SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — More accessible parks for families in our community are goals for both the City and County of San Diego.
A space that was once an empty lot in Spring Valley is now the construction site for the county's newest park. Supervisor Nathan Fletcher said the area is in need of more recreational spaces.
"Spring valley has kind of been left and forgotten at times," said Fletcher.
The park is a little more than a half-acre and sits on Ildica Street, just off of Sweetwater Road. The play area can already be seen in the middle of the space. A rendering of the park shows it will have fitness equipment, a shaded picnic area, a playground, and a community garden.
This is the thirteenth park built in the county within the last three years.
"For the folks out there, we recognize that there's a shortage of accessible parks in this area, which is why we took action to move forward to take this vacant open area, and let's make it something nice."
The City of San Diego is also working to make parks more accessible. Last summer, Mayor Todd Gloria announced the new "Parks for all of us" initiative.
"It's going to change a very inadequate system that was very good at providing parks for very wealthy communities and not so great at building parks in low-income communities," said Councilmember Vivian Moreno.
Monday afternoon, the Parks and Recreation Department updated the city council on its progress.
"The complete realization of the plan's vision will take collaborative efforts between park stakeholders, members of the public, and various city departments in addition to increased funding and staffing levels," said a member of the department.
Supervisor Nathan Fletcher says the county also works with the City of San Diego to offer services and programming for parks for everyone to enjoy.
The county does not have an official date set for opening the Ildica County Park but says it is expected to be open early this year.
