ROSSMOOR : Services District Clears Way for Parks

The board of directors of the Rossmoor Community Services District has approved a declaration that affirms something a lot of people already know--that creating parks does not harm the environment.

Board members approved the “negative declaration” by a 4-1 vote, clearing the way for two small parks proposed for the community. The declaration, which will be filed with the county clerk, means that there is nothing about the construction or existence of the parks that will damage the environment.

The California Environmental Quality Act as well as the district’s own environmental impact report guidelines require that such a declaration be approved before work can begin at the park sites.

One park will be on Foster Road near Copa de Oro Drive; the other, on Kempton Drive at Silver Fox Road. Rossmoor Park, which is 10 acres, is now the only park in the community.

Each will be about one-half acre and have picnic tables, shaded areas, lawns and landscaping. The Kempton Drive park will have a children’s play area.

“The sites are abandoned water pump stations,” said Dan Stone, district general manager. “There is some above-ground piping and casing we have to work around, but it’s really no problem.” Work could begin as early as February, Stone said.

Director Joyce Bloom cast the no vote, citing an increase in noise and concerns for the safety of nearby residents.

“I think it behooves us to think about our neighbors,” Bloom said. “I’m sure when people moved in there they had no idea a park would be built practically in their back yard.”

The other directors said they believed that the positive aspects of having two more parks in the community outweighed the drawbacks.

“I think there’s been a lot of to-ing and fro-ing about this,” Board President Clair Weeks said. “What it comes down to is that this is an excellent use of two substantial properties.”

A $31,000 state grant will pay for most of the project. The district will provide the additional $11,430 needed, Stone said.

Rossmoor is an unincorporated community of nearly 12,000 residents west of Los Alamitos in North County. The Community Services District maintains the area’s public greenbelts and streets, and also oversees recreation programs and park improvements.

In its fiscal 1989-90 budget approved in June, the district board of directors earmarked $232,570--or 24.5% of its budget--for parkland acquisition and improvements. That is a 53.5% increase over funds budgeted for the previous year.