City highlights Depot Park attendance growth, youth-services expansion and Ironwood Golf improvements

Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs staff reported Tuesday that Depot Park visitation is up sharply for the current fiscal year, several youth‑service programs are expanding and Ironwood Golf Course is scheduled for equipment and irrigation upgrades.

Director Roxy Gonzalez said staff recorded about 93,200 Depot Park visitors in the quarter (up from 58,000 in the comparable period the prior year). “We’ve increased in more participation out there, and I think a lot has to do with the beautification factors,” Gonzalez said, citing seasonal events, lighting and rentals that have drawn visitors.

Recreation operations manager Dwight Jackson reviewed athletics and aquatics numbers, noting that a single pool closure affected Q2 swim figures but that adult softball and youth programs showed increased participation. Jackson said the city recently hired an athletics supervisor and highlighted summer programming including Pop Warner registration and midnight basketball events.

Sheree Kelly, manager of youth services and education programs, said after‑school enrollment grew in several sites after staff improved outreach and added transportation. “Our youth steering committee is ages 16 to 24,” Kelly said, and program partners include schools, nonprofits and the housing authority. Kelly described a resilience curriculum in after‑school and outreach programs and said scholarship applications for summer camps increased.

Ironwood operations supervisor Eric Thomas said the golf course received 30 new lithium golf carts this quarter and hosted five charity tournaments. He also outlined planned irrigation upgrades, a driving‑range netting project to reduce ball loss and a timeline for a new pump and controls funded via the city’s wild‑spaces/public‑places program.

Parks staff also discussed Wilhelmina Johnson Center, where an envelope study by a historic‑preservation architect is near completion; staff said repairs to a leaking flat roof and other infrastructure work will be scheduled in the next fiscal year. Staff told commissioners they have temporarily removed picnic tables and benches outside the center to discourage problematic overnight congregation while repairs and programmatic changes are made.

Next steps: Parks staff will return with schedules and scope for Ironwood irrigation upgrades, Depot Park programming plans and a Wilhelmina Johnson refurbishment timeline tied to wild‑spaces/public‑places funding.