Three park projects in Nipomo are about to receive a $1.2 million funding boost from San Luis Obispo County, thanks to a budget adjustment approved on June 20 by the SLO County Board of Supervisors.
Receiving the $1.2 million is the Dana Adobe restoration project ($300,000) for a new water line; the Jack’s Ready Imagination Park ($500,000), led by nonprofit Jack’s Helping Hand, to serve children with special needs; and the Nipomo Community Park ($400,000) for new tennis, pickleball, and basketball courts, and equestrian trails.
One high-profile project missing from the county’s cash-out is a new skate park. In March, the county allocated $150,000 to the skate park to fund design and construction documents—but it received minimal attention at the June 12 budget hearing. Its construction is expected to cost as much as $1 million.
“I’ve got to look at what the most kids use down there,” said county Supervisor Lynn Compton, who represents Nipomo and spearheaded the parks discussion at board’s budget hearing. “I don’t think [the skate park] will necessarily serve more people than tennis and basketball.”
Compton, with supporting votes from supervisors John Peschong and Debbie Arnold, steered the decisions about the park funding, allocating all of the remaining funds in the county’s Public Facility Fees (PFF) categorized for parks. PFFs are paid by developers, and spent to offset the impacts of development. Compton believes that PFFs have been inappropriately spent outside her district in the past.
“We’re sorely lacking in South County for anything for our kids, [and] we’ve suffered the brunt of the growth,” Compton said.
Supervisors Bruce Gibson and Adam Hill dissented in the vote. Gibson and Hill dispute Compton’s claim that South County has missed out on PFF funds.
“This is pure pork headed to Nipomo to bolster Supervisor Compton’s re-election bid in 2018,” Gibson said. “Here we go draining the PFF fund. This is unbelievably outrageous.”
This article appears in Jun 29 – Jul 6, 2017.
