Millbrae officials seeking direction for Mills Estate Park

City Manager Tom Williams said officials will take the direction from residents during the meeting and use that to shape the state grant application necessary to finance any potential upgrades at the park.

But the input offered at the meeting will not be the first strong opinions formed on the potential project, said Williams, who said speculation has already started to circulate throughout the community regarding potential plans for the site.

“The communication and feedback has been positive and healthy. It just unfortunately kind of got ahead of us, as things do with social media and how fast information can rip through a neighborhood and community,” said Williams.

To clarify the city’s position on the issue, and note that the project is only in its formative stages, Williams issued a community letter Monday, Oct. 19, noting that no decisions have been made regarding the potential project.

He said such a move was necessary, because information started circulating online suggesting that officials were planning to rebuild the park into a sports complex featuring soccer fields.

“It got ahead of the city, this whole idea and it just kind of grew that the city is going to put a sports field out there and we hadn’t talked to the community,” he said.

While admitting there is some interest among members of the local athletic community to see sports fields developed in a city starved for available field space, Williams said others opposed the proposal due to concerns regarding the changing dynamic of the neighborhood.

Rather than focus solely on the option that the park could become a sports complex, Williams said there are also discussions to transform it into a more passive setting with open fields, playground equipment or hiking trails.

And beyond the debate regarding sports facilities, Williams said feedback already received showed there is strong support for upgrading the site.

“Everyone believes the park should be improved,” he said.

Looking ahead, Williams said community input determining the preferred use for the park will be essential for officials seeking state grant funding necessary to pay for the work. He also attempted to manage expectations that the city will be selected to receive the grant, noting officials have applied for the funding twice and already been denied.

“Funding for this is a long shot. But at least we started healthy dialogue that will improve the neighborhood, use our assets and put some attention to the area,” he said.

The deadline to apply for the grant funding is in December, said Williams, who anticipated officials will not hear back on the proposal until the spring. If officials do not receive the grant, he said there is insufficient revenue to start the project and financing may need to be delayed until pending development projects start paying park improvement fees.

But to determine the amount of funding sought, Williams said a direction must first be selected for the project and that will be partially determined by the community feedback offered during the meeting.

“We are reaching out, starting to have a dialogue and figuring out the plan,” he said.

The community meeting starts 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 21. Visit https://www.ci.millbrae.ca.us/Home/Components/Calendar/Event/8964/23 for more information about the online login information.

austin@smdailyjournal.com