With the help of the Park Santiago Neighborhood Association to develop a plan and with $3.5 million from various sources to complete the work, the city of Santa Ana held a ribbon cutting ceremony on Tuesday, Oct. 3, for the grand re-opening of Santiago Park.
City officials and residents from the nearby neighborhood of Park Santiago, located on the north side of the city, gathered beneath the shade of mature oak trees in the city’s only wilderness park for the celebration.
“It’s beautiful, clean and it’s a place where you want to bring your children,” Mayor Valerie Amezcua said of what’s been created. “To the community that lives around here, congratulations, you have a beautiful new park.”
Katherine Bowers, a resident of Park Santiago since 1988, said she has seen the park “at so many phases along the way and now it’s really nice to see it so user friendly.”
The project, which took two years to complete, includes accessible concrete walkways, an amphitheater, picnic areas, a new multi-level playground, new landscaping, lighting and renovated restrooms.
The park extends from the eastern side of Main Street, following along both sides of Santiago Creek, just south of East Memory Lane to the 22 Freeway. The Santiago Creek Bike Trail, along with a separate walking trail, wander the through the length of the park, which is shaded by large oak and sycamore trees.
