Duck Pond

A guy at Mueller Lake once told me he released his young goose here and today my coworker mentioned that he often sees geese crossing the street so I got curious. It’s not good for slow-​moving, flightless waterfowl to be crossing streets.
Pros:
— Pretty and scenic spot if you ignore the trash and broken glass
— Hidden from the road and somewhat secluded
— Three geese (two white Chinese not much older than 5 months and the alpha who’s either an American Buff or Pomeranian or Greylag goose)
— One mallard drake (male duck)
— There is a «Goose Crossing» sign on the street (which was a nice gesture even if it’s not very prominent)
— The waterfowl appeared suddenly when I descended the steps under the clocktower and walked right up to eat. (I gave them bowls of duck pellets and cracked corn.)
Cons:
— Private property sign and yet so open and easily-​accessible to the public
— LOTS of trash on the ground, in the water, on the street level
— You find lots of places where homeless people store their belongings. I was going to walk around the perimeter of the lake but decided not to after seeing so many belongings of homeless people. Didn’t want to run into them while alone in this secluded area.
— Homeless people seen rummaging through the nearby dumpsters facing Walmart
— Homeless people hanging out on the steps asking you for spare change multiple times («No, I don’t carry my wallet while feeding ducks.»)
— Broken glass and random shoes found around the clock tower
— Poor environment for ducks and geese. They need more company. I think most were male. The lake is also rather small and narrow.
This waterfowl society is interesting because the tiny mallard is higher in the pecking order than the two, much-​larger Chinese geese. There are so few waterfowl that the duck hangs out with the geese.
The best and most convenient entrance to this lake is the clocktower at the corner of Norwood Park Blvd. and Clock Tower Dr. It’s right across from Goodwill. You can park in the Goodwill parking lot or along Clock Tower street. The lake is at a lower elevation than the street level so you’d never see it unless you’re walking by or riding in a very high vehicle. You can also park at McDonalds /​Taco Bell but you’d have to walk farther and maybe even across another trash-​littered field. This lake is flanked by Walmart, Goodwill, and McDonalds – hence, its name.
While walking to the water level, I briefly contemplated picking up the trash but quickly realized what a futile effort that would be. I’ll just pick up broken glass the waterfowl might ingest.
I don’t know what the history/​background of this lake is and who put the ducks/​geese here but I would take them to Mueller Lake where they’ll have a much better life. The duck/​geese were most likely abandoned pets.