Editorial from January 12, 2006

"Parks for the new millennium"

By Danielle Seckler

   BIG BEAR LAKE- the San Bernardino County Recreation and Parks District takes care of multiple parks within the valley. For some time now, those who live outside of the Big Bear Lake city limits have been unhappy on the condition of those parks located in Fawnskin, Erwin Lake, Sugarloaf, and Big Bear City. The conditions of these parks are deplorable, compared to Meadow Park where the Parks District office is located. There are tennis and volleyball courts with no nets, cracked hard surfaces with weeds growing up in between, and unsafe conditions. These parks are used by children and their families, these problems have long been lamented and their concerns have been unmet by the Parks District.

   The Parks District has for years been telling the public that there is no money allotted for the improvements needed in these parks. Add to this problem is the fact that when money is given for a project, our construction period can be limited by weather. It took several years to get the money and to do the work on the Senior Center parking lot and retaining walls. Another issue is the community pool that they have been working on for the last couple of years. There were no public meetings and only those on the committee were allowed to speak.

   This has left the residents with a sour taste in their mouths; feeling that their voices have not been heard, the existing parks in their areas are in shambles, and that the Parks District is out of sync with the community’s wishes on the whole.

   The CSD has a very large parcel of land on the corner of Paradise Way and Highway 18, going out to Lucerne Valley. At one point, the pool committee considered this area for the location, but it was decided that to draw tourists, it should be located more centrally in the Valley at Meadow Park, in Big Bear Lake. Many people in the East Valley began to think, why not create a park on the land the CSD owned?

   The CSD created a small committee and began to ask different groups and organizations what they would like to have put out there. Even the committee members were surprised at the shear number of people who wanted something more than the Parks District could provide. Since the conception of the East Valley Community Park (EVC Park), they have been going gang busters. Click here to see their website and design.

   The first thing that was established was the fact that anything built out there should come from donations, grants, volunteerism, and not from taxpayer’s pocketbooks. The idea is to have different organizations to lease the land and provide the construction and maintenance. The following is a list for their ambitious conception:

• Children's Play Area

• Pavilion and optional Amphitheater

• BBQs

• Dog Park

• Equestrian Trail

• Nature Interpretive Trail

• BMX (bicycle) Park

• Skateboard Park

• Community Pool

• Tennis Court

• Soccer Fields

• Basketball Court

• Baseball Fields

   Some have voiced their concern that there will be two park systems in the Valley. Yet no one voiced the same concerns when Big Bear Lake built the Veterans Park, Rotary Park, or Boulder Bay Park. All three parks were sponsored by a coalition of volunteers, private and organized donations and they are not part of the Parks District. The Fawn Park located in the heart of Fawnskin is privately run and maintained; and the Park District has nothing to do with it. These parks look like show cases compared to Erwin Lake, Big Bear City, and Sugarloaf Parks. So why shouldn’t the CSD create a park that would provide for their residents a place to enjoy the scenery, a place to have family outings, and other things for them to do?

   We can’t see any reason why the park should not be created. The CSD has the liability insurance, land, and the need for a place for their residents. At the next CSD meeting on Monday, Jan. 15th, they will be announcing their first request for a lease to use the land for the community. Some people are concerned with the cost. The insurance is already in place, which means no added cost to the CSD. The organization will get the designs ready and do the fundraising to raise the money for the construction and maintenance. Sure the lawyers and insurance company will have to look over the agreements, which will have a minimal cost to it. Assuming that in the agreements, any power needed is a renewable resource like solar power and landscaping is Xeriscape; there should be only a minimal cost for these services.

   In the end, if the CSD can keep up the momentum and keep their eye on the end result; the East Valley may end up with a showplace on how to create a community space for the next century. The last century built community areas with taxpayer’s money. The next century will have to find like-interested groups, all doing their part, to make the community what they want it to be. Seems as if the CSD is on the cutting edge of the new millennium and we applaud their efforts.

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