Residents Pitch In to Build Playground

Before the children could slide and swing in their new playground, the parents had to build it.

After more than a year of planning and fund-raising, Yorba Linda residents completed work Sunday on what they say is the county’s first community-built park.

The 11-acre Box Canyon Park had been set aside for public use by a local home builder, but it sat vacant for eight years because the developer went bankrupt.

With little city money available, residents raised funds for a playground and did the construction work.

Since July of last year, Friends of Box Canyon Park has raised $130,000 of the $150,000 needed to build the playground. The group hopes to have the remaining $20,000 in hand when the final bills are due.

About 1,500 residents of all ages, under the guidance of New York-based architect Leathers and Associates, worked to complete the park.

“It’s such a high,” said Linda Thorp, president of Friends of Box Canyon Park. “It’s like having a baby.”

The city has set aside an additional $100,000 for grading, drainage and other park improvements, Parks and Recreation Director Steve Rudometkin said. Though the park is officially open, Rudometkin estimated an additional $500,000 in improvements are needed.

The park, which does not yet have a street address, is at Via Lomas de Yorba West and Foxtail Drive. The playground takes up about 12,000 square feet and includes everything from a treehouse to slides.