SAN BERNARDINO – Parks and Rec is listening.And they want to hear YOU.
The San Bernardino Parks, Recreation and Community Services Department is conducting a series of three community workshops, “Let Your Voice be Heard.”
The department hopes the workshops will serve as a survey to identify community needs and wants in the areas of services, facilities and sports, according to Gabriel Rodriguez, mentoring program coordinator.
“Because the city is growing, we’re trying to revise the Master Plan for Parks and Rec,” says Gabriel, who is helping organize the workshop series.
“We need participation from people – they’re the ones who know what’s needed. We don’t want to make any assumptions. We want to be on the same page,” he says.
Each of the three-hour workshops is designed to identify current and future community needs.
The goal? To revitalize the San Bernardino parks and community centers.
“What better way to do that than to hear from the people we serve?” he says.
“We know our centers need work – they need to be renovated – and we know the community would like more events. By having the community involved, it brings more credibility to the department when we approach the City Council for money. We need a budget to make these things happen,” Gabriel says.
The series of three workshops, “Let Your Voice be Heard,” starts July 14 and continues Aug. 11 and Sept. 15.
Workshop No. 1, “Characteristics and Issues,” is set for 9 a.m. to noon July 14 at Western Regional Little League Center, 6707 Little League Drive. Topics will include how recreation, community services programs and facilities can best support your community.
Workshop No. 2, “Sports Groups,” is set for 9 a.m. to noon Aug. 11 at Casa Ramona, 1524 W. Seventh St. Organizers are seeking input regarding the city’s organized recreation groups.
Workshop No. 3, “Summary of Findings and Needs Prioritization,” is set for 9 a.m. to noon Sept. 15 at the Perris Hill Senior Center, 780 E. 21st St. Topics include the results of the telephone survey, discussion of identified recreation needs and solicitation of additional comments.
“Our goal here is to provide quality programs and adequate facilities for the community,” Gabriel says. “People participating will actually bring focus to what the community really wants and needs.”
A 2004 graduate of Cal Poly Pomona, Gabriel is now working on a master’s degree at Cal State San Bernardino.
At a youthful 27, he coordinates the city’s mentoring program and understands the need for high quality community youth programs.
“We want at least 50 people at each of these meetings,” Gabriel says. “We need to know what’s missing here. Once we identify the problem, then we can start working on the solution.”
For more information on the community workshops, call (909) 885-1847.
Originally reported by the SB Sun by Michel Nolan, Staff Writer
View original article online here.
