New Roseville park dedicated to Uribe

When he began his first term on the city's Parks and Recreation Comm-ission, David Uribe estimates there were approximately 15 to 20 parks in Roseville. These days, with Roseville growing so rapidly, many more parks now exist. And add one more to that list - David Uribe Park. The park will be dedicated at 10 a.m. Saturday at 3051 Empingham Way, located in Roseville's Stoneridge neighborhood, near Secret Ravine Parkway, just east of Sierra College Boulevard."I've seen some wonderful changes," said Uribe. "They're very progressive and they really know how to develop parks. We're really the envy of many other park systems in the state. It's just so far ahead of the curve."David Uribe Park is a 3-acre facility. It includes an open space and shaded picnic area, a half-court for basketball, children's play area, and a walking-biking trail that loops around the park.It was developed by Elliot Homes, with construction costs of $800,000 paid for by developer fees. Uribe, 77, worked in advertising sales for the Sacramento Bee for 27 years and retired in 1991. A native of El Paso, Texas, his family relocated to Roseville in 1929. "My dad was working for the railroad at the time. He got employment here and sent for the family," Uribe said. Uribe remains heavily involved in community activities, ranging from volunteering with the St. Vincent de Paul Food Locker Program, Senior Citizen's Commission, participating in the Mayor's Cup Golf Tournament and other duties. He also works with Reaching Out and Sharing Experiences, a group that helps build rapport between senior citizens and local high school students. Tara Gee, senior landscape architect for the city, said Uribe Park's multi-use appeal was key to integrating it into the Stoneridge neighborhood.The entire planning process took about two years from the beginning of the early concept to completing the project, she said. "We focus a lot on neighborhood input. It's a beautiful park," she said. "Once it's complete, Elliot Homes turns it over to the city for maintenance. It's a turnkey park. It's what we call one of our neighborhood parks, with a multi-use field. It was really important to have some ability to be flexible with what we do out there."Uribe said he is honored to have a park named after him. "The elevation is about 400 feet," he said. "It looks down on the city and it's really nice."- Jason Probst can be reached at jasonp@goldcountrymedia.com.