Organization works for new tot lot at Emerson Park
For the past year, the Lodi Lions Club has been working to replace playground equipment at Emerson Park.
According to Lions Club and Foundation treasurer Richard Prima, the park does have a playground in place in the northeast corner, but it is more for older children. The park currently has nothing for younger children to play on, he said. Previously, there was a tot lot to the south of the picnic shelter, but it was removed by the city a couple of years ago due to it not meeting ADA requirements.
“Our club has had a long history with Emerson Park, and we really wanted to work on getting that replaced,” Prima said.
According to Lions Club member Ellen Ashbaugh, in 1989-1990 the Lodi Lions Club did a major reconstruction of Emerson Park, which included the older kids playground, the Lion’s Den and the city installed the tot lot which has since been moved.
Ashbaugh’s Husband Alan, who passed away a year ago and was the former president of the Lions Club, was very passionate about Emerson Park. He and Ashbaugh frequently took their children there when they were growing up and he was determined to do something about the missing tot lot.
“He’d had a passion about the park, so when we moved back to town and rejoined the Lions Club that was one thing he said he always wanted to do,” Ashbaugh said.
“The club is really trying to honor him and make sure that this happens because it meant a lot to him,” Prima said.
A huge lion statue will go in the new tot lot for the children to play on and the club hopes to place a placard with Alan Ashbaugh’s name on it somewhere in the new playground, Ashbaugh said.
It will take 60 to 90 days for the tot lot to be installed and Ashbaugh hopes to get it done in the fall, before the winter rains hit.
According to Ashbaugh, the Lodi Parks and Recreation Department has been on board since the very beginning.
“We have a long-standing partnership with the Lions Club, and we’re eternally grateful for their financial assistance to make those much needed improvements at Emerson Park,” Deputy Parks and Recreation Director Cathi DeGroot said.
The club met with city leaders to get approval on the equipment.
“They’ve been great to work with. They’ve been very happy that we’re going to do something like this,” Ashbaugh said.
According to Ashbaugh, the Lions Club worked with the city to get approval for the equipment and designs for the new tot lot. They looked at a couple of designs from different vendors and selected one they thought was a good fit for what they could afford.
The project is expected to cost between $35,000 and $40,000. The Lions Club has been raising money through various community events and has received a number of donations. An order for the equipment for the tot lot has already been placed. They are currently trying to raise the money needed for the installation work.
According to Prima, they are going to do most of the installations themselves, but will require at least a little professional help. They have raised more than $20,000 for the project.
The project is being supported through the club’s charitable foundation which provides scholarships and makes donations to local nonprofit organizations, high schools and community programs and projects. The foundations tries to do a major project each year that is around $5,000, so this project was a real stretch for them, Prima said.
The club hopes to secure more donations and raise more funds through upcoming events. The club will be having a crab feed in January. The feed is the club’s major fundraiser and generates up to $10,000, Prima said. They will also be hosting a barbecue Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. in Emerson Park to kick off their efforts on the tot lot, Ashbaugh said. “They will have all the drawings and renderings of the new tot lot for the public to review. Tickets for the barbecue are available at Hollywood Cafe, and are $15 for adults and $7 for children.
The Lions Club is just one of several service clubs and community organizations that assist with Lodi parks.
“The service clubs do a lot for the community, and I think people who are interested in helping the community should seek them out and get involved,” Prima said.
According to DeGroot, in addition to the Lions Club, the Lodi-Tokay Rotary Club, Kiwanis Club, the Lodi Boosters of Boys and Girls Sports., and the Grape Bowl Committee have also been long-standing community partners that have made contributions to Lodi parks.
“We have 26 parks to take care of, but any assistance we can get from service clubs such as Rotary, Lions, Kiwanis for capital improvements for our park system is greatly appreciated because a capital improvement program for our department is next to non-existent because we just don’t have the funds to deal with the deferred maintenance systemwide,” DeGroot said,
DeGroot said the LodiTokay Rotary Club has put a significant amount of money into Lodi Lake. Some of the proceeds from their Lodi Craft Beer Festival will go towards a capital improvement project for Lodi Lake, she said.
The Kiwanis has done various capital improvements for Lodi parks, and the Lodi B.O.B.S. has helped to install lighting and make various improvements to the sports fields. The Grape Bowl Committee has raised thousands for upgrades to the Grape Bowl stadium, DeGroot said.
Tree Lodi has also been very helpful in maintaining the city’s urban forest in several parks.
“These partnerships greatly assist in keeping a handful of our neighborhood and community parks safe and enjoyable,” DeGroot said. “However, the critical deferred maintenance problem throughout our park system is approximately $50 million. The onetime, project-related support received from our service clubs and community partners merely scratches the surface in solving our funding crisis.”