The Town of Bernalillo held a ribbon-cutting ceremony Oct. 15 to unveil a new playground at Bosque Park, the town’s newest park.
The park, located between Calle San Lorenzo and Calle Maderna on Camino del Bosque on the south side of town, doubles as a drainage facility. The park was developed in partnership with the Eastern Sandoval County Arroyo Flood Control Authority, which installed a system of drop-inlets to collect and divert stormwater. The system helps prevent flooding and erosion in nearby neighborhoods by channeling water into the park’s designated areas.
“I’m really thrilled because it’s in a part of town that hasn’t historically gotten a lot of attention,” Mayor Jack Torres said.
The ribbon cutting was attended by town officials, state Rep. Derrick Lente (D-Sandia Pueblo), Sandoval County Commissioner Katherine Bruch, the town’s police and fire chiefs and members of the maintenance staff.
According to Torres in a previous report, the new playground equipment was made possible through funding allocated by Lente, who secured $125,000 in capital outlay for the project last year. Sandoval County Commissioners Bruch and Joshua Jones contributed additional funds for the shade structures, with Bruch, whose district includes most of Bernalillo, providing $25,000 and Jones, who represents a portion of the town, contributing $10,000.
According to Torres, the town was able to save money by having the public works staff install the equipment.
“I think the cost of installation was equal to the cost of the actual equipment, which is shocking and they did a great job,” Torres said during an Oct. 14 council meeting. “But if you see them, you might give them a thank you, because, it’s a real value to us that they’re willing to do that.”
During the council meeting, Bernalillo Councilor Sharon Torres-Quintana shared, “My grandkids officially approve of the playground — they loved it.”
Nice playground for the children. But as for flood control; the street still has severe flooding a block west from there.