Chain link run amok

Two playgrounds in the city limits are getting a facelift thanks to Prop. 40 funding. Pinelli Park on France Street and the Jean K.T. Carter Park in the Fryer Creek neighborhood have been razed and will each be made ADA accessible and receive new playground equipment that also adheres to ADA standards.

California Proposition 40 is the Clean Water, Clean Air, Safe Neighborhood Parks, and Coastal Protection Act of 2002. The projects received $220,000 in state funding to upgrade the city parks.

According to City of Sonoma Public Works Director Milenka Bates, an additional $60,000 of Community Development funds is earmarked should the project go over that budget but, because City staff is doing much of the work themselves, Bates is confident that no additional monies will be necessary. For both projects, the City consulted with the Sonoma Valley Mother’s Club as well as residents and children in the neighborhoods for input. Bates expects the work to be completed by March 2011, weather depending.