South County cities unveil inclusive communication boards in parks.

Led by the City of Soledad, South County cities have a new amenity at some of their busiest parks: communication boards that will help non-verbal park-goers communicate with their family members and peers.

On July 20, South County residents, including County Supervisor Chris Lopez and his daughter Ines, gathered at Orchard Lane Park in Soledad for the ribbon-cutting ceremony. 

“Progress looks like this. It’s not always revolution, but evolution as we improve access and lower barriers for our kids one obstacle at a time,” Lopez wrote on social media.

The communication boards are located near the playgrounds in parks including Central Park in Gonzales; Orchard Lane and Vosti parks in Soledad; Patriot Park in Greenfield; and San Lorenzo Park in King City. The boards were customized to add local amenities such as a splash pad at Orchard Lane. They include illustrations with words in English and Spanish, including questions, actions, time and places. 

“Having this tool can help them to socialize with their peers,” Soledad City Manager Megan Hunter says. 

The initiative was sparked by a mother of four who has three children on the autism spectrum who used similar boards at a park in Coalinga. She shared her experience with others. Monica Andrade, who works with young children and is Soledad City Councilmember Fernando Cabrera’s wife, went to check them out with her family. Cabrera advocated bringing similar boards to South County. 

“He really championed them. He knew that we didn't have enough money, so he reached out to Supervisor Lopez and asked him if he would consider funding them,” Hunter says.

They reached out to Lopez’s office, which funded the seven boards using $13,000 of District 3 discretionary funds.