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A new 10-acre neighborhood park at 97th Drive and Williams Road expected to open later this year will come with a recently approved name.
The Peoria City Council voted to name it Liberty Park after the nearby high school.
Councilman Jon Edwards motioned for the name and the council approved it unanimously.
The extensive public outreach and naming process produced 86 separate names submitted online and otherwise.
The process included a public meeting at Liberty High School for input on the park design and theme amenities, April 18, 2019. The Parks and Recreation Board subsequently held public discussion on the park at two meetings, June 20 and September 19, 2019.
The board requested that staff create a public input form to gather additional community insight and ideas. A web-based form was made available Oct. 14-Nov. 11, with promotion on the Parks, Recreation and Community Facilities Department website, Nextdoor.com and through neighboring HOA distribution lists.
The board narrowed the list of names to five and recommended them to council, who made the final decision, per city policy. The other name finalists were, in no particular order: Los Prados Park, Williams Park, Hummingbird Park and Thunderstone Park.
Mr. Edwards thanked staff and those who participated in the process.
“This is really civic engagement and residents wanting to get involved in their local community,” he said.
The neighborhood park is located in the north section of the Camino a Lago site within The Meadows community. The developer-driven $4.4 million project will include amenities such as playgrounds, picnic shelters, hard court surfacing, landscaping, restroom, lighted multi-use fields, among others, according to the 2020 Capital Improvement Program.
Philip Haldiman can be reached at 623-876-3697, phaldiman@newszap.com, or on Twitter @philiphaldiman.
Philip Haldiman is a third generation Arizona native with brief residencies on the east and west coasts.
He has bachelor’s degrees in Theater and Journalism at Arizona State University, and is an award winning journalist with more than 15 years worth of experience in reporting and editing.
Most recently, he took first place for investigative reporting and third place for best sustained coverage or series at the 2023 Arizona Newspapers Association awards.
In his free time, he produces an autobiographical comic book about his time spent in Hollywood and his life as a cult film star.