Desert Hot Springs is moving forward with plans to build a new sports park in the city, which includes naming it after its youth football league and high school mascot.
The new 7.6-acre park will be located at the corner of Cholla Drive and Hacienda Avenue, which is currently called Corporate Yard and where the city stores its vehicles and has its Animal Care Center. Plans for the park have been in the works since 2017 and it is meant to provide much-needed space for residents to play sports.
“Our city is sadly lacking in park space and it's been a priority for the city to expand that where we can,” said Mayor Pro Tem Gary Gardner, whose district the park will be in.
Desert Hot Springs technically has nine park facilities, but not all of them have outdoor space for sports. The city has one swimming pool, two pickleball courts, five basketball courts, two skate parks, one soccer facility and two diamond fields. Reflection Park, one of the city's smaller parks, is also currently closed for renovations, according to Gardner.
“We've had to really juggle things to keep the Little League and the Junior Football League and the youth soccer all using the limited spaces that we've had,” he said. “And, you know, it's been a challenge to juggle all of that. And this will really help with that.”
The city held a naming contest for the new park that got 174 entries, according to a city staff report. The city council unanimously selected the name “Eagles Sports Park” in late January, in honor of both the Golden Eagles, the mascot of Desert Hot Springs High School, and the city’s junior football league, which will be using the park often. Gardner was on a subcommittee with Councilmember Jan Pye to help recommend a name.
Eagles Sports Park will have baseball and football fields, a concession stand and walkways. Deputy City Manager Doria Wilms said it is in the final stages of plan check and the city expects to award the construction contract in the spring or early summer.
“It should be open by this time next year … I don't know if it'll be ready for the football season this fall, but it'll probably be ready for the Little League Baseball season next spring,” Gardner said.
The city will be moving the Corporate Yard to a corner of the site to make room for the park, but the animal care center will stay where it is. Desert Hot Springs is excited to have adoption events at the park in the future, Gardner added.
Gov. Gavin Newsom's Clean California Local Grant Program awarded the city $5 million for Eagles Sports Park, according to the state website. The project is described as "a model for the City’s larger plan to transform parks and sidewalks into spaces that improve the quality of life and connectivity for residents of Desert Hot Springs, as to create a more comfortable, walkable, and greener neighborhood that provides urban cooling, water conservation, and habitat benefits."
The city will pay for the remaining $540,000 the park is expected to cost with funds from development impact fees, Senate Bill 1 and Measure A, said Assistant City Manager Daniel Porras. The city will have a finalized budget for the park once it receives proposals from construction companies.
Ani Gasparyan covers the western Coachella Valley cities of Desert Hot Springs and Cathedral City. Reach her at ani.gasparyan@desertsun.com.