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San Bruno celebrates opening of Florida Avenue Park after multi-year redevelopment
Summary
The city marked the August 14 ribbon-cutting for Florida Avenue Park after more than a decade of planning, remediation and redesign, city parks staff said. The project included property acquisition in 2014, hazardous-material abatement and community-driven design; construction was completed in 2024–25.
San Bruno officials marked the completion of Florida Avenue Park and recounted a multi-year effort that transformed eight residential parcels into public parkland.
Dan Vanetsia, parks services manager, told the City Council that the city purchased the half-acre site in 2014 for $600,000 and proceeded with site planning, demolition and hazardous‑materials remediation. He said early site‑planning work cost about $260,000 and that Pacific States Environmental Inc. performed remediation work in 2016 for roughly $430,000, including demolition, contaminated‑soil removal and asbestos abatement.
Vanetsia said the city and designer MIG conducted community workshops during design and that a first construction contract awarded in 2017 was terminated because of documentation and design issues, requiring a redesign. The council heard that the city installed turf and irrigation in 2020 to open the lawn area while the larger project continued, and that the city later secured development‑impact fees (about $2 million) and a 2024 construction contract awarded to Suarez Muno’s Construction for roughly $1.4 million with contingency and project management contracts in place.
"Less than two weeks ago, August 14, 2025, we had a wonderful ribbon cutting ceremony," Vanetsia said, estimating about 200–300 attendees and reporting steady park use since the opening.
Mayor Rico E. Medina and Vice Mayor Marty Medina both praised staff and contractors for completing a project that council members said had faced delays, litigation over heritage trees and multiple redesigns. "This is a big accomplishment for the city," Vanetsia said, adding that the success reflected work across departments.
Council members acknowledged neighborhood concerns such as parking and ongoing maintenance needs but otherwise congratulated the parks team on what multiple members called a high‑quality community asset. The presentation closed with staff offering to answer follow‑up questions on funding breakdowns and maintenance plans.
What’s next: staff will continue park maintenance and return to council as needed with budget or maintenance‑related items tied to overall park operations and contingency funds.
