MEDIA ADVISORY: City and School District Break Ground on Long-Awaited Wegeforth Elementary School Joint-use Park

MEDIA ADVISORY, 3-25-15

CONTACT: Cynthia Reed-Porter, 619-546-3378 (mobile)

WHAT:  More than 200 students and community members will join City of San Diego Council Member Scott Sherman, San Diego Unified School District Trustee Kevin Beiser, Superintendent Cindy Marten and Principal Lori Sandoval as they celebrate the start of construction on the new Wegeforth Elementary School (ES) Joint-use Park in Serra Mesa.

WHEN:  Thursday, March 26 - 10:30 to 11 a.m.

WHERE: Construction site at Wegeforth Elementary School, 3443 Ediwhar Ave., San Diego, CA 92123 (field on west side of campus). Media parking will be available on site. Enter gate where Village Glen Dr. and Village Colum Drive meet. Call Cynthia Reed-Porter at 619-546-3378 (mobile) for site map or assistance in accessing the site.

VISUALS: Dignitaries, students and community members don hard hats then break ground (end of ceremony), student-led Pledge of Allegiance and National Anthem, performance by kindergartners, student speaker, poem recitation about namesake, Harry Wegeforth; colored display boards with project drawings, construction equipment, and 200-plus students in attendance.

GUEST SPEAKERS/INTERVIEWS: Andres Cadena, Wegeforth ES Student Council president; Diann Eble, Wegeforth teacher of 50 years (poem recitation); City of San Diego Council Member Scott Sherman, District 7; San Diego Unified School District Board Trustee Kevin Beiser, San Diego Unified School District Superintendent of Public Education Cindy Marten, and Principal Lori Sandoval.

Others speakers available for interviews include Deputy Director Kathy Ruiz, Park and Recreation Department, City of San Diego; Deputy Director Mark Nassar, Public Works Department, City of San Diego; and Chief Facilities Planning & Construction Officer Lee Dulgeroff, San Diego Unified School District.

PROJECT OVERVIEW: The Wegeforth Elementary School Joint-Use Park is an approximately 4-acre joint-use facility at Wegeforth ES in the Serra Mesa Community Plan Area. The more than $2.3 million in proposed improvements include turfed multi-purpose sports field, courts, walkways, landscaping, parking, security lights, drainage, comfort station and accessibility upgrades. This project will promote the community's recreational, social and cultural activities and has garnered a high degree of public support. The joint-use park was conceptually designed in conjunction with the community and within the guidelines of the Serra Mesa Community Plan. Site construction is beginning in March and anticipated to be completed Dec. 2015.

BACKGROUND: The city and school district have a long-standing agreement--established in 1948 and updated in 2002--to maximize shared use of schools and/or park land to mutually benefit the community and school. The facilities shared by the city and the school district include multipurpose turf fields, lighted athletic fields, tennis courts, gymnasiums, parking facilities and libraries. In total, the school district and the city currently have nearly 80 joint-use agreements.

CONTACTS:
. San Diego Unified School District: Cynthia Reed-Porter, Facilities Communications Supervisor, Communications Department, 619-546-3378 (mobile), creed-porter@sandi.net
. City of San Diego: Racquel Vasquez, Senior Public Information Officer, Communications Department; 619.533.4587, rvasquez@sandiego.gov

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