Maricopa Monitor

New 33-acre park will take a couple of years to build

The donation of a 33-acre park about a mile east of White & Parker and Farrell roads was accepted by the City Council at Tuesday's regular meeting.

The park, tentatively named Desert Wind Park, will include a skate park, dog park, hockey rink, a two-acre lake and a splash pad. There will be lighted fields for soccer, baseball and softball. Covered playgrounds - two large and two small - will be placed throughout the park as well as 12 ramadas for picnicking.

El Dorado Holdings agreed to donate the 33 acres at an estimated value of $3,465,000, pay about $500,000 for the construction of the lake, donate a $1.5 million "Field of Dreams" ballpark and bring utilities to the site. The total estimated savings to taxpayers is $5,465,000.

Other plans for the park include lighted pathways, a remote control car course and 402 parking spaces.

Marty McDonald, director of Parks, Recreation and Libraries, presented the offer to the Council, which they voted unanimously to accept.

McDonald was asked for a time frame for having the park available, but stated it would be unreasonable to project a date at this point. McDonald has experience bringing parks to fruition and quoted time frames of five to seven years for some large parks. He brought the 18-acre Pacana Park to opening within 30 months; however, he felt this much larger park would take two to four years to build.

©Casa Grande Valley Newspapers Inc. 2007