The long-awaited historical park honoring the city’s founder, John Price is open to the public after the completion of the latest round of improvements.
City dignitaries, Friends of Price House (FOPH) volunteers and community members attended ribbon-cutting ceremonies for the seven-acre Price Historical Park located at 100 Rancho Pismo Drive in Pismo Beach.
“I am a little bit of pion amongst giants being on this board,” said FOPH President Cynthia Brown. “There are so many amazing people with incredible skills and experience that they have built up over their history serving on this board. I watched it fill-in and, I am just thrilled and amazed.”
Phase one improvements included underground utilities, infrastructure for park security and fire protection, a new waterline, an all-weather emergency and fire access road, nifty new fencing and a 36-space paved parking area.
The project came with a $267,000 price tag, but the good news is it came in $35,000 under budget—somewhat of a rarity in today’s world.
It is said that good things come to those who wait, and waiting and working has been a part of the park’s history as well. The city council adopted the updated master plan for the park in 2013 after seven years of work by the volunteer non-profit FOPH, which worked with the Parks, Recreation and Beautification Commission, Planning Commission and Planning and Public Works departments as well as members of the public. FOPH had first drafted a master plan in 1999.
“All of these great improvements are here because of the hard work, and the Friends of the Price House constantly reminding us that it is their time and the time is now to make this park happen,” said Pismo Beach Mayor Shelly Higginbotham. “We truly appreciate their due diligence.”
Price Historical Park features the home and ranch of John Michael Price and his wife, Andrea, and their family. Price began the purchase of the ranch in 1848 while working it for the owner, Isaac Sparks, and moved his young family to the ranch in 1851. They occupied the original one-room adobe home of the 1840 Mexican Land Grant before moving into the larger home in 1853.
Former FOPH president and current vice-president Effie McDermott, who is also the proud mother of Brown, has been involved in the project since 1996.
“It feels unbelievably fantastic,” she told Coast News. “It has been in the planning (stages) to become a city park for 20 years, so today is the day that we cut the ribbon and recognize it as a city park. It is amazing how you plan and plan and plan on paper, but when it is physically constructed, it is amazing.”
Also on the grounds is a second historical home, the 1905 Meherin House, which once belonged to one of Price’s daughters and was originally located on Shell Beach Road. The two-story house was brought to the park area in 2001 in four pieces on trailers that had to climb the hill overlooking the park where a road did not exist.
“It sat there until it was slid down the hill in the rain at night,” said McDermott. “It was a controlled slide and then we had to put it in place. We had to build a new foundation, put in electrical, put a new roof on it, rebuilt the back of the house and painted it.”
The park also features Ortega-Price Tri-Gable adobes, a Chumash exhibit stone corrals and connection to Pórtola trail, Anza trail, El Camino Real.
“I love that when I come out to work, people are using this park now,” Brown told Coast News. “We are so easy going and hands-on out here that I’ve always got a reason to be out here. People come every day and I give tours all the time now. I probably give tours every other day.”
The next phase of improvements on the park would include public restrooms, restoration of the orchard, an interpretive signage program, a stronger connection to the Anza trail, a picnic grove, a play area, a creek-side trail, a trail with a scenic overlook, interpretive historical features, and an area for gatherings. Phase two is expected to be complete in 2018.
“Staff is continuing to pursue grants and other finding for these improvements,” said City Manager Jim Lewis.
Price Historical Park is the fifteenth park within the city.
Friends of Price House was incorporated in 1992 to preserve and restore the 1893 Price Anniversary House. In its 22 years of operation, the organization, along with hundreds of supporters and volunteers, has brought the Price Anniversary House forward to its nearing-complete condition of today, as well as worked with the city to bring the Meherin House. For more information or to schedule a tour, visit www.pricepark.org or call 773-7004.
