CHICO — Over 100 Chicoans braved a chilly afternoon Friday to celebrate the grand reopening of Chapman Neighborhood Park, with a new focal point that should become especially welcome come summer.
Culminating a three-year process, the Chico Area Recreation and Park District flipped the switch on a splash-and-play feature just out of splashing distance from a towering new play structure. The park, adjoining the Dorothy F. Johnson Center on East 16th Street, also features basketball courts, a “reflexology” trail, new restrooms, a covered picnic area and multiple grassy areas.
Gavyn Dilley and her 2-year-old daughter, Harlow Locklin, were already at the playground before the festivities began. Harlow gleefully climbed up the blue spiral side and slid back down at what her mom said is her “new favorite” park.
“It’s wonderful,” Dilley said. Harlow’s expression matched the words on her shirt — “All Smiles” — as she enjoyed playing, checking out the water feature and receiving a frisbee to take home.
Among the handful of families who came for the ceremony were Veronica Castro and her grandchildren Mateo Ceja, 1; Nathan Fajardo, 2; Sophia Fajardo, 4; and Natalee Fajardo, 9. Mateo enjoyed a hot dog CARD provided as his grandma greeted friends.
CARD general manager Annabel Grimm and Chico-based landscape architect Greg Melton welcomed the crowd, which included City Councilor Deepika Tandon (whose district encompasses the Chapman neighborhood), CARD staff, construction crews, contributors such as the Chico Sunrise Rotary Club and, above all, neighbors.
In declaring the park officially reopened, Grimm said: “Let it stand as a symbol of collaboration, unity and the spirit of community.”
Erin Gonzales, recreation supervisor at the Johnson Center, explained a few moments later that the renovation stems from a grant for which CARD applied in 2021 and received funding approval in December 2022. The city augmented the funding with $500,000, and community members donated for certain elements (for instance, a bear sculpture in the splash park from the Rotarians and the trail from Melton’s design firm).
“Since the annexation of Chapmantown into the city of Chico, this park is the first major improvement in this neighborhood,” Tandon said after the ceremony. “This is an example of how great things happen when we work together as a team. It will bring the community together and give more opportunities for downtown living.”
Grimm said the splash park is Chico’s first, though it harkens to the fountain in City Plaza with subterranean jets shooting water upward.
Of the full renovation, Gonzales said: “It’s beautiful; I love it. I first worried everything wouldn’t meld and would look out of place — but I think it’s all fitting together well.”
