Following a 10-year effort that involved many twists and turns, the City last week purchased a key 16-acre addition to the Santa Clara Community Park site. The newly acquired parcel is immediately east of Madison Middle School at the corner of Wilkes Drive and River Loop 1. Together with four previously acquired parcels that front on River Loop 2, the total area of City-owned land for the future community park is now 35 acres. The parcel was purchased for $375,000 and funded by the 2006 PROS Bond.
The site has been leased for farming uses for a number of years, and is bordered on the east and west by small creek channels. The PROS Project and Priority Plan (2006) calls for the site to ultimately be developed as a community park with lighted ball fields. Funding to design, develop and maintain a community park at this location has not been identified; however, a donation of $600,000 associated with the acquisition of Suzanne Arlie Park in 2011, was earmarked by the council to help fund the future development. In the interim, the new parcel will be planted with grass so that it can be efficiently maintained with periodic mowing.
For more information, contact Parks Planning Manager Neil Björklund at 541-682-4909