After a workshop on Nov. 11 where Guadalupe community members discussed the needs and future of LeRoy Park, it’s back to the drawing board for city staffers working to lay out plans for the park’s coming $4.5 million rehabilitation.
Roughly 60 residents filled Guadalupe City Hall on Sunday to take part in the workshop, according to Mayor Pro Tem Ariston Julian, who said it was the second in a series of forums and meetings aimed at getting community input on upcoming–and much needed–improvements to Guadalupe’s only park.
“The key element is to have, in general, input, in terms of what the community wants,” Julian said, adding that city officials hope the park will one day be able to accomodate a vast range of activities for people with interests of all kinds.
While Julian said a new sprinkler system, barbeque pits, and improved landscaping were always on the city’s list of needed additions to the 5-acre park, several community suggestions–including an amphitheater for community events and private parties, a skatepark, walking and biking paths, large fields for youth sports, and exercise stations–were some of the most requested features added to the city’s draft plan.
A new library facility, picnic area, and public restrooms and showers may also be added to the park area, Julian said. And in the community center, which hosts city events and currently houses the Boys and Girls Clubs of Santa Maria Valley’s Guadalupe club site, extensive flooring, roofing, and facade repairs, a new air conditioning and heating system, and code compliance upgrades are coming.
At the Nov. 11 workshop, Julian said community members helped improve the city’s draft design of both the park and community center, and suggested changes and placement of the various proposed features.
The city plans to take that feedback into consideration throughout its design and construction process, which Julian said is expected to take about three years in all.
“It’s not going to happen overnight,” he said, adding that soon the city will be forming a commission dedicated to the park project sometime in late December.
The LeRoy Park rehabilitation project became possible in July, when Guadalupe Mayor John Lizalde announced that the city was awarded a $4.5 million Community Development Block Grant to fund the project. The grant was awarded to Guadalupe through a federally funded U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development program that works to help smaller cities and counties create jobs, homes, services, and businesses.
The application process was extremely competitive, according to Guadalupe City Administrator Cruz Ramos, who said in a previous interview with the Sun that the 3-inch-thick application binder included surveys, community meetings, and months of research, all work that she said was well worth improving Guadalupe’s limited park space.
“We need a place for people to recreate,” Ramos said.
This article appears in Nov 15-22, 2018.