West Sacramento council approves city side of Bright Park purchase; school board approval still required

The West Sacramento City Council on Nov. 19 approved the city's portion of a purchase‑and‑sale agreement for Bright Park, advancing a long‑planned renovation funded in part by a $15,000,000 Outdoor Recreation Legacy Program grant. Kate Smith, the city's director of parks and recreation, told the council the grant made a full‑park build feasible and includes land acquisition.

"We have been working on the Bright Park master plan implementation project for the last two years," Smith said, noting the city plans to go out to bid for construction management services immediately and is "targeting February 26" for contract approval and a May 26 target to put a shovel in the ground. She told the council staff estimate the full project, including acquisition, at about $62,000,000 pending final bid results.

Smith said the transaction covers two parcels — 24.62 acres identified as Bright Park and roughly 4.076 acres of adjacent roadway — and that Washington Unified School District still must give final board approval of the sale and a related priority‑use agreement. "Once, if we do receive your approval this evening, Washington Unified still does need to give us their final approval and their board does need to approve both documents as well," she said.

During public comment, longtime neighborhood residents expressed frustration at shifting timelines and outreach. Laurie Gutierrez asked why community members attending recent outreach thought the city already owned the property and said, "This is like a slap in our face" now that the district's sign‑off remains outstanding. Rhonda Pope Flores told the council, "We cannot keep disappointing our community members" and urged faster delivery.

Councilmembers pressed staff on next steps and contingencies. Staff warned that if the district did not approve the sale the city could lose eligibility for the $15,000,000 grant and might not be able to seek reimbursement for pre‑construction expenses paid on property the city did not yet own.

The council's action on the purchase came as part of a consent agenda vote. Staff said the priority‑use agreement would give Washington Unified use of the fields 7 a.m.–3 p.m. on regular school days, with community access in evenings, weekends and summer. Staff also described outreach plans with recreation leagues and partner organizations to minimize disruption during construction.

Next steps outlined by staff: final sign‑offs by Washington Unified School District, completion of the acquisition, release of invitation‑to‑bid documents for construction management, contract coming to council, and then contractor onboarding and site fencing prior to construction. The city emphasized that the school district board's decision is the remaining condition before property transfer and final construction scheduling can be confirmed.