New sports fields, skate parks, playgrounds and other improvements will be coming to four communities in Santa Barbara County thanks to more than $18 million in local grants from California State Parks.
Parks projects in Santa Maria, Guadalupe, Lompoc and Isla Vista received some of the $548.3 million in grant funding awarded to 112 communities under the Gov. Gavin Newsom administration’s Outdoors for All initiative.
Specifically, the proposed Santa Maria Community Sports Park, near the Adam and Minami parks, received $6.1 million, the largest of the four grants awarded for local projects.
The city intends to acquire 19.7 acres of land for four new soccer fields, four half-court basketball courts, a walking/jogging trail with exercise stations, a playground, a plaza with art wall, restrooms, and more west of Depot Street between Battles and Stowell roads.
The grant will re-energize efforts to build the sports fields after Santa Maria’s previous state grant applications failed to win funding.
“This welcomed commitment finally brings Santa Maria a giant step closer toward more athletic fields where our youth can play and compete, and someday hold tournaments,” Mayor Alice Patino said. “Even after our prior grant applications were denied, we didn’t give up, and are determined to improve the quality of life.”
In addition to the grant funds, the city has set aside $1 million and Santa Barbara County ponied up $1.5 million — “and they can always give us some more,” Patino said — for the project.
Residents called for more sports fields during meetings involving the Mayor’s Task Force on Youth Safety, which began meeting in 2017.
“This is what happens when we work together,” said Santa Barbara County Fifth District Supervisor Steve Lavagnino, adding appreciation for the city staff responsible for writing the grant. “The big winners today are going to be the kids of Santa Maria.”
The next step will be to acquire the land and develop a design for the project, with the new fields likely not ready for play until 2024.
“This is a great day for Santa Maria,” Recreation and Parks Director Alex Posada said.
Guadalupe’s Central Park
The City of Guadalupe succeeded in its request for $4.9 million for a massive makeover of Central Park, at 4550 10th St., including adding a new dog park, a skate park, a half basketball court, a bocce ball court, fitness equipment, a board game area, a picnic area, a restroom building and more.
It also will feature public art, including a painted water tower and a perimeter wall with a mural.
Mayor Ariston Julian said the designation of the area as a park happened probably 15 to 20 years ago, but it had only a limited irrigation system and a tot/sand area near the city’s historical jail.
It will be the second significant renovation of a Guadalupe park, with LeRoy Park and its community center undergoing a big renovation set to be done in early 2022.
Isla Vista’s Children’s Park
The Isla Vista Recreation and Park District received $4.2 million for the Children’s Park, at the corner of Picasso Road and Camino Del Sur.
The renovation project calls for two new nature-themed playgrounds, trails, an amphitheater, picnic/barbecue areas, a gathering area, demonstration gardens, public art and entry features, and a pre-fabricated restroom.
The project also would involve renovating and adding square footage to the recreation building for art programming, and constructing a new shade structure next to the building.
“This is a tremendous honor for our Isla Vista Recreation and Park District and for the people of Isla Vista,” IVRPD General Manager Kimberly Kiefer said. “We extend our sincere and heartfelt thanks to all of the community members who participated in the planning meetings.
“The driving force behind winning this incredible grant was the community. This marks a new chapter for the often-overlooked long-term residents and students who call Children’s Park an extension of their backyard.”
Two of the four local grants went to projects in the Third District, represented by Supervisor Joan Hartmann, who urged voters to support Proposition 68 that led to projects getting funded.
An advocate for parks, trails and open space, Hartmann said she was “beyond thrilled” that the funding has been awarded to Isla Vista and Guadalupe projects.
Lompoc’s College Park
Improvements to Lompoc’s College Park, at the corner of West College Avenue and J Street, received $3.6 million for a new skate park with lighting, two half basketball courts with lighting, a playground and game area with lighting, a picnic area with a shade structure, a mural wall that will block wind, and restrooms.
“This College Park project engaged young leaders, future architects and the skatepark community, and showed them the power of their voice,” Lompoc Recreation Manager Mario Guerrero Jr. said. “We at the city enjoyed working with our community to build the best version of College Park’s future.
“We are grateful to the state for this grant that will do much good in our community for so many. Lompoc deserves this park.”
— Noozhawk North County editor Janene Scully can be reached at jscully@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.