Residents invited to share their priorities for county parks
The San Benito County Parks and Recreation Commissioners invited
residents to offer input March 15 on their priorities for the
future of existing parks as well as still to be developed
locations.
The community workshop, held at a regularly-scheduled meeting,
offered a chance for residents to comment on the types of features
they would like to see at the San Benito County Historical Park,
the Veterans Memorial Park, as well as two new parks that are in
the land-acquisition phase
– the San Benito River Parkway and a regional park.
Residents invited to share their priorities for county parks
The San Benito County Parks and Recreation Commissioners invited residents to offer input March 15 on their priorities for the future of existing parks as well as still to be developed locations.
The community workshop, held at a regularly-scheduled meeting, offered a chance for residents to comment on the types of features they would like to see at the San Benito County Historical Park, the Veterans Memorial Park, as well as two new parks that are in the land-acquisition phase – the San Benito River Parkway and a regional park.
The county already has $2.5 million in funding for land acquisition for the San Benito River Parkway and the regional park.
The workshop was the first of several the commissioners hope to hold to gather public input before they apply for state capital improvement grants to help fund the projects.
“The master plan was approved by the board last fall,” said Daniel Dungy, the District 3 representative. “It was the result of meetings, phone surveys and personal surveys … Tonight we want to look at the top-priority projects.”
Dungy said the Parks and Recreation facilities master plan, adopted in July, includes short-and long-term goals, some of which have been completed already.
“We are moving on to the funding stage and want to have projects,” Dungy said. “We want you to think of operational expenses, partnerships with schools, cities, private entities or nonprofits.”
The county is vying for a slice of $184 million in a competitive grant process. The California State Parks Office accepts applications for projects ranging from $100,000 to $5 million, and municipalities can submit multiple applications. San Benito County’s application in the first round for funding for the San Benito River Parkway did not get accepted, so the commissioners are hoping with public input they might have a better chance in round two.
“We likely will send out multiple applications to the state,” said Steve Wittry, the county’s public works director.
Dungy said the projects that were selected in the first round included new parks in underserved areas, parks woven around community needs, and those that offer crossover for different segments of the population such as youth, seniors and others.
After a brief explanation of the master plan and the grant process that is pending, residents were allowed to mingle in smaller groups at four stations set up around the room. At each station, there were Post-it notes and pens for writing suggestions, a large piece of paper on which to post the comments and aerial views of some of the properties.
Janelle Cox, a management analyst with San Benito County, encouraged residents to group like suggestions so that after each group presented all the suggestions residents would be able to place red dots next to their five top priorities.
“In this session, we took the liberty of identifying some projects from the master plan to get input on what kinds of features or structures you’d like to see,” Cox said. “Feel free to go to different groups.”
At the end of the hour and half, the commissioners had some pretty clear feedback from the at least 40 community members who participated.
One message was clear – residents want dedicated equestrian trails along the proposed San Benito River Parkway. They also want to see paved or partially-paved trails for bicyclists, walkers and runners. One resident suggested thinking of ways to connect the San Benito River Parkway to the Pajaro River. Others mentioned connecting it to the regional park if possible.
At a regional park, the top picks for facilities and amenities included an amphitheater or festival area, an aquatic center and public areas such as benches, picnic tables and barbecue pits.
For the two existing parks, the desires of the residents include upgraded restroom facilities and adding public meeting spaces. At the Veterans Memorial Park, those present at the meeting focused on rearranging the space so that more baseball diamonds are available for multiple games or practices at the same time. There were also suggestions for a walking or exercise path around the perimeter of the park.
“I would suggest a very substantial redo,” said Wittry, of Veterans Park. “There are irrigation and plumbing problems. It would take public works up to $5 million to rebuild it so it functions as a modern sports complex.”
From the aerial view of the park, the multiple diamonds are jumbled together in a way that can cause interference between fields.
At the San Benito County Historical Park, residents all agreed that upgrading utilities is the top priority, such as adding a drinking water system. Other priorities included a barbecue area and space for seasonal camping grounds.
Cox explained that through the process, the county staff and commissioners will also take into account operational costs, since the grants only cover capital improvements. Some priorities may be shifted downward if the county cannot cover long-term operational costs or maintenance.
“We will have a few more (workshops with community members) and see what falls out there,” Cox said. “We will look at cost. It may not stay as a top priority when it falls out.”
