The Foundation for Girsh Park is hosting multiple community workshops to gather public input on the new design and recreation elements for the outdoor facility in Goleta.
The organization qualifies to apply for a California Department of Parks and Recreation grant that could improve Girsh Park, at 7050 Phelps Road, with potential funding of up to $8 million, the foundation’s Executive Director Ryan Harrington said.
The application deadline is Dec. 14, according to the state Department of Parks and Recreation’s website.
“It’s a nice place,” Harrington said of Girsh Park. “We just want to make it a little nicer.”
The foundation is designating up to an acre of land to develop recreation elements that will be open and free to the public.
“Every square foot of athletic fields are used, and we can’t change that,” Harrington said. “We are trying to enhance spaces in-between the fields with elements like playgrounds and small game areas.”
As part of the process, state officials encourage area residents to design the park adjacent to Camino Real Marketplace and project enhancements that reflect the community’s creativity and needs.
The concept workshop will take place from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday via Zoom, and from 10 to 11 a.m. on Oct. 17 at the Girsh Park basketball courts.
A concept workshop in Spanish will be offered from noon to 1 p.m. on Oct. 17 at the Girsh Park basketball courts.
The design workshop will occur from 5 to 6 p.m. on Oct. 21 via Zoom, and in Spanish from 6 to 7 p.m. via zoom.
In addition, an in-person meeting will take place from 11 a.m. to noon on Oct. 24 at the Girsh Park basketball courts.
To attend a meeting, email Harrington at rharrington@girshpark.org or leave a message with your email address by calling 805.968.2773 x3.
Each meeting will conclude with a survey for attendees to submit, and the foundation has partnered with the Santa Barbara-based nonprofit Just Communities to administer meetings in Spanish.
At the meetings, attendees will hear from Harrington on the project’s proposed areas at the park.
“Then, we are going to sit back and listen to what the community and the neighborhood have to say,” Harrington said.
A design workshop for the project is being planned for children later in the week.
Facilitated by Just Communities, the foundation is hosting learning pods for about 28 children from low-income families at Girsh Park for about one month. These children will voice their ideas during a workshop on Thursday.
The foundation is working with Just Communities to also engage the parents of those children, Harrington said.
“I’m trying to engage as much of the neighborhood as possible,” Harrington said. “I would like to hear from folks from all economic levels.”
The money will be derived from Proposition 68, which California voters approved as a statewide bond measure in 2018. The measure passed with nearly 58 percent of the vote, according to the state Department of Parks and Recreation.
California State Parks is accepting applications for Round 4 of the Statewide Park Development and Community Revitalization Grant Program funded by Proposition 68.
A total of $395.3 million in competitive grant funding is available to counties, cities, nonprofit organizations, joint powers authorities and local districts to create new parks and recreational opportunities in underserved communities in California, according to state parks officials.
Known as the State Conservancy, Wildlife Conservation Board, and Authority Funding, Proposition 68 authorized $4 billion in general obligation bonds for state and local parks, as well as environmental, water infrastructure and flood protection projects, according to the ballot language.
“The California Center for Public Health Advocacy estimates that inactivity and obesity cost California over $40 billion dollars annually through increased health care costs and lost productivity due to obesity-related illnesses, and (investments in infrastructure improvements to promote physical activity) would result in significant savings,” Proposition 68 stated.
The 25-acre Goleta recreation area is owned and operated by the Foundation for Girsh Park, a private, nonprofit organization.
The park features athletic fields, picnic areas, basketball courts, a playground and other recreational facilities.
In addition to hosting organized sport programs and summer camps, the park is home to the Dos Pueblos Little League and AYSO Region 122 soccer, as well as popular annual community events such as the California Lemon Festival, an egg hunt in April, and the Fourth of July fireworks festival.
“We are the heart of the community,” Harrington said. “Countless generations have grown up playing baseball and soccer at that facility.”
Girsh Park has served the community’s active recreational needs since 1999, according to the Foundation for Girsh Park.
“We constantly try to fulfill our mission by improving the park for the community,” Harrington said. “We feel this is a way to do that.”
— Noozhawk staff writer Brooke Holland can be reached at bholland@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.