Woodruff Park chess court shut down ‘until further notice’

Due to ‘undesirable activity,’ the area will remain chained off for 30 days or more.

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One corner of Downtown’s Woodruff Park is much quieter than usual. At the chess court in the park’s southwest tip, the sounds of plastic pieces clicking against stone tables and grizzled men taunting each other over heated games have disappeared. The space has been chained off and closed down “until further notice,” according to signs. Newly installed chess tables bearing the park’s logo now sit under tarps.

David Wardell, Vice President of Operations and Public Safety at the Atlanta Downtown Improvement District, says the city closed the chess court due to a recent spike in “undesirable activity.” ADID is part of Central Atlanta Progress, the Downtown civic group that helps maintain the park and fund area improvements. For the next 30 days or more, the area will be off limits except for scheduled events.

Officer Lukasz Sajdak, a spokesman for the Atlanta Police Department,  told CL that there have been at least 14 arrests in Woodruff Park in 2016, with reports including drug charges and “suspicious persons.”

A chess player who frequently visited the court and who asked not to be identified out of safety concerns says he noticed an uptick in violence and gang activity at the tables during May and June. Before ADID closed the court, he recalls seeing multiple fights between regular players and younger men who brought knives and guns. Some players stopped coming altogether.

However, he says, tension calmed during special events such as Atlanta Streets Alive, when sponsors and staff were on hand to monitor the games. He believes the city should consider hiring a part-time or full-time chess proctor to oversee the court and enforce the rules. This person – potentially a volunteer – could also help match opponents and offer lessons if needed. Similar positions exist in other major cities with public chess courts, including New York City’s Bryant Park and St. Louis’ Chess Pocket Park.

“I don’t know what title you would give them, but they could orchestrate people who really want to play chess,” he says. “Then other people would have no reason to be in that vicinity.”

As the chess court remains vacant over the next month, ADID hopes the hotspot will cool down. During that time, officials will reevaluate the court’s configuration and purpose. Wardell says they may decide to split up the chess tables and distribute them throughout the park, or they may simply keep that nook roped off except for special events.

It’s also possible that the city will find an entirely new use for the space. Southwest Airlines and the Project for Public Spaces awarded Woodruff Park a $200,000 grant in April to fund improvements. CAP has been gathering community feedback about how to revitalize the park, which may affect the chess court’s future. Current plans for the area include a live music series on Friday afternoons in July.

In the meantime, Atlanta’s “guerilla chess” buffs will have to find a new place to set up their boards. The player who spoke to CL says he hopes the city can find a solution that doesn’t require closing down the court permanently.

“That’s like if you let terrorists win,” he says.