FAIR OAKS, CA (MPG) - Members of the Fair Oaks Recreation and Parks District (FORPD) hosted their first community outreach meeting on March 11 to discuss the development of a new Phoenix Park Master Plan.

Two areas of Phoenix Park, located at 9050 Sunset Avenue, designated by FORPD as Area A and Area B, are specific priorities for improvement and renovation.

Actual construction isn’t likely to begin for another two years, according to FORPD representatives.

Public input towards prioritizing what new or improved features a revitalized Phoenix Park could include was the general focus of the first of two scheduled workshop meetings which will be held at the McMillan Center, leading to the creation of a new comprehensive Phoenix Park Master Plan.

Phoenix Park includes baseball and softball diamonds, soccer fields, a bike park, and a vernal pools natural area as well as the Fair Oaks Community Garden and a dog park which is situated in its southwest corner.

Mike Aho, FORPD district administrator, led the workshop with representatives of the firm, Wilson Design Studio Landscape Architecture (WDSLA) of Sacramento, contracted by the District to help develop a comprehensive plan for the re-imagined Phoenix Park.

Residents of the Fair Oaks Recreation and Park District (FORPD) have passed Measure J, a $26.9 million general obligation bond which will help fund major projects that will improve and expand the services which are provided by FORPD.

Phoenix Park has been approved for Measure J expenditures which will help improve parking throughout the park, Aho said. Complete funding for all likely park improvements from all possible sources is still a ways off, he said.

The individual April and May public outreach meetings to discuss the Phoenix Park master plan are an integral portion of a District application for Land and Water Conservation Fund grant monies in order to stretch its Measure J funding to the maximum.

In addition to parking improvements which would include repaving and restriping of a lot in Area A next to the community garden which opened in 2005, the District wants public input to steer the District in a community-approved direction regarding development of the large, empty area in the center of the park which it identifies as Area B.

Some 30 workshop participants and district representatives in attendance recognized that Phoenix Park is both a “well-loved and well-used” park in much need of improvements to parking, landscape, access, signage, and amenities for all its many users.

Park users enter Phoenix Park from Sunset Avenue and turn on Maya Street to get to the Fair Oaks Community Garden located near Kruitof Way.

Attendees watched a 24-slide photo presentation which reviewed the current condition of Phoenix Park and took a straw poll vote on their own priorities where suggested improvements could then be made. They then joined to form individual groups to put their suggested ideas on to actual maps of the park with post-it notes.

WDSLA representatives Keith Wilson, principal landscape architect and architect Karin Kauffman will then use that public feedback for their preliminary design plans to present at the next workshop meeting in May.

Representatives of the Fair Oaks Little League also expressed hope for new ballfield lighting and refreshed bleachers to create a “state-of-the-art, year-round” community sports facility.

Common recognized priorities were new play equipment areas for young children, improved restroom facilities, new drinking fountains and a critical lack of shade trees throughout the park during hot summer months. A need for benches and tables near play structures where families might gather were also identified as desirable items to have.

Participants also agreed that there’s a general lack of signage throughout the park which could identify its features and sidewalks to help pedestrian traffic flow.

Suggested improvements to Area A include a paved parking lot, expanded trash/debris and material storage for the Fair Oaks Community Garden, formal entry access points, a shade structure, worktables and a cleaning station, and a composting area. The addition of a teaching/instruction area, drinking fountain and shade structure near the community garden was also proposed.

A larger Area B, a crescent shaped area situated within the center of Phoenix Park, offers much broader potential for a wider range of recreational uses, and/or community plaza or for a Farmer’s Market Space. Suggested uses which were identified in the workshop could also include a tot lot with a large play structure, a shade structure, a skate park, a disc golf course, adult fitness area, pickleball or volleyball courts and a water play/mister feature.

“We’re encouraged by the attendance and feedback we’ve received from participants at this first workshop meeting tonight,” said Mike Aho, FORPD district administrator. “It’s a new vision for Phoenix Park, and we’re excited to see that vision realized.”

For more information about the Phoenix Park Master Plan visit:

forpd.org/510/Phoenix-Park-Master-Plan-Outreach-Meeting