LIBERTY — Members of Sullivan Renaissance put in an entire day’s work at Creekside Park in Liberty last week.

A popular spot in the heart of the village for people to walk or enjoy a lunchbreak outside, Creekside Park is also home to the Liberty Farmers’ Market every Friday from 3 - 6 p.m.

Over the years the park had become overgrown in some parts, also accumulating trash and litter.

Sullivan Renaissance Executive Director, Denise Frangipane, explained “We wanted to create a visual line of site from the market to the stream.”

Shannon Cilento, Community Development Program Manager at Sullivan Renaissance, explained this was part of their ongoing Clean Sweep projects. 

“We started them in 2020 to work with communities to come up with a one-day project where we could just ‘blitz’ and totally transform an area in one day,” Cilento said.

Cilento said their volunteers cleared all the brush and overgrowth from one side of the creek that travels through the village. They also carried away multiple trash bags filled with litter.

“It was a mess, there was a TV sitting back there and you really couldn’t even see the creek,” Cilento said.

Volunteers worked with the town and village of Liberty, including the town highway and parks and recreation departments.

“There were a ton of us here, which was awesome,” Cilento said.

Sullivan Renaissance has other grants to work with the town of Liberty on community gardens and other beautification projects.

“You take a small area like this and start to make a difference,” said Town of Liberty Supervisor Frank DeMayo, looking over the progress that had been made.

DeMayo also pointed to volunteer efforts to powerwash garbage cans in the village and paint all the tops red - Liberty’s school color. 

“As little a project as that seems, I think its impact is huge just from a psychological standpoint. People see that we’re working up and down the street,” he said.