Dean Highland Neighborhood Association

Tag: green spaces

  • Baylor’s “Steppin’ Out Day of Service” and the Dean Highland Conservancy Initiative: A Recap

    Hello Dean Highlanders,

    We had around 60-70 students from Baylor’s Alpha Epsilon Delta (AED) Honor Society show up yesterday (Saturday, April 11th) to help clean up our two pocket parks and a bunch of our alleyways. They did this as part of Baylor’s annual Steppin’ Out Day of Service event.

    We are truly grateful for their help and dedication to service. Because this event was so successful, we will definitely be partnering with them more often this year!

    Check out some photos, beginning with Dean Highland Neighborhood Association’s President, Scott Michael, bagging up some garbage and throwing it onto the back of his pickup truck. What service! What heart!

    Here are some more photos of the fun we had:

    Again we were able to hit both of our pocket parks and dozens of alleyways, which is exactly what the Dean Highland Conservancy Initiative (DHCI) seeks to accomplish as we work toward a world-class park in our empty Hillcrest parking lot. Thanks again to Sara from Parrott Ave for the heads up on this project, and for getting us connected to the folks at Baylor who were able to make this happen on their end.

    Our next service project for the DHCI will be Saturday, April 25th. We hope to see you there, and if you’ve got an alleyway or empty lot that you’d like to nominate for some tender lovin’ care, click here to submit your nomination!

  • We’re back in the news

    Hi Dean Highlanders,

    Your neighborhood association board is hard at work and back in the news advocating for a park in the abandoned Hillcrest lot. This time the Waco Tribune-Herald put us on their front page.

    If you read through it, you will notice that there is no guarantee of a park, and even if the City puts one in, they might not make it the world-class crown jewel of Waco’s Parks system that the historic site deserves. Which means that we still have a lot of work to do.

    Step 1 is helping us take care of the few green spaces that Dean Highland does have: this Saturday (Feb. 28th), from 10am-noon, the neighborhood association will be cleaning Mitchell Park and fellowshipping as we do it. (This is a great opportunity for kids to get some much-needed civic service under their belt!)

    Here’s Mitchell Park (3024 Mitchell Ave., Waco, TX 76708) on a map:

    Step 2 begins on Sunday (Mar. 1st) at the Hillcrest lot. KWTX 10 News will be there with a camera to talk about the lot and the City’s attempts at purchasing it. Please show up to this event, which begins at 11am. You are invited, and your voice and presence will strengthen our advocacy efforts. Again please come out to the old Hillcrest lot this Sunday (Mar. 1st) beginning at 11am. Here’s the empty lot on a map:

    It’s shaping up to be quite the weekend!

  • Don’t forget about our Mitchell Park cleanup on Saturday (Feb. 28th), and a TV news crew will be at Hillcrest on Sunday (Mar. 1st)

    Hello Dean Highlanders,

    Don’t forget that our bi-monthly Mitchell Park cleaning is happening this Saturday (February 28th). It’s going to be from 10am – noon. Here’s Mitchell Park (3024 Mitchell Ave., Waco, TX 76708) on a map:

    Please, we’d love to see you there.

    There is another journalist, this time from KWTX 10 News, who will be interviewing members of the Dean Highland Neighborhood Association board on Sunday at 11am at the Hillcrest parking lot:

    Please, come to this as well. We realize that many of you have church around this time, but if there was any way you could slip out the back door with the kiddos and show up to the empty parking lot, we’d be obliged.

    There is no guarantee of a park at Hillcrest. None. Zip. Zilch. Nada. We have to keep fighting for one. Cleaning up the few green spaces that we do have, and keeping a sharp eye on the empty lot and what’s being done with it, are vital to this fight.

    Please, make this a Dean Highland weekend and we’ll see you on Saturday and Sunday!

  • Due to the rain, today’s Mitchell Park cleanup will be postponed

    Happy Valentine’s Day.

    Oh, and here’s the link for our appearance on KCEN 6 News last night!

  • Mitchell Park cleanup recap (January 31, 2026)

    Saturday was cold and windy, but that didn’t stop the neighborhood association from getting outside and taking care of its favorite “pocket park.” We only lasted a little over thirty minutes, but we managed to collect two bags of garbage and decent amount of branches and limbs. Oh, and we found a random bale of hay, too!

    Our next scheduled Mitchell Park cleanup is for February 14th (a Saturday). It’ll be from 10am-noon. Check out the pics:

  • Mitchell Park cleanup recap

    Thanks to all who came out and helped clean up Mitchell Park this past Saturday (Jan. 3rd). It was a total blast. The Adopt-A-Parks program we’re collaborating with didn’t have the equipment we needed to tackle all of the leaves, so some of the guys brought their own tools to help make the cleanup more fun. Here are some pics:

    We ended up collecting 25 bags of garbage and leaves for the Adopt-A-Parks program to pick up. More importantly, we made some new connections in the neighborhood:

    Our next cleanup for Mitchell Park is scheduled for January 24th (another Saturday). We hope to see you there. Here is where Mitchell Park is located:

    It was really great seeing familiar faces and meeting new ones. Service can sometimes seem like a thankless task that’s not worth the effort, but the Dean Highland Neighborhood Association begs to differ. Here are some more pics:

    Bring the kids next time. Bring a friend or, better yet, bring a neighbor!

  • Join us today (Jan. 3rd) at Mitchell Park

    As mentioned, we will be cleaning up Mitchell Park today (January 3) from 10am to noon. The address is 3024 Mitchell Ave, Waco TX 76708. Here is a map:

    Just look for the big Dean Highland tent. We’ll have bottled water, coffee, and equipment from our partners at the Adopt-A-Parks program.

    You don’t even have to get your hands dirty. Just drop on by and say “hi.” We’d love to see you.

  • Looking to get your 2026 off on the right foot?

    Why not help the Dean Highland Neighborhood Association (DHNA) clean up Mitchell Park, this next Saturday, on January 3?

    It will be a great way for you to get out of the house, grab some fresh air, and do a good deed at the start of what we hope will be a wonderful 2026.

    We have not given up our advocacy for a park in the Hillcrest parking lot, but we do realize that environmental reviews take time. While those reviews take place, we thought it would be a good idea to start taking care of the green spaces that we do have in Dean Highland. Here is where Mitchell Park is located:

    The address is 3024 Mitchell Ave, Waco, TX 76708. If you would like participate, feel free to swing on by at anytime from 10am to Noon. We will have coffee for you (as long as it lasts!). You can also email us at deanhighlandwaco@gmail.com if you have any questions about this project.

    Keeping our green spaces clean is an important part of fighting for a big park in our neighborhood, and as such, we plan on gathering at least once per month to pick up garbage, fellowship with fellow Dean Highlanders, and rake some leaves. The DHNA Board actually did a test run on December 13, 2025 (the morning of the big, successful holiday party), and we had a blast: