Parents couldn’t resist yelling “goal” as their kids scored during a game of mini-pitch soccer. Some children jumped as high as they could on a nearby bouncy house. Others too young to play with the older kids waddled around the lush grass lawns.
It was a buzzy Monday afternoon at the reopening of Chula Vista’s Harborside Park, a cherished community greenspace city officials shuttered more than two years ago after it was overrun with illegal camps set up by homeless people.
“Welcome back to Harborside,” Martin Calvo, the city’s Parks and Recreation Commission chair, said during an unveiling of the park’s renovations. “A community park is more than just a place to gather. It is the heart of the community. It’s a space where families come together, children play and friendships are formed. The journey to this moment has not been easy.”
Located between Broadway and San Diego Bay, the 5-acre park was carved out nearly two decades ago with the help of residents like Rosa Vazquez, who advocated for the creation of more parks in the underserved west side community. Over the years, the park lost its playground, a gazebo and access to the restrooms to growing illicit activities and homeless encampments.
City leaders shut it down and promised to clean up and reopen the park. At one point, the city explored the site’s housing potential. But after several public meetings and surveys, residents urged officials to reopen the park with improvements.
Harborside now has a new turf and irrigation system, a polished basketball court, upgraded lighting and restrooms, security cameras, a permanent metal fence, and a ranger station staffed during open hours. The upgrades cost the city about $1 million.
There’s also a new soccer mini-pitch, donated by hometown professional soccer player Paul Arriola in collaboration with the U.S. Soccer Foundation. He plays for the Major League Soccer club FC Dallas.
Additionally, the park will offer free after-school programming, starting Wednesday.
The park will be open from 3-7 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 2-7 p.m. on Fridays and 11 a.m.-7 p.m. on Saturdays.
“We need to work together to activate this park and that we continue to make sure that it’s safe for our community,” said Mayor John McCann.
The park’s reopening comes months after Chula Vista approved new rules banning homeless encampments, enforceable regardless of shelter bed availability.
