When Svante Myrick, 25, became the youngest-ever mayor of Ithaca, N.Y., he gave up his car to join the estimated 15 percent of city residents who walk to work.

As mayor, however, Myrick has a prime downtown parking spot on the main street reserved for his exclusive use. So instead of letting it stand empty, he began to "turn the Mayor's parking space into a park space."

He decorated the space with flora and benches, and changed the "Reserved for Mayor" sign to read, "Reserved for Mayor and Friends." The official ribbon cutting for the tiny park was June 1.

Facebook fans can log-in and see Myrick's photo, showing him relaxing with residents in the new park_ing space.

(READ the story, with photos, in Grist.org)