It is slightly before 9AM on Saturday morning 10th of May 2025. Lancaster youths start to gather around the Water Street and Chestnut Street intersection as Lancaster Police officers start to close-off Water Street to traffic for Lancaster Rec’s 10th celebration of Open Streets. Soon the youth kick into action and start laying out lines, spraying crosswalks, and placing cones with small traffic signs. By 10AM a pop-up traffic garden emerges, a safe place where kids can bike and learn traffic rules.
“We spent between 3-6 hours there setting it up and also running an example to the kids on how to conform to road safety. Together with Public Works Engineer Ben Hogan we designed traffic signs, questions and the layout of the pop-up garden for kids to bring their bikes and come to bike safely. We would walk them around, explaining what the signs meant and teaching them about road safety,” Jonathan Peters said.
The contributions and positive community actions of these Lancaster youths do not come as a surprise. Over the past 6 months these high-school students have been part of the JP McCaskey Neighborhood Leaders Academy (NLA), a program that equips them to understand local city government in Lancaster. “We learned about the inner workings of Lancaster City and how we as students can make a real difference in our neighborhood,” Hasset Tesfaye said.
Joshua Beltre, Engagement Specialist in the Department of Neighborhood Engagement said “I’ve had the honor of guiding an incredible group of students from JP McCaskey during NLA. These young people have impressed me so much from day one. Their level of commitment, curiosity and care for their community has been so inspiring to me.”
The youths were also able to present and reflect on their experiences in front of Lancaster’s City Council and Mayor Danene Sorace on Tuesday the 13th of May 2025.
“I learned how important local government is and how it’s connected to everyday life of residents. From the bike lanes that I ride on everyday to get to school, from the parks I go to, and the community events I visit like Open Streets,” Kai Unwin-Wisnosky said. “Students and community members have a voice and can create change in projects that they want to see.”
“I learned what it means to be a leader,” Rachelle Kwitch added. “At Open Streets we got to lead the younger kids through our Traffic Garden. Even if that was on the small scale, one day when they are older or when all these people have grown, maybe they will be on the streets and they will be having a safer experience biking or using the bike lanes that might be created because of that”
Based on the success of this pop-up traffic garden at Open Streets, City Transportation Planner Emma Hamme, Environmental Planner Karl Graybill and Program Manager, Office of Public Art & Urban Design Molly Kirchoff mentioned that they are looking into several locations to realize a permanent traffic garden in Lancaster.
It is safe to say that the future of the City of Lancaster looks bright with such energetic and talented young leaders!
Bryant Heng is a Bloomberg Harvard City Hall Fellow studying how Lancaster City can make transportation better. Learn more here.
