FRESNO, CA (KMJ) – A celebration was held Friday in Central Fresno’s Radio Park, to announce that the petition Fresno for Parks has gathered enough signatures from supporters.
Former Mayor Ashley Swearengin made the announcement that the Fresno for Parks and Arts ballot measure is moving forward, a 3/8 of a cent tax measure with a large portion going for cleanup, along with arts and recreation programs for kids, and trails systems.
“We are here to celebrate that 35,000 Fresnans said ‘yes’ to the petition. They wrote their names down on a piece of paper and said ‘yes’ we want the chance to support the Fresno for Parks ballot measure,” said Swearengin, now the CEO and President of the Central Valley Community Foundation.
The community-wide party was held at Radio Park, Assembly Member Dr. Joaquin Arambula was one of the speakers, joining community members, and park advocates who were gathered for the announcement.
A taco truck was provided, and water slide bounce house and free sno-cones were being handed out for the youngest members of the crowd.
Supporter Judy Peracchi (below) said she was part of a group that spent time gathering signatures for the petition in Woodward Park. She says she’s a grandmother whose family has moved back to Fresno, and stressed the importance of parks to the children here in the city.
“We need to get them out, moving in a viable, safe opportunity all the while providing maybe a little training for kids who don’t have that opportunity, a little exposure for arts,” said Peracchi.
While former Mayor Alan Autry, Assembly Member Arambula, Congressman Jim Costa, and Superintendent of Schools Jim Yovino are all endorsing it, current Fresno Mayor Lee Brand is not such a fan.
“There’s a huge gap in public safety, you know, we’ve had more cops 10 years ago then we’ve had today, our 9-1-1 system is getting slower, and there’s a lot of needs for the city and just to stick all – and parks are really significant – but to put all the apples in one basket, it’s not the right approach, in my opinion,” said Mayor Brand, speaking earlier on Thursday on KMJ’s Ray Appleton’s show.
With the signatures in place, now the measure goes before Fresno City Council on August 9th, where they can review it or put it directly on the ballot for the voters to make their choice in November.
Swearengin told the group at Radio Park that she hope supporters will show up at city council on that day.
ABOUT FRESNO FOR PARKS: Fresno for Parks is a group of Fresno residents who believe that safer, cleaner parks for all Fresnans is important to the health, safety and overall quality of life of our community. We are committed to finding a solution to update and improve current parks, trails and facilities, make parks cleaner and safer, and create parks in neighborhoods that lack access to them. www.FresnoForParks.com
https://www.fresnoforparks.com/
Click to listen to the report by KMJ’s Liz Kern:
