Planning group approves Fallbrook Local Park final concept plan

The Fallbrook Community Planning Group meeting Monday, Jan. 18, included a vote to approve the final concept plan for what is currently called Fallbrook Local Park.

The 15-0 planning group vote approved the county’s concept plan for the 6.8 acres of land on the south side of Fallbrook Street between Morro Road and Golden Road. Changes may be made after the California Environmental Quality Act review is completed, and funding considerations may cause the park to be constructed in phases.

“This is going to be a good addition to the community of Fallbrook,” Jack Wood, chair of the planning group, said.

The Aug. 17 planning group meeting included a presentation on the public input the county’s Department of Parks and Recreation had received on the park to that point.

“The concept plan for the park hasn’t changed much,” Stephani Baxter, chair of planning group’s Parks and Recreation Public Facilities Committee, said.

The Aug. 17 meeting also included a unanimous vote to recommend that the new park be named after Jim Russell, who was a community leader before his January 2020 death. The San Diego County Board of Supervisors could choose to adopt that name during a subsequent board of supervisors’ action authorizing construction of the park.

Three virtual public meetings were held last year with the input being used to develop a conceptual plan. Two options for the park in terms of amenities were presented to the community. Both options include 68 parking spaces, including three stalls meeting Americans with Disabilities Act standards, and parking for five bicycles. Both options have play areas, a picnic area, a multi-purpose field and an open field. A skateboarding facility is also expected to be part of the park.

“This is a very diverse park that will hopefully meet the needs of many people in our community,” Baxter said.

One of the options included a dog park while the other version had exercise stations in that area. The community input was nearly evenly split between the two options, and the final concept plan has the dog park. The off-leash dog park will be approximately half an acre.

“It was a big request from many in the community,” Baxter said.

Fallbrook Skatepark, Inc., has committed $20,000 to support the development of skateboarding elements in the park. A focus group on the skate park had approximately 70 participants, and a play area focus group also had approximately 70 participants.

“It’s just exciting to have the youth involved,” Baxter said.

The use of specific courts has not yet been determined.

“We know there’s a great need for more basketball courts because they’re always full at Fallbrook Community Center,” Baxter said.

Baxter added that there is also demand for pickleball courts, and it is possible that some courts will be used for both basketball and pickleball.

The park will retain 11 existing trees, and an additional 109 trees will be planted along with a garden featuring native plants.

The planning group provided input on the park design Aug. 17, which was neither confirmed nor refuted by a formal vote. The issues addressed by the planning group members included assurances about park maintenance, traffic circulation and concerns about homeless people occupying the park after hours.

Public concerns about traffic circulation led to a design of one entrance from Fallbrook Street and one exit to Fallbrook Street.

“The public did not like the exit on Morro Road,” Baxter said.

The project is currently under CEQA review.

“The neighbors are really interested about noise and traffic,” Baxter said.

Community Development Block Grant projects are intended to revitalize lower-income communities, and approximately 81% of the residents in the area are classified as low-income or moderate-income. In February 2020, the board of supervisors appropriated $1,172,000 of CDBG funding into the capital outlay fund for the Fallbrook park project. In March 2020, the county supervisors approved the purchase of the land from Barr Ranch LLC for the appraised value of $1,100,000. The county’s purchase also included $3,000 for closing and title expenses and $69,000 of staff time needed for the transaction.

The estimated construction costs for the park are $3.8 million. The county’s 2019-2020 budget appropriated $2 million for the park.

On Jan. 13, the board of supervisors authorized the application of an Urban Greening Grant for Fallbrook Local Park along with the acceptance of the grant if awarded. The Urban Greening Grant Program application seeks $1,000,000.

“Our park is among the finalists,” Baxter said.

A separate board of supervisors vote Jan. 13 authorized the application and acceptance if awarded of a Statewide Park Program grant for Fallbrook Local Park, which would be for $1,200,000 if the full amount is awarded.

CDBG proposals are selected based on criteria which include benefit to lower-income residents, health and safety considerations, the ability to leverage block grant funds into additional revenue and availability of alternate funding sources. The allocations are based on entitlement figures from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which provides funding for the programs. The Department of Parks and Recreation will be requesting $300,000 of 2021-2022 CDBG funding for Fallbrook Local Park.

If those grant funds are awarded the capital needs for the park will be met. The county expects $30,000 of initial stewardship and other one-time land protection costs and annual operations costs of $161,000.

Although changes to the concept plan have been minimal the timetable for the park was revised for financial reasons. Board of supervisors approval for the advertisement for bids and subsequent award of a construction contract for the park is expected in fall 2021, and construction is currently expected to begin in spring 2022.

“It will be a great addition to Fallbrook,” Lee DeMeo, planning group member, said.

“We’re looking forward to the construction,” Wood said.

Joe Naiman can be reached by email at [email protected].