Humble Beginnings—Three years ago state Rep. Sylvester Turner and the Acres Home Citizens Council were looking for ways to boost the spirit of the heavily black and low-income community northwest of downtown.
Turner's eye soon fell on the largely derelict 27-acre West Little York Park. He visited then-Mayor Lee Brown at City Hall and asked whether the city could fund park improvements. When Brown said there was no money, Turner extracted a promise that if the community raised the money, the city would provide maintenance and operational costs.
Armed with that pledge, the state representative obtained a $1.5 million grant from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and persuaded AT&T, Centerpoint Energy, and Southwestern Bell to contribute more than $1 million to revitalize the empty park. On the Senate side, Sen. John Whitmire successfully pushed the appropriation.
As it stands today, the park features two little league baseball fields and one NCAA regulation-size field on the north end of the park that will hopefully become the sight that some of Northwest Houston's best players and teams will one day call home field. A jogging trail encircles the entire park, there is new playground equipment, picnic tables and a covered pavilion. A wetlands area remains in the middle of the park along with a retention pond.
Rep. Turner hopes the park will continue to serve as a safe environment for families and children.
“This park is about providing young children with the tools and activities necessary to set them on a new path during this critical age,” Rep. Turner said. “My hope is that this park will be the start of one of many other targeted improvements in the Acres Homes area in order to create a dynamic, positive and everlasting change.”
Rep. Turner would also like to thank those organizations whose donations made this event so special to the citizens of Acres Homes: Houston Astros, Houston Parks and Recreation, A Moonwalk of Houston, Kidsracks Party Rentals, American Fireworks, Classic Cakes and Catering, Texas Beer Alliance, Time Warner Cable, H.E.B, A Prime Affair Catering, Centerpoint Energy, D.J. Printing and Graphics, Golf Cars of Houston, TXU, and United Food and Commercial Workers Locals 408 & 455.
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