City officials stand on the site of the future Craftsman Village Park. Photo by Kaine Fini.

This Saturday, Mayor Bob Foster along with two councilmembers, employees from the Department of Parks, Recreation and Marine, and members of the Craftsman Village Historic District Neighborhood Association gathered at a small empty lot that will soon become Crafsman Village Park, the first green space in the century-old neighborhood. With shovels in their hands, the crew conducted a ceremonial groundbreaking for the .34 acre plot.

Located in the Craftsman Village Historic District on Orange Ave. between 8th St. and 9th St., the park will feature Craftsman-inspired fencing, native plants, trees, walkways, lighting, benches and picnic tables as well as a small turf area and play elements.

The project, funded by a $722,465 grant from the Proposition 84 Urban Parks Grant, is the brainchild of local community activists seeking to redeem the neighborhood and restore it to its full potential.

The building that used to occupy the site of the future park was condemned and demolished seven years ago. Soon after, the Craftsman Village Historic District neighborhood association persuaded the city to purchase the land and turn it into a much needed green patch in a densely populated neighborhood.

Dave Hernandez, an active participant of the association, praised councilmembers Garcia and Lowenthal for their openness to the proposal and for their unwavering support for the project by saying “it’s hard to find representatives so committed to the amelioration of the city. Robert and Suja really listened.”

The park, which will be closed from dusk till dawn, will have two entry points—a main one on Orange Ave. and a secondary one on San Pablo Ct. Work will actually begin o the park in August and is scheduled to end in the first months of 2013.

Though the neighborhood has commissioned murals and other beautification projects in recent decades, Craftsman Village Park will be the first city park in the historic district. The area is also currently seeing other improvements, such as the recent sewer upgrades on Orange Ave. and street restructuring on 7th St.