Mark Allan, vice president of the Friends of Del Cerro (FODC), announced the new basketball backboards for the recently resurfaced basketball court at the Princess Del Cerro Park have been installed.

The new backboards were purchased by the FODC at a cost of $2,000 and include a new basket and net. Through the effort of Kelly Wood, the city’s park and recreation area manager for this area, the City of San Diego resurfaced the basketball court and installed the backboards.

After several postponements due to weather and scheduling conflicts, the long-awaited tour of Adobe Falls was held on Monday, Feb. 7. The tour, conducted by Adobe Falls authority, included SDSU professor Dr. Eric Frost, Dr. John Love, Professor of Biochemistry, SDSU Vice President of Business and Financial Affairs and Chief Financial Officer Agnes Wong Nickerson, SDSU Associate Vice President, Real Estate, Planning & Development Bob Schulz, SDSU Associate Vice President Business Operations Eric Hansen and members of the FODC board of directors and Del Cerro residents.

Jackie O’Connor, the president of the FODC commented, “We were very pleased to have the four graduate students from SDSU’s Public Administration and Criminal Justice Department join us on the tour. The FODC was again selected to participate in a Capstone Project through SDSU. The graduate students are collecting data as part of the second phase of an assignment to evaluate solutions for the safety of Del Cerro residents specifically targeting the impact of all the trespassing through city of San Diego and private property as individuals continually trek to Adobe Falls.”

A Capstone Project, like its namesake, represents the pinnacle achievement of a student’s academic career. It is a two-semester senior/Masters design project that all SDSU students are required to complete in their final year. Senior students work in teams that are structured like an industrial design team, with specific tasks for each member based on their major and experience. They work under the joint guidance of a faculty advisor and a mentor from the industry on real projects and problems that come directly from SDSU’s partners.

At the end of the tour, everyone agreed we should schedule a meeting within the next month to further discuss the potential to SDSU in developing the area including agricultural and environmental uses.

The FODC’s Neighborhood Watch Committee recently met and finished the plans to install 20 Neighborhood Watch signs in neighborhoods surrounding Hearst Elementary School. The signs were also purchased by the FODC.

For more information about the FODC visit our website at friendsofdelcerro.org

Our Park and Recreation Centers in Allied Gardens and San Carlos are hosting spring events on Saturday, April 2. The Allied Gardens event is from 10 a.m. to noon and is located at 5155 Greenbrier Ave. The recreation staff says “Please join us for a morning filled with lots of fun activities for kids of all ages! We will have basket decorating, bunny face craft, and each child may take home their very own bag of fun filled eggs! Join us for the fun. For more information, call (619) 235-1129.”

The San Carlos Recreation Center’s event “Spring Celebration” will be from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. and is located at 644 Lake Badin. “As we continue to try and remain safe during the ongoing pandemic in place of our traditional egg hunt, we will have pre-filled candy bags to hand out (while supplies last). Join us for some fun spring carnival games, crafts, and a picture with the Spring Bunny. We hope to see you here!”

Sadly, I report the passing of John Peterson at age 94. He was an original resident of Allied Gardens (1954) and an individual totally dedicated to helping his community. John was a member of the Grantville-Allied Gardens Kiwanis Club 50 years. He was a founding member of the Allied Gardens Spring Fest, and year after year he could be seen helping residents select a Christmas tree at the Kiwanis lot on Zion Avenue. These are just a few of the never-ending number of events and projects John participated in. He was a very good friend to me and to everyone who new John!

Photo by Mark Allan