Over the last few weeks, you may have noticed a few changes to the county parking lot at 22 Boyes Blvd in the Springs. For those who have not already sent me an email asking, “What’s going on?” I’d like to update you on the steps my office, in collaboration with the Springs MAC and several wonderful community volunteers, has taken to jumpstart the Springs Community Plaza.
Throughout my entire tenure as First District Supervisor I have heard from residents of the Springs advocating for more gathering spaces, with the county-owned parking lot, at 22 Boyes Blvd, identified time and again as an ideal spot for a community plaza. While relatively small in size, the parking lot is centrally located, walkable from many residences, shops, businesses and restaurants, located near public transit, and has historically been used as a plaza, as shown in photographs from 1943. Additionally, the Springs Specific Plan Draft Environmental Impact Report (DEIR), which will be coming back for recirculation in 2025, included a Springs Plaza at the 22 Boyes Blvd location in the draft plan when it was circulated in 2022. Lastly, the location is already used for local events, including the Winter Celebration hosted by the Springs Municipal Advisory Council (MAC), which will be in its third year this December.
Over the last couple of years, my work on the plaza has increased as a reflection of the increased advocacy in the community. I’ve hosted several town halls, including two in the fall of 2022 at Flowery Elementary, and more recently in May 2024 at the SVUSD Board Room, to get feedback from residents. The goal is to learn what their dream plaza would look like – the amenities, landscaping, activities, and more that would be most reflective of the vibrant Springs community that surrounds it. I also hosted a convening of local business leaders in June 2024 to gauge their interest and ideas. Despite the community support and momentum we’ve built over the last few years, as well as my efforts during the Board of Supervisors’ annual budget cycles, these kinds of projects take time and funding remains hard to come by. However, with my tenure as Supervisor ending this year, it was important to me to get things started at the plaza after all the work the community has already put in.
Which brings us to today: We have blocked off the plaza with painted concrete blocks and have added picnic tables as well as chalkboards and chalk for passersby to show off their creativity. We are working on additional features, such as an entryway and signage, planter boxes for plants and trees to spruce up our temporary Springs Community Plaza in advance of this year’s Winter Celebration on December 7. I want to reiterate that the current plaza is both in-progress and temporary, an interim project that will hopefully get the community excited about their future plaza and using the space to meet, relax, and connect.
That sounds like a nice plan for the parking lot on Hwy 12 and Boyes Blvd., but I’d like to hear how the Council plans to discourage a lovely park from becoming more of an encampment for the homeless than it is now. I think housing for the homeless is a higher priority than installing a tiny park on a busy, noisy, highway.. The traffic at that intersection is a nightmare.