Park Advocacy

Clean & Green Pomona has been a strong voice for parks and open space in Pomona since 2019. We’ve effectively advocated to increase park impact fees to generate resources for future parks, successfully prevented the sale of 14 acres of park land to warehouse developers, worked to officially document our park land in the absence of an official parks master plan, and planted hundreds of trees across nine city parks.

Most importantly, in 2022 we released our vision for a Kid-Friendly Pomona Park System, which outlined five critical goals for improving our parks:

1. Increase park acreage to 4 acres per 1,000 residents. In 2022, the city officially had 1.25 acres of park for every 1,000 residents, well below the County average of 3.3 acres per 1,000 people. Through the addition of Greenbelt Park, the abandonment of the decision to sell Veterans Park, the official designation of other sites as park land, and the correction of errors in previous acreage calculations, in 2025 we increased park acreage to 1.61 acres per 1,000 residents. Furthermore, we successfully advocated for Westmont Hill to be designated as future park, adding another 327 acres to the system. When that park comes to fruition, we will be near 3.75 acres of park per 1,000 residents. The pathway to our goal of 4 acres of park for every 1,000 residents is increasingly clear.
2. Provide a park or green connection within 1/4 mile of every home. A key component of the Kid-Friendly Pomona Park System is a proposal for a “Green Tapestry” of park-like streets and greenways that connect parks and schools, and extend park amenities into neighborhoods that lack park land. We are actively advocating for recognition of this part of our vision so that future planning of city streets can incorporate this tapestry.
3. Enhance existing parks to increase activity. We have continuously advocated for, and supported improvements to our parks, including new play amenities, community center improvements, restroom improvements, and trail improvements. We’ve also advocated for an equitable and rational system for determining park improvements, as opposed to the current ad hoc process.
4. Activate parks through expanded recreational programming. Programming for youth and adults is essential to activate our parks and strengthen the social fabric of our community. Our plan calls for expanded programming for those with special needs, as well as evening activities that respond to increased heat we are experiencing as a result of climate change. In 2026 we have hosted a series of community workshops on the future park at the former Palm Lakes golf course. We want to make sure community voices are heard as the city begins their work on planning this new park.
5. Re-Establish a parks and recreation department. The city dissolved their parks and recreation department decades ago, signaling a de-valuing of this precious resource. The result has been catastrophic. Management of parks has languished as a result of being fragmented across multiple divisions, future planning for our park system has been non-existent, and staff expertise has been lacking. We strongly believe that in order to have the park system Pomona residents deserve, we need a parks and recreation department that prioritizes and advocates for kid-friendly parks.