Santa Nella's First Park Is Getting Its Pipes Before Its Playground
"He asked if I knew of any parks in the area, and, honestly, I didn't realize until that moment that, no, there were no parks in Santa Nella." That is Merced County District 5 Supervisor Scott Silveira, telling the Westside Express in 2023 about a newcomer he met at a community event near Gustine. Nearly three years later, the lot at the northwest corner of Luis Avenue and Vera Cruz Drive is close to its first construction crew. That crew's contract covers grading and underground utilities, with no playground equipment included.
The money Santa Nella has in hand pays for grading, water and sewer lines, storm drains and a driveway. The swings, the courts, the shade and the restrooms are a separate project with a separate price, about $5 million. As of this fall, no funding application for that second phase is on the county's record.
The amount comes from November 2023. State Senator Anna Caballero announced she would present Santa Nella with a $310,000 check toward "the first and only park for residents." The same release spelled out the money's job in plain terms: "site grading, preparation and utility installation." So the playground was never part of that grant.
The Merced County Board of Supervisors confirmed the split on June 2, 2026. Its agenda item says the park "was designed to be constructed in two phases due to funding constraints." It also says the $310,000 in Local Assistance Specified Grant Funding covers Phase I.
| Phase I | Everything after | |
|---|---|---|
| Work | Grading, domestic water connections, sanitary sewer, storm drains, driveway approach and apron, curb and gutter | Play areas, full and half multipurpose courts, picnic areas, shade structures, game tables, exercise equipment, restrooms, parking lot, turf, trees, walking paths |
| Money | $310,000 state grant | About $5 million more, per the county |
| Status | Bid closed Sept. 10, 2026 | To be bid "when additional funding becomes available" |
The second column needs roughly sixteen times the money that has been raised so far.
The parcel spent years doing nothing. The Westside Express reported that it was originally set aside for commercial use and sat dormant as ownership passed between agencies. Local advocate Patricia Ramos-Anderson, who lobbied to put the land to community use, told the paper: "There have to be parks."
From there, the record runs like this:
The grant came in late 2023. The shovels are coming close to three years later. The grant's performance period runs from July 1, 2023 through June 30, 2027, so Phase I has a fixed deadline.
The county's bid notice lists the Phase I work as "sidewalks and site utilities for a new public park," including driveway approaches, curb and gutter, concrete flatwork, storm drains, and sewer and water lines. Anyone driving down Luis Avenue during that work will mostly see trenches and forms for concrete.
The schedule is short once it starts. Under the contract terms in the bid specifications, work must begin within 10 working days after the notice to proceed. Everything, punch list included, must be finished within 45 working days. That comes to about nine weeks of weekdays. As of mid-October, the latest county document on the contract is the September intent to award.
The finished layout also shows where the work will land. Two driveways will come off Luis Avenue to reach the parking lot. Pedestrian entrances are planned on Vera Cruz Drive, on Luis Avenue, and at the corner where the two meet. The driveway approaches and curb work in Phase I are the first permanent pieces of that plan.
The environmental study describes the full build. It covers all 2.96 acres and includes play areas, a full and a half multipurpose sport court, picnic areas, shade structures, game tables, exercise equipment, restrooms, a parking lot, trees, turf and a stormwater retention area. The county's park plans label one court for tennis and pickleball and another for basketball.
Every one of those features sits in the unfunded column. The June 2 Board item says the remaining work "will be bid at a later date when additional funding becomes available." It puts the gap at approximately $5 million. The county has not set a date for the second phase.
That makes Phase I a down payment. It gets utilities to the site, grades the ground and sets the curb lines, so whatever money comes later goes straight into the parts families will use.
There is a state grant round open right now. California State Parks' Statewide Park Development and Community Revitalization Program is taking Round 5 applications through Dec. 17, 2026. The round is funded by $188.5 million from Proposition 4, the climate bond. Requests can run from $200,000 to $8.5 million, and no local match is required. The maximum request is larger than Santa Nella's entire remaining gap.
Merced County has asked its Board for permission to apply to this round. The Oct. 20, 2026 Board of Supervisors agenda listed a proposed resolution that would authorize the Public Works Director to apply for Round 5 funds "for the next phase of improvements at Beachwood-Franklin Community Park." No matching Santa Nella Park application appears on the county agendas so far this fall.
The 2023 story shows what has moved this project before. Residents and youth advocates met with Caballero "a number of times via zoom." A conversation with a new resident near Gustine is what first put the gap on Silveira's radar, according to the Westside Express. The next steps also happen in public. The county posts its Board agendas online, Supervisor Silveira represents Santa Nella in District 5, and Public Works' park contact is Deputy Director Juan Bravo at (209) 385-7601.
When the first crew shows up at Luis and Vera Cruz, it will be laying pipe and pouring curb. Who pays for the playground is still undecided.
Projects like this one change how a small Westside community works day to day, and I follow them as closely as I follow sales. If you have questions about Santa Nella, the parcels around this corner, or how county projects come together out here, Christine Kinsley is glad to talk it through. Let's Connect.
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