Turf Renovations and Irrigation Upgrades

Various parks are currently planned to undergo or have recently undergone turf renovations:

• Alameda Park – Completed Spring 2023
• Alice Keck Park Memorial Garden – Completed Spring 2023
• Chase Palm Park – Completed Spring 2023
• Leadbetter Beach Park – Completed Winter 2024
• Mission Historical Park – Completed Fall 2023
• Oak Park – Completed Fall 2023
• Willowglen Park – Completed Fall 2023

The parks selected for turf renovation have been heavily used since the start of the pandemic, have turf currently in poor condition, and receive enough funding for irrigation and mowing to ensure renovations can be maintained once they are completed.

Parks with sports fields, including Cabrillo Ball Park, Dwight Murphy Field, MacKenzie Park, Ortega Park, and Pershing Park, receive multiple turf renovations each year to maintain safe conditions for active recreation. 
 
The Parks and Recreation Department will continue to renovate turf areas into 2024. This page will be updated as renovations are scheduled. 

Staff will begin each renovation with a soil evaluation to identify soil type and any nutrient deficiencies before moving on to seed selection. The Parks and Recreation Department looks for turf varieties that are drought-resistant, disease-resistant, and salt tolerant. Final seed selection will consider the specific conditions of each park and the future use of the turf, including specific sports like baseball and soccer, versus passive recreation.

 To prepare the area, staff will dethatch and aerate the turf to address soil compaction caused by heavy use and salt deposits from recycled water. Staff will then focus on leveling the soil to create a flat surface for the future turf. This leveling work is critical for the safety of turf users. Once the soil is leveled, staff will apply seed, topdressing, and fertilizer. For the first 10 days, the top two inches of soil will be kept moist to promote germination. Moisture levels will be monitored daily to ensure only the necessary amount of water is used. Once germinated, the renovation area will remain closed to the public for several weeks to allow the seed to become established and durable enough to withstand regular use. 

Each renovation is expected to take 5 to 6 weeks. However, renovations have been planned with a phased approach to ensure that green space remains available for public use throughout the process.  

The ongoing drought is a reality that the Parks and Recreation Department takes seriously. To balance the community’s need for public green space and the need to conserve water, the Department has taken various measures to reduce overall water use across our parks and facilities. These include replacing landscaping with low-water plants, stopping irrigation of less frequented parks, and using recycled water in parks that continue to receive irrigation. 

Department water use prioritizes shared green spaces like sports fields and passive recreation areas for maximum community benefit. Investing in these community green spaces can reduce demand for lawns on private property and lower a community’s water use overall. 

Completion of this project will also allow the Department to further improve water efficiency by making critical updates to the current irrigation systems. These updates include relocating sprinklers to reduce unnecessary overlap, installing sensors to identify and address potential leaks, and updating systems for a simple override when rain is expected. The Department is working closely with Water Resources to ensure we are following best practices for water-wise irrigation.

The American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) provided state and local governments with funding to invest in programs and services heavily impacted by the pandemic. With park use surging, approximately $570,000 of the City's $10.9 million of Round Two ARPA funding was allocated for turf renovations and irrigation improvements across City parks.

The existing Parks and Recreation Department budget, funded by the City's general fund, will be used to complete turf renovations as necessary once ARPA funding is depleted.