Ford Park is one of Easton’s rare natural treasures. It is more than an open field—it is a peaceful meadow that provides essential habitat for nesting birds, pollinators, rabbits, turtles, and countless small mammals. It is also a place where residents come to experience something increasingly difficult to find: quiet.
People walk their dogs, take a morning run, enjoy nature, or simply sit and appreciate the tranquility. The park serves as a peaceful respite from the pace of everyday life, and that is precisely what makes it so valuable.
I want to be clear: this is not an argument against disc golf. It is a wonderful recreational activity that deserves community support. The question is whether John Ford Park is the right place for a disc golf course.
The proposed course would significantly modify this natural space. Once a natural meadow is transformed for intensive recreational use, its character cannot easily be restored.
The Town of Easton has allocated $7,500 toward this project. Before moving forward, shouldn’t we first ask whether there are other locations that could accommodate disc golf with far less impact on an otherwise undeveloped space? Recreation and conservation do not have to compete if thoughtful site selection is part of the process.
It is especially fitting that this park bears the name of John Ford, a man who devoted more than two decades of service to the Town of Easton. Preserving the park’s natural beauty and peaceful character would be a meaningful way to honor that legacy.
Kara Crissey
9 Responses
I appreciate the concerns about preserving the natural beauty of John F. Ford Park. It truly is one of Easton’s most beautiful parks.
I visit the park regularly to walk my dogs, especially in the fields beyond the main walking loop. Those areas are surprisingly underutilized. It’s not uncommon for me to go an entire walk without seeing another person, aside from an occasional cyclist or another dog walker. There are also wooded areas around the perimeter that have had a history of homeless encampments, and there are times I’ve felt vulnerable walking there alone.
For that reason, I actually see some benefits to a disc golf course. Having more people using those quieter areas of the park could make them feel safer while still allowing everyone to enjoy the natural surroundings.
Disc golf is one of the fastest-growing sports in the country. It’s affordable—many people can get started for around $15 to $20—and it’s accessible to children, adults, and seniors alike. At a time when so many people spend their free time on screens, creating another opportunity to get outside, walk, enjoy nature, and socialize seems like a positive investment in our community’s physical and mental well-being.
Looking at the proposed layout, it appears the course would require relatively little infrastructure beyond the baskets and tee areas. Unlike many recreational projects, it doesn’t require extensive paving or large structures. The meadow, walking paths, wildlife habitat, and natural beauty of the park would largely remain intact while providing another recreational opportunity for the community.
The estimated cost of approximately $24,850 is relatively modest compared to many other park improvement projects. If it encourages more residents to enjoy the outdoors, promotes healthy activity, and provides opportunities for community events and fundraisers, it seems like a worthwhile investment.
I also think it’s worth looking at examples close to home. Oxford Conservation Park successfully combines recreation with conservation through an extensive paved walking trail in a protected natural area. Visitors, birdwatchers, walkers, and wildlife coexist there every day. A disc golf course at John F. Ford Park would likely have an even smaller physical footprint, requiring only baskets and tee areas rather than paved trails. If another park in Talbot County can successfully balance recreation and environmental stewardship, I believe Easton can thoughtfully design a course that allows disc golfers, walkers, wildlife, and nature to coexist as well.
John Ford dedicated many years of service to the Town of Easton, including serving on the Town Council, and was involved with the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum. His wife, Peggy, was my children’s preschool teacher and continues to volunteer in our community. I believe a low-impact recreational activity that brings families and neighbors outdoors would reflect the strong sense of community that both John and Peggy have fostered over the years.
Conservation and recreation don’t always have to be opposing goals. With thoughtful planning, I believe John F. Ford Park can remain a beautiful natural space while also becoming a place where even more residents of all ages can gather, exercise, and enjoy the outdoors together.
Your opinions are well thought out and respectful. However, my belief is that when it comes to nature, “underutilized” is always the way to go. “Underutilized” on a much larger scale is a theory used as more and more developments keep popping up. No, I am not equating a disc golf course with the impact of a housing development, but the principle is the same. The park was created the way it was created specifically so there would be a peaceful, natural aspect to a large part of it. I’d love to see it stay that way.
I totally agree. John Ford Park has provided the public with the opportunity to enjoy nature right within our town limits. It intersects with the north-south Rail Trail, so it is an ideal location for people to enter the park from the trail, walk in the meadow, and take in the beautiful landscape we all treasure.
Let’s leave this park as is and find another place for disc golf.
Lad and Christina Mills are grateful that members of the community are concerned about preserving the tranquility of John Ford Park. The disc golf would be great in another location. It must have its benefits, also.
We are fortunate to be in Maine this month, and we find such solace in the beauty of a sunrise or sunset. Natural beauty cannot be taken for granted. Easton is fortunate to have had leaders who have thought of the importance of nature in our environment.
Thank you to everyone who is thinking ahead about this unique natural space.
Walking my dogs in John Ford’s Park EVERY morning before 6am is sheer bliss! It’s something I do not only for my dogs, but also for me. The peace, the chats with others, the exercise, is a joy. Please find another location for the disc golf course. What about Easton Club golf course. That would be be a perfect location with plenty of room, and is already a ‘course’.
I strongly feel that Easton needs a place for experiencing unadulterated nature. John Ford Park should remain as it is.
There may be a big demand for disc golf but I believe a better location can be found.
I wholeheartedly agree that this meadow should stay intact. It is to my understanding that there is a sizeable disc golf location already at Tuckahoe State Park, only 20 minutes from Easton. As a resident of Ridgely, I find it imperative to keep attractions like Tuckahoe State Park busy to keep bringing visitors into our town, whose businesses are constantly failing due to lack of traffic. Secondly, as a conservationist, these prairies and meadows that exist are few and far between on the Eastern Shore, especially in protected areas like John Ford Park. Easton is known for its large population of different bird species and many of them rely on meadowlands like this to nest their young in spring. Sometimes it’s best to take a step back from our human desires to constantly manipulate nature for our own benefit. With solar farms taking over the Eastern Shore, and potentially AI data centers soon, the last thing we need is another mowed open space that has been stripped of its biodiversity.
Please leave the meadow! Meadows are the most needed habitat, and more have been destroyed than any other type of habitat on the Eastern shore. In order to enjoy nature we need to protect and conserve these important sites.
Please leave the park undisturbed. We have plenty of other places for recreational activities. Let’s leave one space for quiet space and contemplative reflecrtions.