Published: 10/5/2020

By: Maryann Loya

Recently, the City of Peoria announced the opening of Paloma Community Park in north Peoria. This 85-acre park provides Peoria residents with a third community park to serve the Northwest and will be a welcomed amenity as the weather cools down. We talked with Parks, Recreation and Community Facilities Director John Sefton about all the details you need to know regarding Paloma Park.

When did Paloma Community Park officially open?
The official opening of the park was Saturday, Oct. 3, 2020. In an extra abundance of caution, no ribbon-cutting ceremony occurred but instead there was a virtual opening celebration on the city of Peoria’s social media pages.

Where is the new park?
The address is 29799 N. Lake Pleasant Pkwy. The entrance to the park is a new traffic light at the intersection of Lake Pleasant Pkwy. and Dixileta Dr., about one mile north of Westwing Blvd. and one mile south of the Loop 303. Visitors will drive along the west bank of the dyke and up and over the southern end, for an amazing surprise view of the entire park development and miles of open desert vistas.

What amenities can residents expect when they visit the park?
Paloma is Peoria's third destination community park, featuring a fourplex of baseball and softball fields, multipurpose fields, a community fishing lake, a three-acre, off-leash dog park, four pickleball courts, an inclusive playground, an interactive splash pad (though opening next spring April 15, 2021), picnic ramadas for family and corporate gatherings, two unique public art pieces that are especially engaging, looping pathways within the park proper, and views, views and more views!

One of the points-of-pride for the project is the design intention on accessibility and inclusion. Striving to ensure that the site can meet the needs of visitors of all ability levels, the team took particular focus on the elements that make life easier yet engaging for all. This includes functional spacing and appurtenances in restrooms, slopes and transitions at all useable areas, PECS (Picture Exchange Communication System) Boards at the play areas, and thoughtful locations for parking, rest-nodes, shade structures and landscaping.

I wish to extend a special recognition for the staff from Peoria Unified School District who supported our design and selection process. Their daily work with children and families with special needs helped to shape the functions and usability of the park's amenities.

What trailheads can be accessed from the park?
In the very near future, trailheads will connect to the Westwing Mountain Preserve and its existing trail network. A planning process is underway to formalize the connections to the Preserve areas east of Paloma Community Park witch will ultimately connect to the Sonoran Mountain Ranch neighborhood and the Eastwing Mountain Preserve and the New River Trail. At this time, we do not have official opening dates for these connections, so stay tuned to the park website www.peoriaaz.gov/paloma and the city social media channels.

Can you tell us how the name was chosen?
In May 2017, the city launched a summer long contest for naming the park. We received over 650 name submissions - mostly serious and strong contenders like those with a historical reference like "Frog Tanks Park" and some quite silly like "Parky McParkface" After weeding out the duplicates and inappropriate, over 500 were presented to the Parks and Recreation Board, the volunteer appointees that make recommendations to Mayor and council on parks issues. The board then went to work, vetting the ideas and concepts and narrowing down the field. With several public meetings and what seemed like endless debate, they ultimately narrowed to five recommendations for Mayor and council. On June 5, 2018, Mayor and council took formal action to name Peoria's newest recreation resource Paloma Community Park. Derived from the Spanish translation of "dove," the inspiration comes from the landform and geography that the site reveals from satellite images, with Eastwing and Westwing Mountain Preserves stretching to form the appearance of a dove with outstretched wings.

What can we expect from the fishing pond?
Fishing at all three of Peoria's community parks is made possible by our partnership with the Arizona Game and Fish Department. The Community Fishing Program is a statewide network of 45 waters in 22 communities that brings the family-friendly outdoor activity of fishing to all. Rio Vista, Pioneer and now Paloma Community Parks will all have brand new and long-time anglers hoping their bait choice will land them a catch!

What's next? Can you tell us about phase 2?
Our Mayor and council have held a long-time resolve to ensure that Peoria residents have access to recreation, sports, learning and leisure activities and our amazing Sonoran Desert open spaces. Paloma phase two is on the books, funded for development and operations, and will leverage the infrastructure investment of phase one. We have intentionally set the planning for phase two to begin after the park's opening and the community's first look at and use of the park. We will soon begin the selection process of the design-build team that will lead the public process, and ultimately the construction of phase two.

Be sure to visit Paloma Park as the open and check out all of their exciting amenities. We encourage all to keep an eye on the park website at www.peoriaaz.gov/paloma for updates and opportunities for their input to the amenity development process.