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'Aweseome' Golden Eagle Park Unveiled Before Several Hundred

April 15, 2008
By Guy Clifton
gclifton@rgj.com

Calling it an historic day in his city's history, Sparks Mayor Geno Martini threw out the ceremonial first pitch on Monday to open Golden Eagle Regional Park.

"This is awesome not only for the citizens of Sparks, but for the whole region," Martini told a crowd of several hundred who assembled in the warm but windy conditions for the grand opening of the $30 million sports complex off Vista Boulevard near Wingfield Springs. Most had not seen the facility, tucked away in a valley on former BLM land.

"I can't believe it," said Reno Mayor Bob Cashell. "I pulled up here and it took my breath away. This is beautiful ... first cabin all the way. Now I've got to figure out how to put something like this in Reno."

Assemblyman John Marvel, R-Battle Mountain, agreed: "Whe I drove up here today, I couldn't believe it," he said. "The thing that I really like about it is it's for the children."

The 140-acre complex includes six softball, two baseball, two youth baseball/softball and three multi-purpose football/socer fields, all covered with artificial turf. Martini said it is believed to be -- with 1.4 million square feet of artificial turf -- the largest artificial turf project in the world, and the city has asked the Guiness Book of World Records to confirm it.

Sparks' longtime Parks and Recreation Director Stan Sherer said the park is the fruition of a 14-year dream and called Monday's opening, "the most exciting day of my career." The city has more than 700 teams and 10,000 players in its adult softball leagues and thousands of youth league players in baseball and softball who will utilize the facility. Sherer said a play area for youngsters which will include a climbing wall in the shape of a baseball mitt and a whiffle ball field, will be named in honor of Sparks Councilman John Mayer, a retired educator and longtime advocate for children.

Tony Pehle, Sparks recreation supervisor for adult sports, said the facility is already booked with tournaments throughout the summer, the majority of them drawing teams from out of the area. At least five of the tournaments have more than 100 teams entered, an economic impact from about 20,000 people on the region.

Norm Dianda of Q&D construction, the primary contractor for the facility, called the project "awesome."

"I think it's a real tribute to the city of Sparks not only now, but for the future," Dianda said. "Some great things are going to happen at this park."

Developer Harvey Whittemore, who owns 60 acres adjacent to the park, said the facility is "a tremendous testament to a lot of people" who worked for the past 14 years to make it a reality. The six softball and two Babe Ruth fields now are ready for play. The other fields, four volleyball courts and two bocce ball courts will come on line in the weeks ahead with the project expected to be completed in mid-summer.

In addition to the 1.4 million square feet of artificial turf on the fields, the facility will have nearly 1 million square feet of grass, 900 trees and thousands of plants. All the fields have lights, bleachers, scoreboards and numerous other amenities, such as bat racks, storage racks for helmets and other equipment, and even colored foul poles on the outfield fences.

Bully's Sports Bar will provide concessions at the main concession stand. A secondary concession stand at the youth fields will be left available for the youth leagues to use for fund-raising.

The money to fund Golden Eagle came primarily from the sale of the Don Mello Sports Complex at Sparks Boulevard and Lincoln to RED Development for $17.7 million. That land is part of RED's Legends at Sparks Marina project that is being constructed. Interest earned from that money was used to purchase scoreboards and other amenities that were not included in the original budget for Golden Eagle.

Other funding includes:

• $6 million from consolidate tax revenue bonds
• $3.4 million in park impact fees and $1.8 million in funding from the Washoe County Parks and Open Space Bond approved by voters in 2000
• It is the largest public works project in the city's history
• "What a showpiece," said Public Works Director Wayne Seidel.

Designing in the Green: An Approach to Sustainable Park Design

Read the new article by MIG's Tara Byler, ASLA, LEED AP in CPRS's Spring Magazine about how to design a sustainable park. The article provides an overview about some of the challenges and opportunities to design green, as well as a list of options designers and Cities can consider when developing a new park. Please click here to visit the CPRS website and read the entire article:

http://www.cprs.org/membersonly/Spring08_GreenDesign.htm

SCAG Compass Blueprint President's Achievement Award for Visionary Planning

The 2008 Compass Blueprint awards recognize the great planning and development work occurring throughout the region. These plans and projects coordinate land use and transportation actions, demonstrate excellence in planning and design, and most importantly, work towards improving the mobility, livability, prosperity and sustainability of our region.

MIG worked with the Redevelopment Agency, City Council, and residents and stakeholders to develop a Vision and Strategic Plan to help rebuild the identity and importance of Downtown Rialto. Building on the City’s existing streetscape enhancements and façade improvement program, the Vision and Strategic Plan will balance a community involvement process with market-based realities to create a set of design improvement concepts and short-and long-term strategic actions.

MIG worked to ensure that the Rialto Downtown Vision and Strategic Plan is both inspiring and rooted in economic reality. Concepts, designs, and land use programs created for key sites such as the Civic Center, Metrolink Station, and city-owned development parcels were prioritized to generate enthusiasm while awaiting community approval, appropriate funding, or developer interest.

The project was awarded the Southern California Association of Governments’ 2008 Compass Blueprint President’s Achievement Award for Visionary Planning in Mobility. The plan is a targeted, realistic and strategic approach to implementing the Compass Blueprint Mobility Principle. The Plan improves mobility through transportation improvements, clustering of jobs and housing, transit oriented development and a variety of travel choices for everyone who lives, works in or visits the area.

To read more, please visit: http://www.compassblueprint.org/awards

Kid Dig Dirt! Green Paper

The Kids Dig Dirt! Green Paper provides a collection of facts, guidelines and forward thinking language that museums can draw on while developing their own outdoor spaces, proposals for funding or other materials. It's based on the belief that children's museums can play a critical role in shaping the healthy future of childhood by reemphasizing the importance of active play, engagement with nature and the development of rich outdoor environments in children's museums.

Please follow the link below to access a pdf of the Green Paper.

• Kids Dig Dirt!

New Playgrounds Exercise Kids' Fancies

Rain falls from purple clouds at the touch of a button. Overgrown swizzle sticks entice kids to spin and spin without falling down. At this state-of-the-art playground, slides shoot through scenic mountain rock. A big blue ring is actually a retro merry-go-round. The swing set looks like a slim modern-art sculpture.

• Denver Post Article