Coleman Park-Time for a Change

By John Holguin 

Coleman Park has been part of the Morro Bay community for a long time. The park used to be a skate park before it was filled with concrete and turned into a basketball court. The park also includes swings and kayak storage. This little park is located right by the water, making it a great spot to spend time with family and friends. However, with parks all around SLO County continuing to grow and remodel, Coleman Park’s age is starting to show. The basketball court is riddled with cracks in the concrete, the hoops are aged, and the backboard paint has faded. The swings are rusty and old and there are only six swings in total. There are a couple of tables in front of the swings but these tables are also old and have tiny cracks on the surface of the table. 

What would be a good solution?

The park is old and outdated compared to other parks, which means that it will be expensive to remodel, and the city will most likely not want to pay for a project this big. However, if the court was remodeled to at least be modernized or look somewhat more decent than it already does, it would benefit the community a lot. As someone who visits this court frequently, the hoops are very hard to shoot on. If you even graze the edge of the big metal rim, your ball is going to go flying toward the fence and you have to run over to the fence to get it. The backboards are even glass, there metal, and the whole hoop is made of industrial cheap metal, the only part that isn’t metal is the net. The swings would also need to be replaced because the rust is a health risk for kids and adults. Since the chains on the swings are very rusted from the weather, the rust can cause a tetanus infection to a cut area on the body and would require a tetanus shot.

Other parks around the county have been remodeled to suit the community better. Why can't Morro Bay? I think it would make the Embarcadero look slightly nicer than it currently does and would also be a nice change for hoopers such as myself or someone who uses the park regularly, such as Morro Bay resident, Paul Vincent. When asked about the basketball court quality he said, “it’s an ok court to play on, but if you are getting to that age where your body starts to get weak like me this court poses a risk to me getting hurt because of how old the court is. I think if it was updated, it would be of better quality to not only myself but the community and everyone that uses it.”