Play For All Park Phase 2 scaled back to one Challenger field as Prop 68 funding falls short

Tom Felipe, president of the Play For All Park nonprofit, briefed the Vacaville Parks and Recreation Commission on June 4 about proposed revisions to Phase 2 of Play For All Park driven by inflation, COVID-era delays and supply-chain increases.

Felipe said the nonprofit secured a state Prop 68 grant for roughly $1,700,000 for Phase 2 work but that price increases since the grant application was prepared around 2020 mean the original scope cannot be delivered as planned. “We developed those original budget numbers in 2020,” Felipe told the commission. “COVID, supply chain, inflation has made it very, very difficult.”

To keep the project moving, the group agreed with the California State Parks division to reduce scope. Key changes Felipe described: build one Challenger League ball field with enhanced features rather than two bare fields; use a full rubber surfacing for the field (infield and outfield) to improve accessibility for players with mobility needs; substitute an aggregate base rock path for the originally planned concrete half-mile loop; and modify dog-park surfacing decisions pending committee recommendations. Felipe said the single rubber field is more expensive per field but will include shading and other enhancements to increase usability.

Felipe described several other planned elements for Phase 2 if additional funding is secured: a large and small dog park (design still under committee review), expanded shade structures, a misting station built with a Chick-fil-A donation as a child play element, and a memorial traffic signal teaching crosswalk safety. The group has also completed an expanded parking project to reduce curbside congestion; Felipe said the islands still need trees and will be finished with Phase 2 landscaping.

Commissioners asked practical questions about surface choices, nighttime lighting and drainage. Felipe said the dog-park surface has not been finalized; grass is the current preference but the committee continues to evaluate turf and other resilient surfaces. He said designers will ensure drainage for grass areas and that the proposed rubber surfacing would be installed over an aggregate base rock to make it wheelchair-accessible.

When commissioners asked about a splash pad, Felipe said state regulations now require splash pads that collect, treat and reuse water; that requirement increased a $25,000 conceptual splash-pad cost to roughly a half million dollars, so the splash pad would depend on a major donation.

Play For All Park board members Carol Landry and Steve Ramos were noted in the presentation; Director Bruce Mulder and several commissioners attended the discussion. Felipe encouraged further community donations and in-kind support, noting much of Phase 1 had been completed with donations and contractor contributions.

This presentation was informational; no commission action was requested or taken.