GROVER BEACH, CA – The City of Grover Beach Parks and Recreation Department is continuing its mission of advancing health, wellbeing and community in Grover Beach with new outdoor fitness and recreation offerings. The City is also working to improve outdoor spaces and facilities for the future including our premier event space Ramona Garden Park.

“Parks and Recreation is more important for our community now than ever before,” said Department director Kathy Petker. During the early COVID-19 stay-at-home orders, Parks and Recreation compiled a webpage full of resources for at-home fitness, education, play, nutrition and wellness. Now the Department is working to bring the community outdoors while following State health and safety guidelines. “We’ve been working hard to create safe opportunities for fitness and recreation that accommodate social distancing requirements. I’m heartened to see broad community participation once again in these types of programs.”

Through September 1, the Get Moving with Grover Beach challenge is tracking individual participants’ total miles walked, biked or ran through the month of August. With the recent wildfires and diminishing air quality, however, residents are also encouraged to track their miles while exercising indoors on equipment such as treadmills, ellipticals, stationary bicycles, etc. The cumulative total of miles for all Grover Beach residents will be announced on the City’s Facebook page, and one lucky participant will also win a Fitbit watch.

Following the Get Moving challenge, Parks and Recreation will introduce a variety of outdoor fitness classes to be held in Grover Beach parks beginning in September. Class offerings include Tai Chi, 9Round Kickboxing, Yoga, High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT), Beginner Roller-skating and Introduction to Dog Training, with additional offerings likely to be added in the future. Participants will safely gather via physical distancing to learn from professional instructors and connect with fellow Grover Beach residents, all while improving personal health. Grover Beach residents can contact the Parks and Recreation Department for more information on these classes and to learn how to sign up by calling (805) 473-4580.

Several of the outdoor fitness classes will take place in Ramona Garden Park, a central gathering place for the Grover Beach community. Beginning with initial public input in late 2019, the City has been working with RRM Design to develop a Master Plan for improvements and additions to the park. This Master Plan aims to enhance and showcase the park’s natural beauty, better serve the community by improving accessibility and features, improve functionality for special events and better integrate the park with the adjacent area. The draft Master Plan is posted on the City’s website and the community is encouraged to provide input on the proposed design by submitting comments to ramonapark@groverbeach.org through September 11, 2020. The Master Plan and community feedback will be discussed at the Parks, Recreation and Beautification Commission meeting on September 17 and the City Council meeting on October 5.

“The Ramona Garden Park Master Plan is a key opportunity to improve one of our premier public spaces,” said City Manager Matthew Bronson. “Ramona Garden Park is already loved and enjoyed, but this Master Plan will help us make this park even better in the future for our residents and visitors.”