On Saturday, October 24th Rio Vista dignitaries and LGI Liberty Island homeowners attended the groundbreaking ceremony for the newest of Rio Vista’s 14 public parks and recreational facilities. The 1.74-acre site will include a half-court basketball facility, a soccer field, a BBQ area, restroom facilities, several picnic tables, attractive landscaping and walkways, a playground area, and a dog park.
After a competitive bid, the winning construction company, Kerex Engineering, came in at approximately $389,000. Funding in the amount of $442,233 from permit fees, will fund the construction, inspection, and a 10% contingency. This new area is intended to be a dedicated neighborhood park serving the 223 newly constructed single-family homes of the LGI Liberty Island development. The plans for play areas on either side of the basketball court are in the process of being developed. The City will send out a survey to each home to determine which options are preferred.
The park is located at the corner of Promenade Path and McCormack Road. Kerex tentatively plans to complete the project by next May, or sooner depending upon the weather. Building will begin within 7 days after the receipt of the Notice to Proceed from the City of Rio Vista.
Among those at the groundbreaking ceremony were several new homeowners and other interested parties who came to peacefully protest the city’s decision to develop this site first, rather than an expected and much larger 18.7-acre regional park. The issues raised were based on purported LGI promises to complete the much larger park when all the lots in the development were sold. Many of the homeowners believe the City of Rio Vista was aware of such promises and many of the new residents believe they have been lied to. There is great concern that all available funds for parks in the development will be spent on the smaller site, and the larger recreational area will never be built.
The issues are complex and deserve more research into the homeowners’ concerns.
All the younger residents want to know is… When will it be a park?