New Linnell-Brahma Park opens in south Bakersfield
As dozens of children played on the new equipment behind them, dozens of local officials and community members gathered in south Bakersfield Thursday to celebrate the opening of Bakersfield's 65th park.
"I can tell you this park's been a long time coming and many of the residents will tell you," said Bakersfield interim Recreation and Parks Director Darin Budak, speaking to a crowd of more than 50 adults, while children ran, climbed and swung all over the new equipment.
"It's taken us a while to get this park but it's definitely worth its weight in gold for us as the department," Budak said.
Funding for the park was first announced in 2020 but planning for the park dates back even earlier and construction of the park was delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Located at 6210 Brahma St., the Linnell-Brahma Neighborhood Park features amenities such as shaded playgrounds, shaded exercise stations, a six-foot-wide multiuse path, multiple picnic areas with barbecue grills and tables, a half-court basketball court, sand volleyball court and large areas of grass.
Young sycamore and oak trees were planted throughout the park which, several years from now, will provide additional shade.
As part of the grant requirements the park also includes a community mural by local artist Jesse Moreno, whose piece was chosen by community members from among three submissions.
The city of Bakersfield has been looking to add additional green space in the city in response to citizen requests.
Mayor Karen Goh said parks are a place where families and communities can come together and better their physical and mental health.
"It takes all of us joining our hearts together so that we can have a healthier lifestyle. So we can be more relaxed for our community. So we can celebrate the arts," Goh said.
Ward 1 Councilman Eric Arias, in whose ward the park is located, thanked community members for their continued advocacy for the park.
"I want to say thank you to everybody to my left who has reached out to me, who talked to me at the doors, who texted me, who took to the newspaper to say that we needed a park right here at Linnell-Brahma," Arias said. "So I want to give it up to you all."
A 2024 report from the national parks nonprofit Trust for Public Land estimated that 46% of Bakersfield residents live within a 10-minute walk of a public park and that the city spends roughly $108 per person on parks.
City Manager Christian Clegg told The Californian that thanks to additional funding from Measure N, the city was able to spend several million dollars on capital park projects.
"We did some pretty big catch-up on some deferred maintenance, but then we had a big campaign to put new playgrounds and new amenities in several of our different parks," Clegg said. "So we've been spending about $6 to $8 million in capital projects for the last four years."
Clegg said there are no other parks currently under construction but there are several in the planning phases.
"We have one new park in design, it's Antongiovanni Park by Miller Elementary, and then we have two other parks," Clegg said. "It's a Buena Vista Park over in Ward 5, and then Herschel Moore Park in Ward 7 are also two additional parks we're going to get into design so that then we can identify grant funding or other city funding to get those built as well."
The total cost of the project was $5.5 million, according to the city of Bakersfield, with roughly $3 million coming from a Statewide Park Development and Community Revitalization Program Grant created by Proposition 68 in 2018.
The Californian previously reported additional funding for the park came from various pools of money including the Park Improvement Fund, Capital Outlay Fund, Public Safety and Vital Services fund along with $1.4 million in budget transfers.
