Santa Clara Parks
Since 2016, Gates + Associates has partnered with the City of Santa Clara’s Park & Recreation Department to assist with multiple park renovation and public works projects as an on-call landscape architecture consultant. As prime consultant, GATES has provided master planning services, schematic design, design development, construction documents, and construction support for improvements at a wide range of park sites. Our team also facilitated community outreach for each unique site, working directly with the community to identify goals and needs, soliciting feedback on design concepts, and building consensus to develop a preferred vision for the following parks:
Each park design implements the following guiding principles:
Use research based best practices and comply with all current Codes.
Incorporate principles of inclusive playground design in the individual elements and the overall site plan.
Incorporate seven elements of play (balancing, swinging, sliding, climbing, brachiating spinning, and running/free play) at the beginner, intermediate and advanced levels of play.
Increase playground capacity while maintaining unique character of the existing park.
Provide “age friendly” (multigenerational) spaces.
Integrate nature and habitat (California native, drought resistant palate) into play environments.
Provide outreach/education and master planning with residents and community partners.
Address safe routes to parks (system connectivity) and American Disability Act (ADA) requirements within the park.
Be sustainable (in materials, construction, life cycle, operations, and maintenance)
Everett N. “Eddie” Souza Park & Community Garden
Completed in 2018
GATES developed this new 2-acre park on the San Tomas Aquino Creek Trail from a conceptual master plan through construction documents and construction administration. Features include a barn themed restroom and storage facility, on-site parking lot, entry plaza, multi-use lawn, an off-leash dog area, interpretive signage of six topics for self-guided tour, age-appropriate play areas, a shade picnic area, loop path, demonstration garden, and a community garden with a covered outdoor classroom.
Award: 2019 APWA Project of the Year
Central Park Master Plan
Completed 2020
GATES partnered with the City of Santa Clara’s Park & Recreation Department to create a coherent vision and guide for Central Park’s future improvements by establishing a set of principles, community-supported priorities, and appropriate professional design criteria. The Master Plan addresses issues such as:
Repurposing the existing 3-acre site of the ISC.
Maximizing green space with the park.
Improving access, circulation and parking
Designing or including new park facilities and recreation elements that serve all ages, abilities and interests.
Using guiding principles as mutually supportive lens, to be implemented together.
This plan also identifies short-term to long-term projects in a 20-year time frame.
Homeridge Park
Completed in 2021
GATES served as project prime to rehabilitate this 6-acre neighborhood park. Informed by extensive community & stakeholder input gathered through interactive workshops, the revitalized neighborhood park offers a woodland-themed age-appropriate play area, a loop path, sports courts, a large picnic area with BBQs and low water use plantings.
Montague Park
Completed in 2022
As Project Prime, GATES led the rehabilitation of this 5.5-acre park, with the refreshed site including playgrounds, senior fitness stations, half basketball courts, and picnic areas.
GATES led a team to rehabilitate this 5.5-acre park. The project included a full renovation of Montague Hall, adding a 1,160SF restroom & storage facility to the building, upgrading fire sprinkler system, lighting, and accessibility to meet code compliance, and Wi-Fi & security system of card readers with security cameras. Other site enhancements included improvements to electrical infrastructure, site lighting, inclusive play areas, covered group picnic area, fitness stations, looped pathways, pervious pavement systems to remove the need for stormwater treatment, and a lawn conversion to drought-tolerant plantings.
Westwood Oaks Park
Completed in 2024
GATES led the design team to assess the existing Community building, restroom and park facility including review of building components, MEP, fire alarm, accessibility, site lighting, irrigation system, existing vegetation, and park program uses as the basis to develop the park master plan and playground design. Our team utilized a community outreach process to select a natural playground system for implementation. Additional items included coordination of electrical services with SVP, recycled water irrigation design, looped walking paths, picnic areas, basketball court and the development of a landscape ‘gateway’ highlighting the entry into the park.
