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City and districts plan swim lessons, joint use and a 49‑acre Southeast sports park; parks staff to streamline registrations
Summary
Parks and district officials discussed coordinating swim lessons and after‑school offerings, consolidating registration systems, and construction of a 49‑acre Southeast Fresno sports complex with fields, community gardens and indoor gym feasibility study.
City parks staff and district leaders discussed opportunities for joint use of pools and fields, registration coordination and the city’s new 49‑acre Southeast Fresno park and sports complex.
Parks Director Gary (Erin Aguirre in transcript) said the city operates about nine to ten pools and partners with Fresno Unified to offer swim lessons at both city and district pools. This year the city worked with Fresno Unified to use the district’s registration vendor (InPlay) for some sessions while the city continued to use its RecTrac system for others; parks staff said they are working to streamline registration and make sign‑ups easier for families. Trustees suggested consolidating registrations for families who access both school‑based and city programs to reduce confusion.
Trustees urged expanded hours and session lengths for swim lessons, more weekend programming and alignment between district after‑school hours and city offerings so families have complementary options. Parks staff said they have upgraded registration systems and will continue to refine processes.
The meeting also reviewed a major parks investment: a roughly 49‑acre park and sports complex under construction (southern and northern parcels separated by a railroad alignment). The council member sponsoring the update described planned amenities that include multiple synthetic and natural turf soccer/cricket fields, baseball, tennis, outdoor basketball, playgrounds with shade, a community garden, walking trails, exercise stations and LED lighting for fields. Staff said phase‑1 completion is targeted in early 2026, with design work underway on a potential indoor gym feasibility study funded with a $165,000 allocation for planning.
Council and trustees expressed interest in reciprocal facility‑use agreements or memoranda that could reduce duplicative reservation fees for schools and the city; parks staff noted maintenance and operations (janitorial, field upkeep) are recurring costs and that special events often require negotiated terms. The parks director said staff are open to working with districts on reservations for practices and meets and noted that many school sites already act as neighborhood green space.
Parks staff said the new Southeast complex will be split by the rail alignment with the southern parcel focused on active sports and the northern parcel on passive recreation and community gardens; a splash pad was mentioned as a possible add alternate subject to funding.
