Hayward: Greenwood Park reopened after $2.38 million facelift

Photo by: Elizabeth Renteria - H.A.R.D

HAYWARD - A larger and better version of Greenwood Park in Hayward's Mount Eden neighborhood reopened this week after more than a decade of planning and construction.

The park, which runs along Eden Avenue from Middle Lane to Denton Avenue, was rededicated Wednesday by Hayward Area Recreation and Park District administrators following a nearly one-year, $2.38 million upgrade project.

Improvements to the now four-acre park by Hayward-based Suarez & Munoz Construction include a new restroom building, two basketball courts, a skateboard plaza, paved walkways, two shaded group picnic structures and a community art piece.

Photo by: Elizabeth Renteria - H.A.R.D.

An interactive playground area also was added to the park. It includes musical instrument features, a sandbox area and a climbing wall.

Photo by: Elizabeth Renteria H.A.R.D

Plans to upgrade the park date back to at least 2005, when Pleasanton-based KB Home sought to build 149 houses across the street. Rather than provide open space within the development, the homebuilder set aside $1.83 million to improve Greenwood Park and expand it by purchasing a one-acre lot next to it.

But the San Mateo-based owner of the then-vacant lot at the corner of Denton and Eden avenues, Chang Income Property Partnership, rejected initial purchase offers from the city and KB Home.

In February 2013, city leaders negotiated with Chang and used about $655,560 in development fees to buy the lot, according to City Council records.

"We're always looking for funding, so it took a while before the area was developed and we had enough in-lieu fees from development to start the project," said Karl Zabel, of the park district.

"I think it was nice that the project involved the cooperation and collaboration of the city of Hayward as well as getting a lot of input from neighbors at the community meetings we had prior to the development," he said.

The park design by San Leandro-based RRM Design Group began in July 2013, when the first of two community meetings were held about the park's future. Amenities requested most by Mount Eden residents was a 4-foot-high fence around the park, a restroom, a second basketball court with adjustable hoops for kids, a baseball field or batting cage, and a walkway around the park.

The park was closed on July 6, 2015 for construction work to begin.

"I think it was a wonderful project," Zabel said.

Photo by: Elizabeth Renteria - H.A.R.D

Darin Moriki's article in the Eastbay Times

*Contact Darin Moriki at 510-293-2480 or follow him at Twitter.com/darinmoriki.